Microstructural Factors That Decrease the Local Strength of Grain Boundaries in Martensitic Steels

As a result of the phase transformation of austenite to martensite during steel quenching, weakened structural regions, specifically the boundaries of the original austenite grains, have been formed. They are weakened because of microstructural factors, such as the residual internal microstrains and segregation of embrittling impurities. The joint effect of microstructural factors, namely, residual microstrains and segregation of phosphorus and carbon at grain boundaries, on reducing the local strength of the boundaries of the initial austenite grains in martensitic steels is quantitatively evaluated, and the impacts of these microstructural factors have been separated. The dependences of the local grain-boundary strength on the ratio of various levels of residual microstrains and on the atomic concentration of phosphorus impurities at the grain boundary in segregation spots have been determined. It has been shown quantitatively that the adsorption enrichment of the austenite grain boundaries with phosphorus leads to a decrease in the intergrain adhesion and facilitates the emergence and development of cracks along the boundaries of the initial austenite grains. The quantitative dependence of the local strength of grain boundaries on the concentration ratio of carbon and phosphorus in them has been shown. Carbon in concentrations of up to 0.04% reduces the embrittlement of the boundaries due to the segregation of phosphorus and loses its neutralizing effect on the phosphorus segregation at concentrations of more than 0.04%, so the phosphorus concentration at the grain boundaries increases and the embrittlement resistance of the latter decreases. The applicability of the developed technique for the quantitative evaluation of the local strength of hardened steel grain boundaries by using tests on delayed fracture and applying the method of finite elements to determine the local strains has been shown.