Unified Solid Solution Product of [Nb][C] in Nb-Microalloyed Steels with Various Carbon Contents

In this work, the solid solution product of [Nb][C] in the Nb-microalloyed steels with various carbon contents in the range of 0.20~1.80 wt.% was investigated by means of the extraction phase analysis method. The results showed that the Nb content in austenite tended to first decrease and then increase with the increase of carbon content in the steels. A unified solid solution product of [Nb][C] in austenite at different temperatures was obtained according to the results of the experimental steels. The Nb content in austenite of the experimental steels with high carbon contents was lower than that calculated by Ohtani’s equation. The existence of NbC precipitates in the case and the core of the specimens carburized at 930 °C and 980 °C were verified by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) observations. The pinning effect of NbC precipitates on austenite grain growth was calculated according to the size and amount of NbC precipitates in the carburized case and the core of the carburized specimens. The calculated results of prior austenite grain sizes were in good agreement with the experimental results, which indicated that the unified solid solution product of [Nb][C] in Nb-microalloyed steels with various carbon contents was applicable for the low-pressure carburizing process.