Steel Development Activities at CSIR-NML

An Overview

V. C. Srivastava

CSIR - National Metallurgical Laboratory

Jamshedpur – 831 007, India
Major application areas of steel
Automobile applications
I Steering I Seat
Rack bar Seat spring
Pinion gear
Yoke
Tie-rod
I Engine
Crankshaft
Camshaft
Piston pin
Connecting rod
Rockerarm shaft

I Shared parts
Bolt
Nut
Gear

I Suspension
I Power train Shock absorber
Differential gear
Steering knuckle
Output shaft
Clutch Stabiliser
Front axle Hub unit
Pint yoke
Joint propeller shaft

http://www.jfe-steel.co.jp/en/products/wirerods/use/index.html
Automotive applications
> Steel for safety critical parts,
especially for maintaining a
passenger survival space in crash
events

> High strength steels with a good

balance of strength, formability,
energy absorption and durability

> Steels with excellent formability

(e.g. deep drawing)

Strength, toughness, weldability,

environmental conditions, formability

Corus Automotive. (2009, Dec)

Other applications
Pin
Hydraulic cylinder rod
Shaft
Gear
Turn ring

Reduction
gear
Slewing ring
Bearing Link rotor
Tower flange
Tie bars

Turn ring
High tension
bolts

Headed studs
High tension
nuts
Engine bolt
Connecting rod
Other applications
- For oil and gas transportation

- National and international borders

(hot and cold conditions)

- High strength leads to increased

rate of transport

- Steel saving for a specific strength

Linepipes

Excavator buckets Tipper bodies

Challenges
- Input material

- S/W ratio

- Toughness

- Fatigue strength

- Machinability

- Impact strength

- Wear resistance

- Corrosion resistance
3rd Generation steels
Design consideration for 3rd generation steels

Superposition of predicted strength/ductility combinations of

hypothetical ferrite/martensite and austenite/martensite mixtures

Rosado et al., Sustainable Construction and Design 2013

Design consideration for 3rd generation steels

Schematic of the Q&P process for production of austenite-containing

microstructures starting with 100% austenite

D. K. Matlock and J.G. Speer (2006)

Design consideration for 3rd generation steels

Predicted mechanical property combinations corresponding

to ferrite plus austenite with the different austenite stabilities
D. K. Matlock and J.G. Speer (2006)
Design consideration for 3rd generation steels

Predicted mechanical property combinations corresponding

to ferrite plus austenite with the different austenite stabilities
D. K. Matlock and J.G. Speer (2006)
Wear Resistant Steels
  No additional treatment
New Martensite + Retained  Improved Abrasion
Material austenite Resistance and
Toughness
 Isothermal Partitioning Non-isothermal Partitioning
Hot Rolling
deformation
Ac3

Quenching on
Run Out Table
Two step Q&P
PT > QT
Temperature

Ms

Dynamic
One step Q&P QT= PT = CT Coil cooling
QT = PT

Time
 Integrated approach
 Conventional Approach  Utilizes the heat remaining with
 Requires additional facility for heat-treatment hot-rolled coil
Design consideration for 3rd generation steels

Dilatometry study on Q& P

&
Evolution of stable austenite

B. D. Cooman, Mettrans (2014)

Bansal et al., Metallurgical and Materials Transactions A, vol. 49 (8), 2018, pp. 3501-14
Bansal et al., Metallurgical and Materials Transactions A Comm., vol. 50 (2), 2019, pp. 547-555.
Air cooled bainitic steel through alloy design
 Avoid distortion in Quench and Tempering.  Hardness  Toughness
 No isothermal treatment required.  Strength  Low CE

C Cr Mn Si Mo B Ti
0.12-0.17 2.5-3.5 0.4-0.6 1.5-2.0 0.3- 0.6 0.002-0.005 0.1-0.3

Steel Hardness, BHN Specific Wear Rate,

mm3/N-m (x10-5)
Martensite 400±10 92±3
Present steel 380±10 38±2
UTS (MPa) YS (MPa) Elongation Toughness
(%) (J)
1330-1366 807-863 ~15 ~25

 Fine bainite require high driving force and low Bs

temperature
 Abrasion resistance is predominately dependent on
bainite lath thickness.
Medium Mn Automotive Steels
 C Si Mn Al P S Fe
0.09 1.24 4.75 0.64 0.038 0.007 Rest
Elements C Si Mn S P Al
Wt. % 0.21 0.58 3-3.5 0.0042 0.012 0.566

Cycle YS(MPa) UTS(MPa) %El MPa%

Cycle 1 649 875 29.5 25821
Cycle 2 573 1067 27.6 29406
Cycle 3 485 1081 21.6 23392
Linepipe steels
Strengthening mechanisms
Grain size Solid solution
(50-60% (20-30%
contribution) contribution)

Grain Solid
Refinement Solution

Strength

Precipitation Dislocation

Size
and volume
fraction Density
(10-15% contribution) (5-10% contribution)
 Dilation curves indication
start and end of various
transformations

CCT diagram prepared using

the dilation data
(a and b) FCT 500 C and (c and d) FCT 300; cooled at 10 C/s followed by
1 C/s to room temperature.
Dual phase (DP) steels
Continuous annealing cycle for cold rolled DP 590
Steel with high formability, ductility and stretch flangeability from cold rolled full hard sheet

 Plant thermal cycle is divided

into three stages

 Microstructure and property

obtained for different
parameters (temperature,
Temperature

time, cooling rate etc.)

 Microstructures reveal good

distribution of fine martensite.

 Understanding of the effect of

each thermal stage led to
optimized thermal cycle
Time design.
 Annealing cycle optimization experiments
Stage 1 Stage 2
900 900
800 800 5.0K/s
Temperature ( 0C)

Temperature ( oC)
700 700
600 600
830-FC
500 500
810-FC FC
400 790-FC 400 830-5k/s-660-FC FC
750-FC 810-5K/S-660-FC
300 300
790-5K/S-660-FC
200 200
100 100
0 0
143.35 193.35 243.35 293.35 343.35 393.35 443.35 493.35 141.80 191.80 241.80 291.80 341.80 391.80 441.80 491.80
Time (s) Time (s)
900 Stage 3 900
800 800
5 K/S
Temperature (oC)

5.0K/s
700 700 810-5K/S-500-30K/S-300-FC

Temperature (oC)
810-5K/S-540-30K/S-300-FC
600 810-5K/S-580-30K/S-300-FC
600
810-5K/S-620-30K/S-300-FC
30 K/S

500 810-5K/S-660-30K/S-300-FC
500

30.0K/s
810-5K/S-700-30K/S-300-FC
400
400
300
300
200 FC 200
100 FC
100
0
0

Time (s) Time (s)

T e m p e ra tu re
Annealing cycle optimization experiments
Cycle 1 Cycle 2 Cycle 3

Time

Property NML Aim for

Result
Hardness (Hv) 186
YS(MPa) 270
Experiment number -03 UTS(MPa) 610 590
%EL 32.07
Energy absorption parameter (MPa%) 19563
Martensite % 13
YS/UTS 0.44 -
Lankford value 1.04 1
Stretch flange-ability 71% >50%

Sheet Holder Force 150 KN

Work hardening exponent (n) 0.25 >0.2
Ave. HER
Initial Dia.( ‫ ) ܦ‬value is 75%
௜ 10 mm
Final Dia. ( ‫ܦ‬ி ) 19.1 mm ( 91 %)
Stroke 29.0 mm
Hot dip steel coating
Hot Dip P roc es s S imulator (HDP S ) at C S IR -NML

Zn-Al-Mg adherent coating is obtained on

DP 590, DP 780 and DP 980 steel.

Al-Si-Cu-Mg coating on IF steel and DP

980.

Improved galvanealing (GA) process for DP

590 and DP 980 steels.

Optimization of annealing cycle for industrial

production of DP 590

Al-Si coating ZAM coating GA coating

IF DP 980 DP 590
DP 980 DP 980
Annealing cycle optimization experiments
 Damage Assessment and remedial measure to prevent deshaping and Wear of
Grinding Media Balls

Virgin GM Balls Deshaping Fragmentation

13
3.0C_Oil 1
3.0C_Oil1_Tempering@150
12 3.0C_Oil 1_RT
3.0C_FC
2.8C_100
11 3C_Oil 2
3.0C_Oil 2_Tempering@150 Plant trial in Ball mill for 8345 hours
10 3.0C_Oil 2_Tempering@100_1.5h
SWR(mm3N-1 m-1/10-5)

9 The industrial consumption of grinding media

8 reduced by 12%.
7

5 Patented: Process for the preparation of high chrome

4 cast iron and austempered high chromium bainitic cast
3 iron for grinding media application.
2
880 900 920 940 960 980 1000 1020
Temperature(deg C)
Summary

 Steel development is one of the important areas of

intensive research keeping in view the widespread
applications

 Small scale physical simulation of thermo-mechanical

processes comes to rescue when design and
understanding of the processes are required

 CSIR-NML employs the these simulation techniques in a

wide range of steel development activities
Acknowledgements

Contributors

Dr. G. K. Mandal
Mr. Gaurav Bansal
Mr. V. Rajinikanth
Mr. Tipu Kumar
Mr. Biraj Kumar Sahoo
Mr. Snehashish Tripathy
Ms. Minal Shah
Dr. Rajneesh Kumar Gupta
Dr. Chiradeep Ghosh, Tata Steel
Dr. S. Ghosh Chowdhury