"The Effects of Tempering on the Structure of Martensite in 52100 Steel"

The Effects of Tempering on the Structure of Martensite in 52100 Steel

To experimentally investigate the effect of tempering temperature and time on the structure and composition of martensite, AISI 52100 was austenized at 1040°C for 40 minutes and quenched in agitated water at 21°C. The as-quenched steel contained martensite with 18% retained austenite. These samples were tempered at 100°C, 200°C and 300°C and characterized by X-ray Diffraction to determine the effect on the structure of the martensite. It was also found that the content of retained austenite didn't change after tempering for 40 minutes at 100°F and 200°F. Retained austenite decomposed after tempering for 40 minutes at 300 °C.  

Haixuan Yu, Yuan Lu, Xiaoqing Cai, Richard D. Sisson, Jr.

Center of Heat Treating Excellence, Material Science and Engineering, Worcester Polytechnic Institute, Worcester, MA, 01609