Novel heat treatment pathways for the formation of nano-bainite and retained austenite in high-Al medium-Mn Steels

Nano-bainitic steels with elevated aluminum additions have been recently shown to possess excellent strength-ductility combinations. In this study, novel heat treatment pathways that enable the formation of microstructures containing retained austenite and nano-bainite will be explored. Heat treatments will be applied using dilatometry to high-Al medium manganese steels, facilitating the evaluation of bainite transformation kinetics and optimization of heat treatment parameters. Resulting phase fractions and microstructure morphology will be explored using X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy, respectively. The results of this study are expected to be of interest to steel producers exploring next-generation steel alloy design and heat treatment concepts, as well as steel users who require grades with increased strength-ductility combinations