Effect of Tempering Time on the Microstructure and Properties of Martensitic Stainless Steel

Martensitic stainless steels (MSSs) have been widely used in the manufacture of turbine blades, surgical instruments, and cutting tools because of their hardness and corrosion resistance. The MSSs are usually tempered at a temperature no higher than 250 °C after quenching to avoid the decline in the...

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Main Authors: Wei Jiang, Dong Wu, Qinyi Zhang, Mingxuan Li, Wei Liu
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2024-03-01
Series:Metals
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2075-4701/14/3/322
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author Wei Jiang
Dong Wu
Qinyi Zhang
Mingxuan Li
Wei Liu
author_facet Wei Jiang
Dong Wu
Qinyi Zhang
Mingxuan Li
Wei Liu
author_sort Wei Jiang
collection DOAJ
description Martensitic stainless steels (MSSs) have been widely used in the manufacture of turbine blades, surgical instruments, and cutting tools because of their hardness and corrosion resistance. The MSSs are usually tempered at a temperature no higher than 250 °C after quenching to avoid the decline in the hardness, strength, and corrosion resistance of the steels. However, some short-time thermal shocks are inevitable in processes like welding, water grinding, laser marking, etc., in the manufacturing of kitchen knives, all of which may have negative effects on the mechanical properties and corrosion resistance. The effects of these short-time thermal shocks have rarely been studied. In this paper, the martensitic stainless steel 5Cr15MoV (X50CrMoV15 is European Standards) was selected to be tempered at the sensitization temperatures (480 to 600 °C) for a series of times (0.5 to 128 min) after quenching, and the microstructures, hardness, and corrosion resistance of the steel after tempering were investigated. It was shown that the variation in hardness and corrosion resistance of the 5Cr15MoV steel could be divided into four stages over time during tempering at the sensitization temperatures. The hardness of steel was found to increase at first and then decrease with time; accordingly, good corrosion resistance was retained in the initial few minutes of tempering, which then deteriorated fast. The variation in hardness and corrosion resistance of the 5Cr15MoV steel is related to the diffusion of C and Cr atoms at different tempering temperatures. The mechanism of the mechanical properties and corrosion resistance variation caused by the diffusion of C and Cr atoms during tempering at the sensitization temperatures was also discussed.
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spelling doaj.art-e3d3aab577f04048927b9c0ce3b247b82024-03-27T13:54:25ZengMDPI AGMetals2075-47012024-03-0114332210.3390/met14030322Effect of Tempering Time on the Microstructure and Properties of Martensitic Stainless SteelWei Jiang0Dong Wu1Qinyi Zhang2Mingxuan Li3Wei Liu4School of Materials Science and Engineering, Wuhan University of Technology, Wuhan 430070, ChinaSchool of Materials Science and Engineering, Wuhan University of Technology, Wuhan 430070, ChinaSchool of Materials Science and Engineering, Wuhan University of Technology, Wuhan 430070, ChinaSchool of Materials Science and Engineering, Wuhan University of Technology, Wuhan 430070, ChinaYangjiang Tuobituo Industrial Technology Research Institute Co., Ltd., Yangjiang 529500, ChinaMartensitic stainless steels (MSSs) have been widely used in the manufacture of turbine blades, surgical instruments, and cutting tools because of their hardness and corrosion resistance. The MSSs are usually tempered at a temperature no higher than 250 °C after quenching to avoid the decline in the hardness, strength, and corrosion resistance of the steels. However, some short-time thermal shocks are inevitable in processes like welding, water grinding, laser marking, etc., in the manufacturing of kitchen knives, all of which may have negative effects on the mechanical properties and corrosion resistance. The effects of these short-time thermal shocks have rarely been studied. In this paper, the martensitic stainless steel 5Cr15MoV (X50CrMoV15 is European Standards) was selected to be tempered at the sensitization temperatures (480 to 600 °C) for a series of times (0.5 to 128 min) after quenching, and the microstructures, hardness, and corrosion resistance of the steel after tempering were investigated. It was shown that the variation in hardness and corrosion resistance of the 5Cr15MoV steel could be divided into four stages over time during tempering at the sensitization temperatures. The hardness of steel was found to increase at first and then decrease with time; accordingly, good corrosion resistance was retained in the initial few minutes of tempering, which then deteriorated fast. The variation in hardness and corrosion resistance of the 5Cr15MoV steel is related to the diffusion of C and Cr atoms at different tempering temperatures. The mechanism of the mechanical properties and corrosion resistance variation caused by the diffusion of C and Cr atoms during tempering at the sensitization temperatures was also discussed.https://www.mdpi.com/2075-4701/14/3/322martensitic stainless steeltempering timehardnesscorrosion resistance
spellingShingle Wei Jiang
Dong Wu
Qinyi Zhang
Mingxuan Li
Wei Liu
Effect of Tempering Time on the Microstructure and Properties of Martensitic Stainless Steel
Metals
martensitic stainless steel
tempering time
hardness
corrosion resistance
title Effect of Tempering Time on the Microstructure and Properties of Martensitic Stainless Steel
title_full Effect of Tempering Time on the Microstructure and Properties of Martensitic Stainless Steel
title_fullStr Effect of Tempering Time on the Microstructure and Properties of Martensitic Stainless Steel
title_full_unstemmed Effect of Tempering Time on the Microstructure and Properties of Martensitic Stainless Steel
title_short Effect of Tempering Time on the Microstructure and Properties of Martensitic Stainless Steel
title_sort effect of tempering time on the microstructure and properties of martensitic stainless steel
topic martensitic stainless steel
tempering time
hardness
corrosion resistance
url https://www.mdpi.com/2075-4701/14/3/322
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AT dongwu effectoftemperingtimeonthemicrostructureandpropertiesofmartensiticstainlesssteel
AT qinyizhang effectoftemperingtimeonthemicrostructureandpropertiesofmartensiticstainlesssteel
AT mingxuanli effectoftemperingtimeonthemicrostructureandpropertiesofmartensiticstainlesssteel
AT weiliu effectoftemperingtimeonthemicrostructureandpropertiesofmartensiticstainlesssteel