Continuous Cooling Transformation Behaviors and Bainite Transformation Kinetics of X80 Pipeline Steel During the Second Thermal Cycle
TANG Li1, YIN Limeng1, WANG Jinzhao1, LIU Cheng1, WANG Xuejun2
1 School of Metallurgy and Materials Engineering, Chongqing University of Science and Technology, Chongqing 401331 2 Sichuan Oil and Gas Construction Engineering Co., Ltd, Chengdu 610041
Abstract: Based on the welding thermal simulation of X80 pipeline steel by using DIL805A/D quenching dilatometers, the microstructure and hardness of X80 pipeline steel with different continuous cooling rates were obtained by means of OM, SEM, TEM and micro-hardness testing, and continuous cooling transformation curves of X80 heat-affected zone (SHCCT curves) during the second thermal cycle was determined. The bainite transformation mechanism and bainite transformation kinetics were studied by means of kinetic analysis. In addition, the regression model of phase transformation point-cooling rate was established, also, quantitative equations between the phase transformation point (including the start temperature for bainite transformation Bs, the start temperature for martensite transformation Ms, the finish temperature for phase transformation Tf) and the cooling rate with high fit degree was obtained by regression calculation. The results show that the most dominant microstructure of X80 pipeline steel after the second thermal cycle at different cooling rates appears successively such as, proeutectoid ferrite (0.5—1 ℃/s), bainite (5—50 ℃/s), lath martensite (75 ℃/s and above cooling rates), especially. When the cooling rate is less than 100 ℃/s, the hardness increases with the increase of cooling rate. On the contrary, the hardness remains at about 332.5HV1 when the cooling rate exceeds 100 ℃/s. As the volume fraction of bainite transformation (fb) increases, the local activation energy decreases and the average energy is about 108.6 kJ/mol, and the dominating mechanism of bainite transformation is the two-dimensional and one-dimensional growth.