M23C6 carbides and Cr2N nitrides in aged duplex stainless steel: A SEM, TEM and FIB tomography investigation

•The complex precipitation occurring in duplex stainless steel is investigated in 3D.•The FIB tomography operating and image-processing methodology is precisely described.•Cr2N and M23C6 precipitates are segmented in the volumes from image contrast analysis.•The evolution of the precipitation during ageing is assessed: morphology, fraction, size, etc. The precipitation evolution during ageing of a 2101 lean duplex stainless steel was investigated, revealing that the precipitate type and morphology depends on the nature of the grain boundary. Triangular M23C6 carbides precipitate only at γ/δ interfaces and rod-like Cr2N nitrides precipitate at both γ/δ and δ/δ interfaces. After 15min of ageing, the M23C6 size no longer evolves, whereas that of the Cr2N continues to evolve. For Cr2N, the morphology is maintained at γ/δ interfaces, whereas percolation occurs to form a continuous layer at δ/δ interfaces. By combining 2D and 3D characterisation at the nanoscale using transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and focused ion beam (FIB) tomography, a complete description of the precipitation evolution was obtained, including the composition, crystallographic structure, orientation relationship with the matrix phases, location, morphology, size and volume fraction.