Influence of temperature and plastic deformation on structural phase transformations in 12Kh18N9T steel

Metastable austenitic steels are used in numerous technical applications. Components of equipment operating at different temperatures experience both static and dynamic loads. It is a common knowledge that the combined action of temperature and deformation can induce martensitic transformations in metastable austenitic steels, which, on the one hand, strengthen the material and, on the other hand, cause its embrittlement. In this work, we carry out strength and plasticity tests on specimens subjected to quasi-static uniaxial tension in the temperature range 180–340 K as well as structural investigations after plastic deformation. The fraction of the martensite phase in the surface zone of fractured specimens is determined. The influence of deformation in a wide temperature range on phase transformations in metastable austenitic steels is shown. The temperature dependence of the volume fraction of the martensite phase and microhardness is revealed.