Kinetics of austenite formation during continuous heating in a low carbon steel.

Abstract

The kinetics and microstructural evolution of austenite formation in a low carbon steel, with initial microstructure composed of ferrite and pearlite, were studied during continuous heating, by using dilatometric analysis and measurements of microstructural parameters. The formation of austenite was observed to occur in two stages: (a) pearlite dissolution and (b) ferrite to austenite transformation. The critical temperatures of austenite formation in continuous heating increase with increasing heating rate, with greater influence on the finishing temperature of austenite formation. For both the 1 °C/s and 0.1 °C/s heating rates, the formation rate of austenite reaches a maximum at approximately the finishing temperature of pearlite dissolution, and the formation rate of austenite as a function of the temperature is greater at the higher heating rate.