Effect of austenite stability on fatigue performance of TRIP 700 steel

Abstract

The role of austenite stability on fatigue performance of low-alloy TRIP steel 700 has been experimentally investigated. Heat treatment process was used to produce varying microstructures, characterized by different initial retained austenite volume fraction and austenite stability. Fatigue tests were carried out to determine the S-N fatigue curve of the materials. The austenite stability was measured with implementation of the Mσ s temperature detemination method. The effect of austenite stability on fatigue behavior was assessed by measurements of austenite volume fraction before and after fatigue testing. The experimental results showed that austenite stability impacts fatigue performance of TRIP steel in the high cycle regime.