金相组织-不锈钢

Application

Notes Diffi culties during metallographic preparation Solution:

Corrosion resistant steels con-

tain at least 11% chromium and

are collectively known as “stain-

less steels“. Within this group of

high alloy steels four categories

can be identifi ed: ferritic, marten-

sitic, austenitic, and austenitic-

ferritic (duplex) stainless steels.

These categories describe the

alloy’s microstructure at room

temperature, which is largely infl u-

enced by the alloy composition.

The main characteristic of stain-

less steels is their corrosion resist-

ance. This property can be en-

hanced by the addition of specifi c

alloying elements, which have a

further benefi cial effect on other

characteristics such as toughness

and oxidation resistance.

For instance, niobium and tita-

nium increase resistance against

intergranular corrosion as they

absorb the carbon to form car-

bides; nitrogen increases strength

and sulphur increases machinabil-

ity, because it forms small man-

ganese sulphides which result

in short machining chips. Due

to their corrosion resistance and

superior surface fi nishes stainless

steels play a major part in the air-

Metallographic

preparation

of stainless steel

Thorough diamond polishing and

fi nal polishing with colloidal silica

or alumina

Grinding and polishing: Deformation and scratching in ferritic and

austenitic stainless steels. Retention of carbides and inclusions.

Insuffi ciently polished stainless steel after 100x

colour etching (Beraha II), showing deformation

Surface of stainless steel after 3µm polish, DIC 25x

showing deformation from grinding

craft, chemical, medical and food

industries, in professional kitch-

ens, architecture and even jewelry.

Metallography of stainless steels

is an important part of the overall

quality control of the production

process. The main metallographic

tests are grain size measurement,

identifi cation of delta ferrite and

sigma phase and the evaluation

and distribution of carbides. In

addition, metallography is used in

failure analysis investigating corro-

sion/oxidation mechanisms.

High performance stainless steel parts for the

aircraft industry

Fig.1: Duplex steel etched electrolytically with 150x

40% aqueous sodium hydroxide solution,

showing blue austenite and yellow ferrite