This article presents an overview of the developments in stainless steels made since the 1990s. Some of the new applications that involve the use of stainless steel are also introduced. A brief introduction to the various classes of stainless steels, their precipitate phases and the status quo of their production around the globe is given first. The advances in a variety of subject areas that have been made recently will then be presented. These recent advances include (1) new findings on the various precipitate phases (the new J phase, new orientation relationships, new phase diagram for the Fe–Cr system, etc.); (2) new suggestions for the prevention/mitigation of the different problems and new methods for their detection/measurement and (3) new techniques for surface/bulk property enhancement (such as laser shot peening, grain boundary engineering and grain refinement). Recent developments in topics like phase prediction, stacking fault energy, superplasticity, metadynamic recrystallisation and the calculation of mechanical properties are introduced, too. In the end of this article, several new applications that involve the use of stainless steels are presented. Some of these are the use of austenitic stainless steels for signature authentication (magnetic recording), the utilisation of the cryogenic magnetic transition of the sigma phase for hot spot detection (the Sigmaplugs), the new Pt-enhanced radiopaque stainless steel (PERSS) coronary stents and stainless steel stents that may be used for magnetic drug targeting. Besides recent developments in conventional stainless steels, those in the high-nitrogen, low-Ni (or Ni-free) varieties are also introduced. These recent developments include new methods for attaining very high nitrogen contents, new guidelines for alloy design, the merits/demerits associated with high nitrogen contents, etc.

Recent developments in stainless steels

The excellent combination of strength and corrosion resistance in duplex stainless steels (DSS) is due to their strict composition control and microstructural balance. The ferrite–austenite ratio is often upset in DSS weld metals owing to the rapid cooling rates associated with welding. To achieve the desired ferrite–austenite balance and hence properties, either the weld metal composition and/or the heat input is controlled. In the current work, a low heat input process viz., EBW and another commonly employed process, gas tungsten-arc welding have been employed for welding of DSS with and without nickel enhancement. Results show that (i) chemical composition has got a greater influence on the ferrite–austenite ratio than the cooling rate, (ii) and even EBW which is considered an immature process in welding of DSS, can be employed provided means of filler addition could be devised.

Effect of weld metal chemistry and heat input on the structure and properties of duplex stainless steel welds

Metal additive manufacturing (AM), also known as 3D printing, is a disruptive manufacturing technology in which complex engineering parts are produced in a layer-by-layer manner, using a high-energy heating source and powder, wire or sheet as feeding material. The current paper aims to review the achievements in AM of steels in its ability to obtain superior properties that cannot be achieved through conventional manufacturing routes, thanks to the unique microstructural evolution in AM. The challenges that AM encounters are also reviewed, and suggestions for overcoming these challenges are provided if applicable. We focus on laser powder bed fusion and directed energy deposition as these two methods are currently the most common AM methods to process steels. The main foci are on austenitic stainless steels and maraging/precipitation-hardened (PH) steels, the two so far most widely used classes of steels in AM, before summarising the state-of-the-art of AM of other classes of steels. Our comprehensive review highlights that a wide range of steels can be processed by AM. The unique microstructural features including hierarchical (sub)grains and fine precipitates induced by AM result in enhancements of strength, wear resistance and corrosion resistance of AM steels when compared to their conventional counterparts. Achieving an acceptable ductility and fatigue performance remains a challenge in AM steels. AM also acts as an intrinsic heat treatment, triggering ‘in situ’ phase transformations including tempering and other precipitation phenomena in different grades of steels such as PH steels and tool steels. A thorough discussion of the performance of AM steels as a function of these unique microstructural features is presented in this review.

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Additive manufacturing of steels: a review of achievements and challenges

Effect of welding processes and conditions on the microstructure, mechanical properties and corrosion resistance of duplex stainless steel weldments—A review

The present study focuses on the effect of the welding speed on the microstructure and mechanical properties of the stir zone (SZ) in friction stir welding (FSW) of SAF 2205 duplex stainless steel. A single tool, made of a WC-base material, was used to weld 2 mm-thick plates at a constant rotational speed of 600 rpm. X-ray radiography revealed that sound welds were successfully obtained for the welding speeds in the range of 50–200 mm/min, whereas a groove-like defect was formed at the higher speed of 250 mm/min. Moreover, increasing the welding speed decreased the size of the α and γ grains in the SZ, and hence, improved the mean hardness value and the tensile strength of the SZ. These results are interpreted with respect to interplay between the welding speed and the peak temperature in FSW.

Effect of friction stir welding speed on the microstructure and mechanical properties of a duplex stainless steel

Developments, grades and specifications Alloy design Microstructure Forming and machining Physical and mechanical properties Corrosion Stress corrosion cracking Welding metallurgy Welding processes Weld properties Non-destructive testing of welds Applications Service experience.

Robert N. Gunn

Papers

Duplex stainless steels : microstructure, properties and applications