Pearlite

About: Pearlite is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 6028 publications have been published within this topic receiving 65695 citations.

Modern High Strength Steels for Oil and Gas Transmission Pipelines

Abstract: Increasing world demand for energy has resulted in plans to expand the oil and gas transmission pipeline infrastructure in many countries utilizing higher strength steels of API grade X70 and X80. Traditional transmission pipeline steels, up to grade X70, relied on a ferrite/pearlite microstructural design generated through traditional TMCP rolling of a niobium microalloyed C-Mn steel design. Increasing strengths up to X70 and X80 for transmission pipelines has resulted in a shift toward a ferrite/acicular ferrite microstructure designs. Traditionally, to generate the ferrite/acicular ferrite microstructure design for X70 or X80, TMCP rolling is applied to a C-Mn-Si-Mo-Nb alloy system. The Nb content is typically less than 0.070% in this alloy system. With the rising cost of alloys over the past three years, steel and pipe producers have been working with different alloy designs to reduce total costs to produce the ferrite/acicular ferrite microstructure. In recent developments it has been determined that an optimized low-C-Mn-Si-Cr-Nb alloy design (usually referred as NbCr steel), utilizing an Nb content between 0.080 – 0.11% can produce the same ferrite/acicular ferrite microstructure with either no, or minimal, use of molybdenum. This approach has been successfully used in several transmission pipeline projects such as the Cantarell, Cheyenne Plains and Rockies Express. Recognizing the success of previous projects around the world, the large ∼ 4500 Km 2nd West-East Pipeline Project specification in China has been modified to allow for the use of this NbCr design for both plate and coil for conversion to long seam or spiral pipe. The NbCr design allows the steel producer to utilize niobium’s unique ability to retard recrystallization at higher than normal TMCP rolling temperatures, hence the term for the alloy design High Temperature Processing (HTP), producing the desired ferrite/acicular ferrite microstructure with excellent strength, toughness and weldability. This paper will discuss the technical background, rolling strategy, mechanical properties, welding, specific projects, and specification modifications with practical examples.Copyright © 2008 by ASME

Computer simulation of the austenitizing process in cast iron with pearlitic matrix

Abstract: Austenitizing as a first stage of the heat treatment of castings to produce the cast iron grades like ADI, ACI, or AGI consists in holding of castings at a temperature co mprised within the range of 800-950 0 C to obtain an austenitic structure of the matrix as a point of departure for ausferritic structure. The temperature and time of austenitizing exert an important effect on the structure parameters and mechanical behaviour of mat erial obtained after the final treatment, which is austempering. A mathematical model of the process has been caharcterized, allowing for the temperature field in cas ting, the field of diffusion in the area of pearlite lamellae, and changes of diffusion coe fficient in function of temperature. A numerical program was developed by means of which the kinetics of austenite growth and cementite and ferrite fading in lamellar pearlite during austenitizing were determined, and a non-stationary field of carbon concentration in the examined system was computed. The temperature field in casting was also verified e xperimentally (a sample of 6x10x15 mm held in salt bath).

Mechanical properties of as cast microalloyed steels containing V, Nb and Ti

Abstract: Tensile, hardness and room temperature Charpy V notch impact tests were used to evaluate the variations in the mechanical properties of a low carbon cast steel containing combinations of vanadium, niobium and titanium in the as cast condition. Tensile and hardness test results indicate that good combinations of strength and ductility can be achieved by microalloying additions. Based on the TEM studies, random and interphase fine scale microalloy precipitates play a major role in the strengthening of the microalloyed heats. However, the presence of titanium leads to some reduction in the strength of the microalloyed heat. Coarse TiN particles can be responsible for this behaviour. On the other hand, microalloying additions significantly decrease the impact energy and lead to the dominance of cleavage facets on the fracture surfaces. It seems that heterogeneous nucleation of microalloy carbonitrides on dislocations along with coarse ferrite grains and pearlite colonies has triggered the brittle frac...

Microstructure and grain boundary microanalysis of X70 pipeline steel

Abstract: Grain boundaries (GBs), particularly ferrite: ferrite GBs, of X70 pipeline steel were characterized using analytical electron microscopy (AEM) in order to understand its intergranular stress corrosion cracking (IGSCC) mechanism(s). The microstructure consisted of ferrite (alpha), carbides at ferrite GBs, some pearlite and some small precipitates inside the ferrite grains. The precipitates containing Ti, Nb, V and N were identified as complex carbo-nitrides and designated as (Ti, Nb, WC, N). The GB carbides occurred (1) as carbides along ferrite GBs, (2) at triple points, and (3) at triple points and extending along the three ferrite GBs. The GB carbides were Mn rich, were sometimes also Si rich, contained no micro-alloying elements (Ti, Nb, V) and also contained no N. It was not possible to measure the GB carbon concentration due to surface hydrocarbon contamination despite plasma cleaning and glove bag transfer from the plasma cleaner to the electron microscope. Furthermore, there may not be enough X-ray signal from the small amount of carbon at the GBs to enable measurement using AEM. However, the microstructure does indicate that carbon does segregate to alpha : alpha GBs during microstructure development. This is particularly significant in relation to the strong evidence in the literature linking the segregation of carbon at GBs to IGSCC. It was possible to measure all other elements of interest. There was no segregation at alpha : alpha GBs, in particular no S, P and N, and also no segregation of the micro-alloying elements, Ti, Nb and V. (C) 2003 Kluwer Academic Publishers.