Evolutions of Microstructure and Properties During Cold Rolling of 19Cr Duplex Stainless Steel

Evolutions of microstructure, mechanical, and corrosion properties of 19Cr (Fe-18.9Cr-10.1Mn-0.3Ni-0.261N-0.030C-0.5Si) duplex stainless steel have been investigated during cold rolling at room temperature. Dislocation slip dominated deformation mode of ferrite phase. However, deformation mechanism of austenite phase was different with the increasing cold-rolling reductions. Dislocation slip and strengthening effect of twin boundaries caused pile-up phenomenon at the initial deformation stage. When the amount of cold-rolling reduction attained greater than 50 pct, induced alpha'-martensite appeared in deformed austenite phase. Hardness of austenite phase was higher than that of the deformed ferrite because of its higher strengthening effect during cold-rolling process. Cold-rolling deformation caused deterioration of the pitting corrosion resistance in 3.5 wt pct NaCl aqueous solution. Pitting corrosion always initiated in the ferrite phase and the phase boundary in the solution-treated alloy. Additional pitting holes appeared in deformed austenite phase because of the decrease in corrosion resistance caused by dislocation accumulation and induced alpha'-martensite.