Recrystallization Texture Evolution of Cold Rolled and Asymmetrically Warm Rolled Austenitic Stainless Steel Sheets

A {111} texture leads to good deep drawability but does not generally develop in face-centered cubic metals. In this study, rolling and recrystallization textures of austenitic stainless steel with low stacking fault energy have been investigated to reveal whether the {111} texture can be formed by cold rolling, asymmetric warm rolling and subsequent annealing. Rolling texture changes from the alpha-fiber texture in 70% cold rolled sheets to an asymmetric texture about the TD axis, consisting of an orientation group ranging from {331}<116> to {111}<112> by additional 40% asymmetric warm rolling, which was conducted at 873 K using rolls with different diameters. Correspondingly, pole density at the center of {111} pole figure increased from 2.2 to 3.2. In addition, microstructural observation showed that there were two kinds of shear bands inclined at about +/- 30 degrees to RD on the longitudinal section. The one is microshear bands within grains and the other is shear bands passing through a number of grains. Recrystallization texture after annealing also shows an asymmetric texture to the TD axis, but consists of an orientation group ranging from {431}<257> to {331}<116>. The 1173 K-1800 s annealing decreases pole density at the center of {111} pole figure to 0.8. In conclusion, the rolling texture with a near-{111}<112> orientation was obtained in cold rolled and asymmetrically warm rolled austenitic stainless steel sheets. However, the recrystallization texture had a near-{110}<112> orientation as a main component.