On the microstructural and mechanical characterizations of a low carbon and micro-alloyed steel

In this paper, the microstructural and mechanical characterizations of a low carbon and micro-alloyed steel are presented. A number of heat treatments, intercritical treatment at three different temperatures, annealing, normalizing and full martensite transformation were applied to the steel to investigate the effect of microstructure on the steel’s mechanical properties. After these heat treatment procedures, microstructural and mechanical characterizations of the steel were carried out. Experimental results showed that increasing the martensite volume fraction in the steel microstructure by intercritical heat treatment increased the strength and hardness of the steel significantly.