Kinetics model of isothermal pearlite formation in a 0.4C–1.6Mn steel Original Research Article

The present article is concerned with a theoretical and experimental study of the growth kinetics of pearlite in a 0.4C–1.6 Mn medium carbon steel. Factors controlling the isothermal formation of this microconstituent are explored in this work. In this sense, the transition temperature between local equilibrium (LE) and no partition local equilibrium (NPLE) growth mechanisms is theoretically determined. Moreover, the nucleation of pearlite has been considered as a cementite precipitation process on a moving austenite–ferrite interface. Finally, a theoretical model is presented to calculate the evolution of austenite-to-pearlite transformation with time at a very wide temperature range.