This study aims to investigate the influences of rare earth element cerium (Ce) on microstructure and mechanical properties of low alloy ultra-high strength steel. The strength, plasticity, and impact toughness of steels with 0.0367% Ce and without Ce were tested. The influence mechanism of Ce on the microstructure and mechanical properties were investigated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy-dispersive spectrometry (EDS) and electron back scattered diffraction (EBSD). The results showed that the addition of Ce improved the comprehensive mechanical properties of low alloy ultra-high strength steel. In particular, the plasticity and toughness were improved obviously. The addition of Ce increased the elongation from 9.47% to 10.49%, and the low-temperature impact energy from 50J to 58J. The elongation and impact energy increased by 10.77% and 16%, respectively. And the yield strength of all samples remained above 1400 MPa. The rare earth element Ce did not change the matrix composition phase which were martensite. However, the addition of Ce increased the proportion of high-angle grain boundary from 33.2% to 40.2%. In addition, the Ce make the inclusions denatured and hence spherical inclusion with small size can be obtained. The EDS results showed that rare earth and harmful elements P and O formed inclusions, which as a purifier for the molten steel and hindered the formation of the large-size composite inclusions.
Improvement in Microstructure and Toughness of Large Heat-Input Weld Bond Due to Addition of Rare Earth Metals and Boron in High Strength Steel