Application of Texture Analysis for Optimizing Thermo-Mechanical Treatment of a High Mn TWIP Steel
A recently introduced processing route consisting of cold rolling and recovery annealing allows the production of TWIP steels with high yield strength along with appreciable uniform elongation due to the thermal stability of mechanically induced nanoscale twins. A wide range of strength-ductility combinations was obtained using recovery and recrystallization annealing of 30%, 40%, and 50% cold-rolled Fe-23Mn-1.5Al-0.3C TWIP steel. Texture measurement during cold rolling and annealing was proven to be a suitable tool to determine the optimal deformation degree and annealing time for this processing method. As a consequence, texture analysis can be used to predict the final materials properties.