Effect of Alloying Elements and Microstructure on the Dynamic Strain Aging Behavior of 1.25Cr-0.5Mo and 2.25Cr-1Mo Steels

The effect of alloying elements and microstructure on the dynamic strain aging (DSA) behavior of 1.25Cr-0.5Mo (P11, ASTM 335Gr.P11) and 2.25Cr-1Mo (P22, ASTM 335Gr.P22) steels was investigated. For both steels, different cooling conditions such as air-cooling (AC) and oil-quenching (OQ) were applied. Tensile tests were conducted in the temperature range of 20-450 ℃ and a strain rate in the range of 6 × 10-5- 6 × 10-3 s-1 for the steels with different cooling conditions. The P11AC steel showed serration behavior over a wider temperature range and exhibited higher ultimate tensile strength (UTS) than for the P22AC steel. This is attributed to the effects of alloying elements (Cr, Mo and Si) due to dissolved C, and the ferrite fraction on mechanical behavior. Meanwhile, the P11AC and P11OQ steels also showed different behaviors for DSA starting temperature, DSA temperature range, and serration type. The AC condition showed higher UTS from the interaction solid solution hardening (ISSH) effect due to substitutional Cr, Mo, and interstitial C elements. The calculated activation energy value (Q) for the P11 steel was around 94-103 kJ/mol-1, similar to that of ferritic steels, and it was higher for the P22 steel, with a Q value of 233 kJ/mol-1 from the ISSH effect.