Role of Nitrogen in 18Cr15.5Mn1.5MoN Marine Steel under Aging Treatment
摘要
Traditional high-strength steels used in marine engineering typically require a considerable amount of precious alloying elements such as Ni and Mo. Herein, a high-strength, high-nitrogen-content stainless steel was prepared for marine engineering applications under normal pressure, focusing on nitrogen’s effect on the microstructure, mechanical properties, and corrosion resistance of the test steel during the aging treatment. X-ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy revealed Cr2N as the second-phase precipitate. The test steel exhibited the highest strength and plasticity when aged at 600 °C for 2.0 h, while aging at 800 °C for 1.5 h resulted in the lowest strength and plasticity. Despite this, the steel’s mechanical properties were superior to those of 316L stainless steel. With increasing aging temperature and duration, deeper dimples and tearing edges formed in the fracture morphology, accompanied by a gradual decline in the corrosion resistance. Overall, the test steel had the best comprehensive performance when aged at 600 °C for 1.0 h: tensile strength = 965 MPa, yield strength = 540 MPa, elongation = 67.5%, and average corrosion rate = 0.52 mm·a−1. This study demonstrates that test steel can enhance the performance of marine steel, offering new insights for innovation in this field.