Effect of Intercritical and Subcritical Annealing on the Corrosion Behavior of DP980 Steel
摘要
In DP980 steels, the heat treatment process plays a critical role in controlling the microstructure, particularly the fraction of martensite and ferrite, which significantly affects the steel's properties, including mechanical and corrosion behavior. The influence of different annealing temperatures on the corrosion behavior of dual-phase steel (DP steel) 980 steel was investigated in the current research. The steels were annealed at temperatures ranging from 500 to 800 °C for 1hr, followed by water quenching. The primary objective of this study was to develop the microstructures comprising of different phase constituents and to correlate it with the corrosion behavior of this steel. Optical microscopy was used to examine primarily the phase constituent like ferrite–martensite along with retained austenite and carbides in the microstructure of DP980 steel at 500, 650, and 800 °C temperatures. The volume fraction of the martensite phase appears to decrease at first and then increase with increasing temperature. A Vickers hardness tester showed that the hardness gradually decreased up to 650 °C before increasing significantly between 650 and 800 °C. X-ray diffraction analysis was used to utilize for phase identification. Potentiodynamic polarization testing was performed on the samples with both as-received and heat-treated conditions. The corrosion products in a specific area after potentiodynamic polarization test were examined under SEM. The corrosion rate was measured at different temperatures in a 3.5% NaCl solution by using electrochemical techniques. It was observed that the corrosion rate gradually decreased up to 650°C, after which it increases sharply between 650 and 800 °C. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) revealed protective corrosion oxide film with more resistive behavior and capacitance's non-ideal behavior with a change in frequency. The heat treatment response of DP980 steel opens new possibilities for high-strength materials, enabling the design of automotive solutions that meet current and future industry demands.