Description
Steel wires with a microstructure containing martensite and retained austenite were produced with the Quenching and Partitioning (Q&P) thermal process, a modified version of the Quenching and Tempering (Q&T) process. The Q&P wires exhibited high โtotal elongation โ atโ x โtensile strength โ N/mmยฒโ product, above 20000 %. N/mmยฒ. This multiplication product is two to three times higher than with Q&T. The higher elongation was due to the TRIP (Transformation Induced Plasticity) effect during plastic deformation. The results reveal application possibilities especially where high energy absorption behavior is required.
