Heat Treatment Design for a QP Steel: Effect of Partitioning Temperature

Designing a new family of advanced high-strength steels (AHSSs) to develop automotive parts that cover early industry needs is the aim many investigations. One candidates in 3rd AHSS are quenching and partitioning (QP) steels. These display an excellent relationship between strength formability, making them able fulfill requirements safety, while reducing automobile weight enhance performance during service. The main attribute QP TRIP effect retained austenite possesses, which allows significant energy absorption deformation. present study focused on evaluating some process parameters, especially temperature, microstructures mechanical properties attained process. An experimental steel (0.2C-3.5Mn-1.5Si (wt%)) was selected heated according theoretical optimum temperature. For this purpose, heat treatments dilatometry further microstructural characterization were carried out by SEM, XRD, EBSD, hardness tensile tests, respectively. samples showed increment at increasing but with strong penalization final ductility due large amount fresh martensite obtained as well.