Fig. 11. SEM micrographs of the cross-sectional area beneath the cleavage fracture surface of the Charpy impact specimens fractured at Ϫ20°C for the (a) S0-30, (b) S1-30, (c) S1-50, and (d) S1-100 steel HAZs, showing the crack propagation path. Fractured surfaces were coated by Ni.enhancing the HAZ toughness. By using the oxide metallurgy in which AFs are nucleated inhomogeneously inside austenite grains by forming fine complex oxides in linepipe steels as in the present study, linepipe steels with excellent Charpy impact properties in the HAZ can be fabricated. This oxide metallurgy technology can be applied to grain refinement by inhomogeneous nucleation when a high level of deformation cannot be imposed due to the limited rolling reduction ratio as in the case of thick high-strength steel plates. It can also be applied to the development of high-strength steel plates with excellent welding properties by controlling the HAZ microstructures.
ConclusionsIn the present study, complex oxides were formed inside API X70 linepipe steels, and effects of these oxides on HAZ microstructures and Charpy impact properties were investigated.(1) Oxides present in API X70 linepipe steels were sized about 2 mm, and had characteristics of complex oxides composed of various elements. The S1 steel containing more Al, Ti, and Mg showed higher volume fraction of oxides than the S0 steel.(2) The HAZ microstructures of the S0 steel simulated with the heat input of 30 kJ/cm were composed of bainite, but the S1 steel HAZ contained 94 vol% of AF, together with a small amount of bainite. Thus, the absorbed energy of the S1 steel HAZ at Ϫ20°C and 0°C was five to eight times higher than that of the S0 steel HAZ.(3) When the weld simulation test was conducted with increased heat input of 50 kJ/cm and 100 kJ/cm, the absorbed energies at Ϫ20°C and 0°C of the S1 steel HAZs decreased down because of the increased amount of bainite as the cooling rate became slower.(4) In the S1 steel HAZs in which the AGS was relatively large (91 mm) and a number of complex oxides were contained, complex oxides worked as AF nucleation sites, thereby promoting the active formation of AF in the HAZ and improving Charpy impact properties.
AcknowledgementThis work was supported by the National Research Lab-