The origin of the effect of aging on the thermoelectric power of maraging C250 steel

Abstract

The sensitivity of thermoelectric power (TEP) to the aging condition of maraging C250 steel was investigated. TEP revealed a high sensitivity to the aging process as its value decreased by *17 lV/K following 3 h of aging at 510°C. This is a noticeably large change for metallic systems undergoing metallurgical modifications. Using model alloys, we show that the significant change in TEP is mainly due to the depletion of the matrix from the precipitating elements which change the electron density in the Fermi level, as was confirmed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy.