The main purpose of the diploma work was characterization of microstructure and mechanical properties of 08X14NDL and GX4CrNi13-4 martensitic stainless steels. Mechanical properties were characterized by tensile testing, hardness testing and impact toughness testing. Microstructure was characterized by using light microscopy, X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy-dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) and calculation of equilibrium phase diagrams.
Microstructure of 08X14NDL and GX4CrNi13-4 steels is composed of martensite and δ-ferrite. The volume fraction of δ-ferrite is 18.7 % for the 08X14NDL steel and 2.6 % for the GX4CrNi13-4 steel and does not change markedly during the process of the heat treatment. EDS microanalysis shows that δ-ferrite in both alloys contains more chromium and less nickel than the martensite. The mechanical properties of the GX4CrNi13-4 steel have met the requirements of the standard while in the case of the 08X14NDL steel the hardness was lower than required. Microhardness of δ-ferrite is significantly lower than the microhardness of martensite. The content of δ-ferrite with lower hardness could be reduced by a proper chemical composition of the 08X14NDL steel.
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