Professional Documents
Culture Documents
350-358
Review
Ohjoon KWON
Steel Products Department, Research Institute of Industrial Science and Technology, P.O. Box 135, Pohang. Korea.
(Received on September2. 1991. accepted in final form on December20. 1991 )
Computer modelling of microstructural changes and the relationships between microstructure and
mechanical properties of hot roiled steel products has been under active development in the research
community. A newtechnology emergesfrom the modell ing studies, attempting to predict the microstructural
changes occurring during hot rolling and cooling of steels and to control their mechanical properties so
that production is carried out under the optimum processing condition, This computer aided prediction and
control technoiogy is practiced using the mathematical models based on physical metallurgy. The model
describes quantitatively the transformation behaviors during hot working and cooiing, such as recrys-
tallization, grain growth, precipitation and phase transition from austenite to ferrite. It also clarifies the
relations existing amongthe processing condition, microstructure and the final mechanical properties.
Various models of alloy steels as well as plain carbon steels have been developed for the last IOyears. It
has been expected that the models would widely be applied to practice in the steel industry in the near
future and makea great contribution to quality control and process optimization. Someprospective areas
where the models are applied are guarantee of mechanical properties throughout the coil length, elimination
of tensile tests, decrease in property variation, automatic resetting of processing conditions, save in alloys,
and developing new process controi models, However, in order to meet this expectation, there are many
obstacles to be cleared with regard to modei refining, understanding on physical metallurgy, sensor
development, process control and quality design systems. It was also suggested that a close cooperation
amQngresearchers and engineers from different disciplines would be indispensable to accomplish the goal.
KEYWORDS:
steel; mathematical model; prediction; control; phase transformation; microstructure;
mechanical property.
This paper discusses the background to the develop- system so that the strip mill can produce many steel
grades with lesser quantities for each grade. This can be
ment of this prediction and control technology and its accomplished using an on-line control system assisted
recent trends. In addition, it critically reviews the
influence of the technological development and howthe
by thermomechanical processing and computer mod-
elling. The SPPCtechnology utilizing thermomechan-
new technology can be applied to real production. ical proecssing, guarantees production of various steel
grades of excellent physical properties. The technology
2. Background
can also be used to design new grades of steel and
Newtechnologies developed in the steel industry have new manufacturing processes. In addition, by using
directed their attention to the direct linkage or merging the metallurgical model, the conventional simulation
of two or moreconsecutive stages of production processes experiments are replaced by the computer simulation
as a meansto save energy and cost. Research carried out technique resulting in saving in cost, time and man-
in advanced nations has focused on this search for power.
efficiency. Continuous casting, hot charge rolling, hot
direct rolling, smelting reduction, thin slab casting, strip 3. Construction of Metallurgical Model
casting and rheo-casting,
are examplesof technologies all
To achieve the precise prediction and control of
which have been or are expected to be applied to real product quality, the details of microstructural evolution
production to achieve process linkage and merging. occurring during hot rolling and cooling, and the re-
A commoncharacteristic of the new technologies is lationship between the microstructure and mechanical
that they need close control in both scheduling and properties, should be illustrated in the model. The model
operation. This in limitations
may result to schedule provides a tool to develop the on-1ine prediction and
matching and a deterioration of productivity and quality. control technology. Therefore, the first step required to
To reduce these negative effects, attempts have beenmade develop the new technology is to construct the basic
to give as muchflexibility
as possible to steel refining model by theoretical treatment, as well as laboratory
and casting processes,to which the newtechnologies are experiment.
primarily applied. An effective wayto improve fiexibility In view of the processing route of hot rolled steel strips,
is known to be the simplification of slab size and steel the metallurgical model is considered to consist of three
chemistry. sub-modeis: the austenite conditioning model; transfor-
Slab size simplification has been attempted by in- mation model; and mechanical property model (see Fig.
stalling a vertical mill and applying plastic deformation 2).3,14) These sub-models include
numerousmetallurgi-
in the width. Manysteel
mills
nowpractice this technol- cal relations which clarify the microstructural evolution
ogy, with a width control capacity of up to 400 mm. and the structure-property relationship.
The simplification of steel chemistry, called 'reaffecta-
tion' in French,
meansreducing the number of steels
3.1. Microstructure in Hot Rolling
manufactured in the steelmaking shop by allowing a Continuous cast slabs are hot rolled to strips or plates
variety of mechanical properties in a coil of a given under fixed conditions. These conditions depend on the
chemical composition. This can be achieved by the required steel chemistry, size and physical properties. The
control of processing parameters in the hot strip mill microstructural changes during hot rolling are grain
exercising the thermomechanical process. For a desira- growth in the reheating furnace, work hardening during
351 r.()
1992 ISIJ
ISIJ International, Vol. 32 (1992), No. 3
Table 1. The reported relations describing the kinetics of
ProFcessi 11Lg static recrystallization in steels.
FarJEIBle te r
- 185
A=6.75 l0~20 >
B=
St ren~;th Duct i I i ty Toughness
Esaka C-MnSteel Xs=(1 -Xp){i -exp(-t/r)1!3}
Fig. 2. Three submodels and some important output pa- el a!.9' Xp= I - exp[ - {{e - 8.)/(s. - s)}"']
rameters to be evaluated in the metallurgical model. (NSC) 0.026 exp(4 600/ T)
m=2.25{
e.
= I - exp( - c!olK)}
plastic deformation, recrystallization (dynamic or static) K=472 8~ o 0723 exp( - 2600/T)
T* = 9. 11x 10~ 15 e~ 2
36 exp(67 6701RT)
during hot rolling, grain growth after full recrystalliza-
tion, and dissolution and reprecipitation of fine carbo- Yada26)
(NSC)
CMnSteel
2.2
X=I -exp{-0.693[(1-t~)/to 5]2}
lO~ Sv~0.5 ~~ 2 exp(30 OOO/T)g-2
12
nitrides. These phase transformation behaviors are de- !o
5= x
Sv (24/1rd.)(0.49 1exp(e) + o. 155 exp( - 8)
scribed in the austenite conditloning model. Important =
outputs from the austenite conditioning model are the
+ o, 1433 exp( 3g)) -
austenite grain size, the accumulated strain retained after
hot rolling and the distrlbution of precipitates in the
Kwon
et al. 14'27)
CMnAdol 4145
l0.5
X=1-exp{-0.693(t/to 5)2}
Steel
8~ 144 Z~o, 1 exp(- QRIRT)3' 21
=
as-rolled matrix. These properties of austenite play im- (POSCOl A=3.32xl0~15 QR=285000
portant roles on subsequent austenite-ferrite transfor- RIST) Nb Steel X=1-exp{k(t/to,05)2} k=-0.0513
mation during cooling.
to
= Ad02e~4 exp(QAIRT)
os
x exp[{(QsIRT) - 185)} [Nb]]
Quantitative analysis of the microstructural changes
during hot rolling was pioneered by Sellars et al.18,19)
x exp[{(Qc/ T) - (C/,')} [NbC]/,'}]
A=6.75xl0~8 B=185 C=2,063xl05
{
Relations describing the onset of dynamic recrystalli- QA=300000QB=2.75x lOs Qc=1.534x 107
el a!.24) to
5= x 5 E
recrystallization of plain carbon steels and Nb-contain- (Inst. for Q,~
= 330 OOOJ/mol
ing steels are summerizedin Table 1.9'i2,14,15,18,24,26,28) Metall., TiV X=1-exp{-0.693(t/t0.5)2}
Steel
3'5 D02exp(QRIRT)
s = 5x
Sweden) fo lO~ 18 (e-0.058)~
TheAvrami type rate equation29) wasused for describing QR= 280OOOmol
the recrystallization kinetics. The dynamic recrystalli-
zation behavior has intensively been studied recent- Hodgson C MnSteel X=1-exp{-0.693(1/!o 5)1 5}
constructed with the aid of the transformation model. + 5.788 x lO~ 5(T- 273) + 0.854 In d*/
Transformation temperatures such as A,3, A*1 B* and M~ + o. 56 l
,
can also be evaluated using the relations in the model. q= 0.5{c2
+ bc2(a2 - c2)~o 5 F+b(a2 - c2) ~ o 5E}
r~~ I -ep p= {a2(b2 - c2)/b2(a2 - c2)}0.5
Since precipitates often formed in microalloyed steels are a:=;1-( I r)
- '1
= cosh(c/a)
very fine and their effect on the mechanical properties
may be significant, quantitative analysis of their for-
matlon and strengthening effect is necessary. Important
b~: l
E (1 -P2 sin20)o sdO
X)]
JohnsonMehl-Avrami (KJMA) equation, using the -
Site saturation: dX/dl=k2(6/dy)G(i-X)
concept of the extended volume.29,37~39) The classical I = T~o SDexp{ -k3/RTAGv2)
nucleation and growth theories40-46) were used to G= (l/2,)D{(Cyo( C'/)1(Cy - Co()}
determine the volume fraction and the grain size of the kl
= 17476 k2 8.933 x lO~ 12 exp(21
= 107 (cal3/m013)
100/T)
k3
newly formed phases from deformed austenite as a = 1.305 x
I - exp{J
function of time, temperature and chemistry. 9, 12- 14.47)
Saito X(1) ~; J(1!) V(t" t)dl ,
Table 2 summarizes the reported kinetic equations for et al, 13)
ferrite transformation. Since the transformation reac- (KSC)
tions take place during continuous cooling in the practical
= N(t) p*Z exp( - AG*/R T) exp( -
J(t) T/t)
p*= 87rg~vDyXe/(a4AG~)
situation, the additivity rule48) has been applied. The T= 12kt a~ya4/(DccX V2AG~)
conditions to satisfy for an application of the additivity Z= VAG~/[41T(3kTe.)1/2 a~y AG=47re(a~v)/AG~
rule are: l) isokinetic condition48); 2) site saturation e= a~, +a~~-cr,,, (dependent on the transf. mode)
condition39)' and 3) growth limited condition.49) The
dR/dt
= {Dl(C. - Cl )}(dcld,'),
=R
applicability of the additivity rule to austenite-to-ferrite Kwone! a/. 14) X=X~..{1-exp[-K(t-x)"]} n=0.94
transformation has been eva]uated by various investi- (RIST/ In
K=- O. 1623 x 10 ~ 3[C] T2 + (O. 1372[C]
gators.42,49~53) These studies showed that the ferrite POSCO) }
+ 0.2023LMn] T- 4. 8394[Mn]
+6.5866
transformation satisfied the site saturation condition,
the pearlite transformation satisfied the isokinetic condi-
In T= 3.366 In(A T) + 0.00 14d^/ + 2.032[C]
tion at a slow reaction rate and the site saturation con-
+ I .58 1[Mn] + 8.218 + 6317.51T
dition at a fast reaction rate, and, finally, the bainite Choquet dx/dt
= k Cm(- dFld T)( I - x)
et a/. 12)
transformation satisfied the growth limited condition. F( T)
= exp[ - k/( T- To)}
Microalloying with Al, Nb, V and Ti would result in (IRSID) Cm= cooling rate
To = f (Ar3)
precipitation during transformation. The precipitation ,
Hb= 27.72 exp(9801T.,b) + 39.8[Si] + 9. 1 Unlversity of Pittsburgh (USA).36,67) For the transfor-
mation behavior of austenite, theories developed by
Choquet TS= TS~+ TS** + ktXfd - I f2 + k*Xp Aaronson and coworkers have been used widely. 43 - 46)
et a/. 12) TS.. 29[Mn] + 79[Si] + 700[P] + 5369[N]
= Quantitative analyses of transformation kinetics carried
(IRSID) K 724 K.=500 TS~=237
out by various investigators5i,52,68 ~ 71) have been found
useful. In the industrial side, the research groups at
maybe due to the fact that thermomechanical processing memorial symposium held in 1989.4) Combining all
which was an essential tool for prediction and control available information together, an approach shown in
of microstructures and mechanical properties has been Fig. 4 was chosen to realize application. 14)
the practical
practiced most widely by the Japanese steelmakers. The details of the approach explained as follows.
is
Nippon Steel Corporation (NSC) and Kawasaki Steel Off-1ine prediction technology is the simplest phase,
Corporation (KSC) started research on the extensive for which the complete SPPCmodel can be used. By
L~
l Structurc
UU l J Rcl]ing Model
l
l
l
l
i l
i
__J*__ j
Rol i Ing D~mensions Temperatures Caa'img and l
Cycle Condi t ion l Meiisured Melsured Coi I irlg Conditions l
Meta']urjicat P,Irameters
Measured l
Grlin Dimeter
Fraction TrlnsfQrmed
Sl- +>=*Q
*=*r'e
QQo o QQQ
eoeo o e e -~
(~~~~~T~~=~~~~~)
F~,~.**
(p~~;~T~~~1C~
Mil~*
(~~T:~~7~(~)
-
(~ITI~
c.f t..
Fig. 3, on-hne predrctron and control system whrch wlll be applled to hot stnp mms(arter Yada*))
550
54Q
- O
~p
/// tF;~)
C~' ~ .c,
S'
~~J,!:d~'
e\' Fig. 5.
,,:~'
Search for the optimum cooling condition using the
~~
(~~ ~) steepest descent method (after Sait013)).
10 5
Cooting rate ('C/sec) CooLing rate ('C/sec l
Alloy/procees
Design
th-1ine
Control
~-1ine
Prediction
f
Of -line
Prediction
Teup. Hodel
Pro Si muI at i on Rolling Hodel
Opti!aization
I~] j~i
Fig 6. Practical application of the mathematical model based on physical metallurgy for hot Strip manufactute.
and is covered with water, scale and dust. Fortunately, Quebec, (1990).
the austenite/ferrite
8) Modelling of Materials, Inst. Met., England, (1991).
transformation was found to be
9) K. Esaka, J. Wakita, M. Takahashi, O. Kawanoand S. Harada:
detectable utilizing the drastic changein magnetism. This Seitetsu-Kenkyu, (1986), No. 32, 92.
has triggered active research in the practical use of the 1O) Y. Saito, M. Tanaka, T. Sekine and H. Nishizaki: Proc. of Int.
transformation sensor by many research organiza- Conf, on High Strength Low Alloy Steels, Australia, (1984),
tions.81,82) However, the development of other types of 28.
32) T. Sakai and J. J. Jonas: Acta Meta!l., 32 (1984), 189. Tokyo, (1989), 123.
33) J. J. Jonas: Proc. Int. Conf. Recryst, in Metallic Mater., ed. by 66) T. Inoue, S. Nanba, M. Katsumata and G. Anan: Proc. Int.
T. Chandra, TMS-AIME> Philadelphia, (1990), 27. Symp, on Mathematical Modelling of Hot Rolling of Steel, ed.
34) H. L. Andrade, M. G. Akben and J. J. Jonas: Meta!!. Trans., by S. Yue, CIM, Quebec, (1990), 290.
14A (1983), 1967. 67) K. Tiitto, G. Fitzsimons and A. J. DeArdo: Acta Metal/., 242
35) S.Yamamoto,C. Ouchi and T. Osuka: Proc. Therm. Proc, of (1983), I159.
Microalloyed Austenite, ed, by A. J. DeArdoel a!., TMS-AIME, 68) E. B. Hawbolt, B. Chauand J. K. Brimacombe: Meta!l. Trans.,
NewYork, (1984), 613. 16 (1985). 565.
36) O. Kwonand A. J. DeArdo: Acla 39 (1990), 529.
Melal/., 69) J. S. Kirkaldy: Meta!!. Trans., (1973), 2327. 4
37) A. N. Kolmogorov: I.-v. Akad. Nauk SSSR,Se. Mal., I (1937), 70) H. K. D. H. Bhadeshia: Met. Sci., 16 (1982), 159.
355. 71) H. K. D
H. Bhadeshia: Sc,'. Metal/., 22 (1988), l.
38) W. A. Johnson and R. F. Mehl: T,'ans. AIME, 135 (1939), 416. 72) I. F. Hollander: Proc. Int. Symp. on Mathematical Modelling of
39) J. W. Cahn: Acta Metal!.,
4 (1956), 449. Hot Rolling of Steel, ed. by S. Yue, CIM, Quebec, (1990), 19.
40) M. Umemoto and I. Tamura: J. Heat T,'eal., 20 (1980), 317. 73) A. Kumar, C. McCulloch, E B. Hawbolt and I. V. Samarasekera:
41) M. Umemoto:J. Heat T,'eat., 26 (1986), 194 & 308. Mate,'. Sci. Tech., 7 (1991), 360.
42) M. Umemoto and I. Tamura: Tetsu-to-Hagan~, 68 (1982), 15. 74) H. Yada and T. Senuma:Bull. Jpn. Insl Met., 29 (1990), 430.
43) H I. Aaronson: Decomposition of Austenite by Diffusional 75) M. Suehiro, K. Sato, H. Yada and T. Senuma: CAMP-ISIJ, 2
Process, ed, by V. F. Zackay and H. I. Aaronson. TMS-AIME, (1989), 71 l.