Dual-phase (DP) steels are an important class of advanced high-strength steels (AHSS) and constitute a major share of steels for the automotive industry. A microstructure consisting of hard martensite embedded in a soft ferritic matrix gives them a good combination of strength and ductility. The martensite formation in the microstructure from austenite involves a shape and volume change, which is accommodated by the deformation of the surrounding ferritic matrix. This accommodation is known to impart typical characteristics in DP steels such as the absence of a yield point, continuous yielding and high initial work hardening rate. This thesis is an attempt to understand and model the aforementioned accommodation process in the ferritic matrix of DP steels. Traditionally, in predictive modelling of DP steel mechanical behaviour, the region of ferrite which undergoes deformation to accommodate martensitic transformation is taken into consideration as a constant thin layer of strain-hardened ferrite at the ferrite/martensite interface. This approach is shown to be inadequate for capturing local variations in ferrite deformation. Hence, electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) experiments were carried out to study in detail the influence of various microstructural features on local variations in the transformation-induced deformation of ferrite. It was found that the crystallographic orientation of ferrite grains, martensite variant and its prior austenite grain (PAG) play an important role in determining the extent of transformation-induced deformation of ferrite. Taking a cue from this, a novel methodology comprising sequential experimental and numerical research on DP steels is developed which combines the results of PAG reconstruction, phenomenological theory of martensite crystallography (PTMC) and EBSD orientation data to estimate ferrite deformation due to every martensitic variant formed, via full-field micromechanical calculations on a virtual DP steel microstructure. Furthermore, the influence of self-accommodation during martensite variant formation on transformation-induced deformation of ferrite was also investigated. It is shown that the higher the number of variants which form from a PAG, the less the deformation caused by that PAG in the surrounding ferritic matrix. This is because of a decrease in the effective magnitude of the shear component of martensitic transformation during multi-variant transformation. The scientific findings presented in this work can be used for developing predictive models for the mechanical behaviour of not only DP steels but any multiphase steels which exhibit plastic accommodation and residual stresses in their microstructure due to martensitic phase transformation.@en

The volume increase and shape change during austenite to martensite transformation in dual-phase (DP) steels are largely accommodated in the microstructure by the deformation of the surrounding ferrite matrix. Accurate estimation of transformation-induced deformation of ferrite via experiments and modeling is essential for predicting the subsequent mechanical behavior of DP steels. This study aims to illustrate the disadvantages of simplifying the anisotropic transformation deformation of martensite to isotropic dilatation for modeling the transformation-induced deformation of ferrite. A novel methodology is developed comprising sequential experimental and numerical research on DP steels to quantify transformation-induced strains in ferrite. This methodology combines the results of prior austenite grain reconstruction, phenomenological theory of martensite crystallography and electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) orientation data to estimate variant-specific transformation deformation. Subsequently, by comparison of full-field micromechanical calculation results on a virtual DP steel microstructure with experimental EBSD kernel average misorientation and geometrically necessary dislocation measurement results it is shown that neglecting the shear deformation associated with the martensitic transformation leads to significant underestimation in the prediction of transformation-induced strains in ferrite.

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During the production of DP steels, the volume expansion and shape change accompanying the austenite to martensite transformation is accommodated by the deformation of surrounding ferrite grains. The extent of the deformation in ferrite grains ultimately affects the mechanical properties of DP steels. Using electron backscatter diffraction measurements, this study identifies the characteristics of martensite which govern the extent of transformation induced deformation of ferrite grains. It was found that small austenite grains tend to transform into martensitic variants having a close-packed plane parallel relationship with adjacent ferrite grains, thus achieving relatively easy slip transmission and resulting in a long-range deformation of ferrite grains. Ferrite grains can also exhibit a short-range deformation limited to the vicinity of the ferrite/martensite interface, which is primarily governed by martensite carbon content.@en

The mechanical properties of ferrite-martensite dual phase (DP) steels are influenced by the internal stresses induced during austenite to martensite transformation. The volumetric expansion during this transformation causes plastic deformation of surrounding ferrite grains and creates regions with higher density of geometrically necessary dislocations (GNDs) near ferrite/martensite interfaces. These highly stressed regions can be modelled using the ‘core and mantle’ approach as a thin layer of hardened ferrite present at ferrite/martensite interfaces. The interface layer properties, i.e., its strength and thickness, depend upon surrounding local microstructural features. In the present work, this layer is modelled using cellular automata (CA) based microstructural evolution simulations, which make it possible to track variations in local microstructural features and assign layer properties accordingly. This new approach enables the computational study of the effect of transformation induced stresses on mechanical behaviour of different, fully controlled DP steel microstructures obtained through CA simulations.@en