Plastic behaviours during tempering by crystal plasticity analyses using fast Fourier transform

Abstract

Heat treatment, such as quenching and carburising, often involves volume change caused by phenomena such as thermal expansion, phase transformation, and carbide precipitation during tempering. During the tempering process, an external force induces additional plastic deformation. The authors termed this phenomenon ‘tempering plasticity’. In this study, we performed crystal plasticity analysis using fast Fourier transform considering the volume change in carbides to assess the mechanism of tempering plasticity. As a result, tempering plastic strain occurred as the volume fraction of carbide increased, and the tempering plastic phenomenon could be reproduced based on the transformation model proposed by Greenwood–Johnson. The result supports the idea that the volume change accompanied by carbide precipitation is an important mechanism that invokes tempering plasticity.