There is a novel steel invented in which the structure consists of extremely fine platelets of bainitic ferrite dispersed in a matrix of carbon enriched retained austenite. The resulting large density of interfaces makes the alloy very strong in its transformed condition. The authors report the first fatigue tests on this system, by measuring the life of parallel gauged samples tested using cyclic loading in tension, with maximum stresses in the range 1·2–1·6 GPa. A comparison of the results against published data indicates that the performance of the steel is consistent with the behaviour of other strong steels, in spite of the fact that it is produced using an air melting technique.
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