On the martensitic phase transformation and grain boundary character evolution in laser powder bed fusion 17-4 precipitation hardened stainless steel
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Author(s)
Haines, Michael P
Farabi, Ehsan
Haghdadi, Nima
Primig, Sophie
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
Laser powder bed fusion (L-PBF) of 17-4 precipitate hardened (PH) stainless steel is well-known for its significant variations in reported microstructures. While recent research has provided better understanding of the phase transformation pathways leading to as-built microstructures of -ferrite, martensite, and/or austenite, reproducible and fully martensitic microstructures would be more desirable to provide strength and age-hardening potential. However, the understanding of the martensitic phase transformation as a function of 17-4 PH powder feedstock and L-PBF route remains limited. We aim to fill this gap by comparing builds from two processing routes with different powder feedstocks and processing parameters. As-built and heat treated (1 h at 1040 °C followed by water quenching) conditions are considered. We reveal the link between the parent austenite grain size (PAGS) and the resulting martensite microstructure. A detailed five-parameter characterization of interfaces shows that a smaller PAGS results in improved grain boundary connectivity and higher length fractions of 60°/[1 1 ] and 10.5°/[0 1 1] intervariant boundaries in the martensite. Computational material science demonstrates the link between the processing parameters and composition with microstructural variations and development. Our results are broadly applicable to steel L-PBF, underpinning that refinement of martensite will improve the grain boundary network and selection of desirable intervariants. This is expected to impact material properties such as toughness, strength, intergranular corrosion, cracking, slip, and the segregation of impurities.
Date Issued
2025-02-01
Date Acceptance
2025-01-11
Citation
Journal of Materials Science, 2025, 60, pp.3430-3453
ISSN
0022-2461
Publisher
Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Start Page
3430
End Page
3453
Journal / Book Title
Journal of Materials Science
Volume
60
Copyright Statement
© The Author(s) 2025. This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article's Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article's Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.
License URL
Publication Status
Published
Date Publish Online
2025-01-28