Overview of the current issues in austenite to ferrite transformation and the role of migrating interfaces therein for low alloyed steels

Solid state phase transformations in metals, and more precisely the science of transformation interfaces, is a key point to understand the formation of nano/microstructure, and thus, as a result, many physical properties such as mechanical properties, conductivity, thermoelectric and magnetic properties of materials. Steels are by far the most widely used metallic alloys, and a deep understanding of their microstructure is essential to tailor their service properties. The transformation of high temperature parent austenite to ferrite is one of the main issues controlling the final microstructures, and for more than a century, this has driven metallurgists to investigate in detail this solid state transformation, and, particularly, the details of austenite to ferrite interface migration. In this paper, we review the evolution of the different concepts and experiments developed in the last century to investigate this transformation mechanism. After a brief introduction, most of the physical models developed, which reduce the alpha/gamma interface into a mathematical body with its own properties, are reviewed and discussed with regard to experimental data. The increased availability of highly sophisticated experimental and modelling tools in recent decades has considerably clarified the perceptions of transformation interfaces. These recent advances are presented, and their contribution to the field of migrating austenite-ferrite interfaces are highlighted in a third section. In the fourth section, the latest developments in experimental methods, which now allow the quasi atomistic direct characterization of the interface chemistry, are presented. The observed conditions at the interfaces can be compared with model predictions, which is believed to be a critical step for the refinement of the theoretical concepts guiding the understanding of the interface migration. Finally, in the concluding section, the present situation of the field is summarized, and some perspectives regarding the expected future developments are sketched. (C) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.