Flow Behavior of SUS304 Stainless Steel Under a Wide Range of Forming Temperatures and Strain Rates

To determine the flow behavior of SUS304 stainless steel under different conditions, axisymmetric compression tests were conducted over a wide range of forming temperatures (25 degrees C to 400 degrees C) and strain rates (10(-3) to 10 s(-1)). Flow curves were obtained for different forming conditions to study the influence of the forming temperature and strain rate on the flow behavior. Moreover, electron backscatter diffraction analysis, X-ray diffraction analysis, transmission electron microscopy, and Feritscope were used to study the microstructure evolution of SUS304 stainless steel under different conditions for determining the underlying reasons for the variations in flow behavior. The experimental results indicated that the flow stress decreased with increasing the forming temperature. With increasing strain rate at 25 degrees C to 200 degrees C, the flow stress first increased and then decreased; however, the strain rate had little effect on the flow stress at 300 degrees C and 400 degrees C. By analyzing the variation in the phase transformation inside compressed SUS304 stainless steel samples under different forming conditions, the key factors affecting the flow behavior of stainless steel were identified. Finally, by examining the variation in the martensite content and the dislocation density, the dominant deformation mechanism under different forming conditions was determined.

Automated summary

Experimental results showed that the flow stress of SUS304 stainless steel decreased with increasing forming temperature, while the effect of strain rate and temperature on flow stress varied. Through microstructure evolution and phase transformation analysis, key factors influencing the flow behavior of stainless steel were identified.