Effect of thermal cycling on impurity grain boundary segregation in maraging steel

The paper presents results of Auger spectroscopy of grain boundary elemental composition of maraging steel 11Cr10Ni2TiMo after typical heat treatment followed by thermal cycling. Specimens in the austenitic condition were subjected to aging at 550 °C and to cyclic heat treatment. Afterwards specimens were doped by hydrogen in an electrolytic cell in order to produce grain boundary brittleness. Fracture was performed by tensile loading in an ultrahigh vacuum chamber of a special Auger spectrometer. A noticeable phosphorus grain boundary segregation was observed after aging at 550 °C. A substantial decrease in grain boundary impurity segregation following thermal cycling has been observed.