A review of heat treatment processes for bainitic steel
Yupeng Zhang, Shuoyan Li, Zhen Zhang, Yanguo Li, Bo Lv, Chunlei Zheng, Peng Zhang, Fucheng Zhang
Abstract
Bainitic steel has been applied in bearings, automobiles, construction machinery, railways, and many other fields due to its excellent comprehensive properties. However, with the rapid development of modern industry, the service conditions of bainitic steel have become increasingly demanding, involving challenges such as high loads, high impact, severe corrosion, wear, and fatigue, which impose higher requirements on its performance. To enhance the strength, toughness, wear resistance, and fatigue resistance of bainitic steel to meet evolving demands, researchers have explored various approaches, including composition design, heat treatment processes, and processing technologies. Among these, heat treatment processes play a crucial role in the production and performance control of bainitic steel. Through heating, holding, and cooling, the internal microstructure of bainitic steel is altered to achieve the desired structure and properties. Due to the complexity of bainitic transformation and work conditions, a wide variety of heat treatment processes have been developed for both industrial production and experimental research, and efforts continue to focus on developing more efficient and environmentally friendly new processes. In light of this, this paper primarily summarizes the heat treatment processes for bainitic steel developed in recent years, including austenitization, controlled cooling and quenching, isothermal quenching, thermomechanical treatment, tempering, and surface modification. Finally, in conjunction with advanced manufacturing technologies, computational modeling, and industrial intelligence and automation, future development trends are discussed.