Fracture in quench-aged low-carbon steels

The role of both grain boundary and dispersed carbides on the processes of yielding and fracture has been investigated in irons containing between 0.005 and 0.03 wt%C. It has been observed that for carbon levels below 0.025 wt% quench ageing produces a simultaneous increase in both yield strength and fracture resistance. It is concluded that the dispersed carbides produce an increase in yield strength by the Orowan mechanism but that the grain …