Development of in situ observation technique using scanning ion microscopy and demonstration of Mn depletion effect on intragranular ferrite transformation in low-alloy steel.

An in situ observation technique using scanning ion microscopy (SIM) to investigate the behaviour of phase transformation from austenite to ferrite in low-alloy steel is proposed. The most important advantage of the technique is the combined observation by SIM and fabrication by focused ion beam (FIB) at a wide range of temperature, from room temperature to 1673 K. Using this advantage, we have developed a new technique for observing intragranular ferrite (IGF) transformation in low-alloy steel, which is the phase transformation occurring at an inclusion existing inside a grain of austenite phase. We successfully observed the IGF transformation at 873 K by examining an inclusion exposed to the specimen surface by FIB fabrication at 1073 K during cooling from 1673 K. From the results of the in situ observation, we determined the role of Mn depletion due to precipitation of MnS for IGF transformation in steel.