Strain induced precipitation of complex carbonitrides in Nb-V and Ti-V microalloyed steels

Strain induced precipitation of complex carbonitrides in two microalloyed steels (Nb-V and Ti-V) has been studied using a stress relaxation technique. The results confirm the faster kinetics of precipitation in the case of Nb-V steel. The thermodynamic software Thermo-calc™ has been used to determine the composition gradient of equilibrium precipitates for the two steels.