Unraveling the origin of strain-induced precipitation of M23C6 in the plastically deformed 347 Austenite stainless steel

•The results exhibited earlier formation of M23C6 precipitates in strained specimen.•Strain induced precipitates formed mainly along with the deformation bands.•The formation of α′ martensite was observed along the deformation bands.•The accelerated formation of M23C6 precipitates is attributed to α′ martensite.

In this research, the phenomenon of strain-induced precipitation of M23 (M = Cr, Fe, Mo) C6 precipitates in 347 austenite stainless steel was systematically studied. During annealing at 650 °C, the experimental results exhibited significantly earlier formation of M23C6 precipitates in the plastically strained specimen, than in the no-strain specimen. The various microstructural characterizations showed that the accelerated formation of M23C6 precipitates occurred around deformation bands that were generated by deformation twinning. Extensive investigation suggested that the strain-induced precipitation of M23C6 is attributed to the formation of strain-induced α′ martensite during plastic deformation near deformation bands.