Introduction of preferential Zener drag effect in Monte Carlo simulation of abnormal Goss grain growth in the Fe–3%Si magnetic alloys

Abstract The selective growth of the Goss grains in textured materials such as Fe–3%Si is linked to the preferential weak Zener drag effect on their boundaries. The presence of AlN and MnS inhibitors permits the development of Goss texture by sudden and rapid growth of small grains possessing a {1 1 0}〈0 0 1〉 orientation. In Monte Carlo simulation of grain growth, particles are randomly distributed on such a theoretical microstructure. This assumption is not representative of real materials like Fe–3%Si sheets, which are used to the manufacture of transformers. In the present study, a model for classical Monte Carlo simulation is developed where preferential pinning effect of particles on grain boundaries is introduced through a critical radius Rn. The values of Rn are inversely proportional to the pinning force. The simulation procedure has been implemented using as starting state a real microstructure of grain oriented Fe–3%Si sheet characterised by orientation imaging microscopy (OIM™).