Experimental studies into the role of cyclic bending during stretching of dual-phase steel sheets

Continuous-bending-under-tension (CBT) has been conceived as a mechanical test or a forming process imparting cyclic bending during stretching of a metallic sheet or strip in order to increase its elongation to fracture (ETF) relative to simple tension (ST). In a recent work, over five times improved ETF by CBT over ST has been reported for a dual-phase (DP) steel DP 1180. This paper evaluates the behavior in CBT of three additional automotive advanced high strength steels (AHSS), DP 590, DP 780, and DP 980. In doing so, the process parameter space defined in terms of crosshead velocity applying the tensile force, and roller depth imposing the amount of bending to the specimen has been explored to maximize the ETF of these materials. The studied steel sheets had different thicknesses, in addition to intrinsically containing different fractions of ferrite and martensite phases. After establishing the optimal process parameters, significant improvements in ETF are achieved for all studied steels. Based on comprehensive data, it is found that lower martensitic content moderately improves ETF, while increasing of the sheet thickness rapidly deteriorates ETF, under CBT. The behavior in tension of sheets that were subjected to CBT processing under the established optimal process condition is investigated to determine enhancement in strength and any residual ductility of the materials. In addition to testing, a combination of electron microscopy along with electron-backscattered diffraction and neutron diffraction is employed in order to assess the initial microstructure, evolution of crystallographic texture, and fracture mechanisms for the studied steels. Texture evolution in CBT forms a more pronounced {011} fiber along the stretching direction than in ST, revealing that the deformation in CBT could extend to greater strain levels than those reached at the fracture location in ST. Fractured surfaces after CBT are found to consist of fine ductile dimples, while those after ST consist of coarser dimples and some content of brittle flat martensitic regions.