Effect of thermocyclic treatment on the properties of precipitation-hardening austenitic steel containing lead

1. The mechanical properties of precipitation-hardening austenitic steel 37Kh12N8G8MFB after thermal cycling depend on the amount of the lead impurity. 2. The sharp reduction in the mechanical properties of the steel with a high lead content (0.003%) after TCT is due to the formation and development (due to the Rebinder effect) of intergranular microcracks of the thermal fatigue type. 3. The relationship between the TCT temperature and the susceptibility of the steel with a high lead content and carbide hardening is ambiguous; the susceptibility depends on the thermal stresses that occur during thermal cycling and the decomposition of the super-saturated solid solution.