Strengthening of austenite by ε martensite in low-carbon manganese steels

A phenomenological concept of austenite strengthening due to both the formation of E martensite on cooling and the development of the γ - e - α' deformation-induced transformation in low-carbon 05G20-type manganese steels was considered on the basis of literature and experimental data. The dependences of σ 0.2 and hardness of these steels on the e-martensite content before tests were obtained and the effect of the structural evolution of austenite and e martensite during tensile tests on mechanical properties was considered.