EUROPEAN STEEL TECHNOLOGY AND APPLICATION DAYS 2017 - ESTAD 2017

An electrical steel with 1.24wt.% Si was hot rolled, hot band annealed and cold rolled (CR) to a rolling reduction of 78%. The as-CR specimen was subsequently annealed at the temperature range between 500°C and 900°C, and Vickers microhardness tests was performed on these specimens to determine the recrystallization (RX) temperature. Recrystallization was found to start at the temperature of 620°C and finish at the temperature of 700°C. Pole figures of these specimens were obtained by using X-ray diffraction and microstructure characterizations were carried out by the use of electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) technique. The through-thickness textures of the CR and annealed specimens were analyzed at five depths. It is found that Goss orientation, {110}<001>, appears to be significant at the sub-surface layer at the early stage of RX. Examinations of the microstructures reveal the presence of many shear bands. The direct observations of the same areas after annealing indicate that many of these shear bands are the potential nucleation sites for RX.