A study of the processes during high temperature oxidation that control surface hot shortness in copper-containing low carbon steels.

Copper is a problematic residual element in electric arc furnace steel production because it leads to "surface hot shortness," a cracking defect that occurs during hot rolling of steel. The cracking arises from a liquid, copper-rich phase that penetrates into and embrittles the austenite grain boundaries. The liquid forms because copper is nobler than iron and enriches at the oxide/metal interface during oxidation of iron after casting and reheating prior to hot rolling. This cracking can be reduced or eliminated by controlling the distribution of the copper-rich layer, i.e. preventing it from penetrating down the austenite grain boundaries.;This study investigated the effect of alloy chemistry on the oxidation behavior and copper-rich liquid phase evolution. Alloy compositions were selected such that effects of copper, nickel, and reactive impurities (manganese, aluminum, and silicon) can be isolated. Industrially produced low carbon steels with varying copper, nickel and silicon contents were also studied. Alloys were oxidized in air or water vapor for times up to one hour at 1150°C. Oxidizing heat treatments were conducted in a thermogravimetric setup where the weight change could be measured during oxidation. Scanning electron microscopy was used to investigate in detail the oxide/metal interfaces.;The modeling work focused on describing the enrichment and subsequent growth of the copper-rich layer. A fixed grid finite difference model was developed that predicts the evolution of the enriched region from given oxidation kinetics. The model predictions were validated under a variety of conditions using an iron - 0.3 wt% copper alloy. Deviations from the model predictions in these alloys suggest a critical amount of separated copper is necessary for substantial grain boundary penetration to occur and the required amount decreases when the gas contains water vapor.;The parabolic oxidation rate for the iron-copper alloy did not differ from that of pure iron,