Effect of Oxygen Content Upon the Microstructural and Mechanical Properties of Type 316L Austenitic Stainless Steel Manufactured by Hot Isostatic Pressing

Although hot isostatic pressing (HIP) has been shown to demonstrate significant advances over more conventional manufacture routes, it is important to appreciate and quantify the detrimental effects of oxygen involvement during the HIP manufacture process on the microstructural and material properties of the resulting component. This paper quantifies the effects of oxygen content on the microstructure and Charpy impact properties of HIP’d austenitic stainless steel, through combination of detailed metallographic examination and mechanical testing on HIP’d Type 316L steel containing different concentrations (100 to 190 ppm) of oxygen. Micron-scale pores were visible in the microstructure of the HIP’d materials postmetallographic preparation, which result from the removal of nonmetallic oxide inclusions during metallographic preparation. The area fraction of the resulting pores is shown to correlate with the oxygen concentration which influences the Charpy impact toughness over the temperature range of 77 K to 573 K (−196 °C to 300 °C), and demonstrates the influence of oxygen involved during the HIP manufacture process on Charpy toughness. The same test procedures and microstructural analyses were performed on commercially available forged 316L. This showed comparatively fewer inclusions and exhibited higher Charpy impact toughness over the tested temperature range.