EP2322680B1 - Acier facilement usinable, sans pb et respectueux de l'environnement et son procédé de fabrication - Google Patents

Acier facilement usinable, sans pb et respectueux de l'environnement et son procédé de fabrication Download PDF

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Publication number
EP2322680B1
EP2322680B1 EP09805163.4A EP09805163A EP2322680B1 EP 2322680 B1 EP2322680 B1 EP 2322680B1 EP 09805163 A EP09805163 A EP 09805163A EP 2322680 B1 EP2322680 B1 EP 2322680B1
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Prior art keywords
free
oxygen
mns
cutting steel
rolling
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EP09805163.4A
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German (de)
English (en)
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EP2322680A4 (fr
EP2322680A2 (fr
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Sang-Bog Ahn
Hyong-Jik Lee
Ki-Ho Rhee
Duk-Lak Lee
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Posco Holdings Inc
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Posco Co Ltd
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Priority claimed from KR1020080077067A external-priority patent/KR101027246B1/ko
Priority claimed from KR1020090018464A external-priority patent/KR101091275B1/ko
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Publication of EP2322680A2 publication Critical patent/EP2322680A2/fr
Publication of EP2322680A4 publication Critical patent/EP2322680A4/fr
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    • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
    • C22—METALLURGY; FERROUS OR NON-FERROUS ALLOYS; TREATMENT OF ALLOYS OR NON-FERROUS METALS
    • C22C—ALLOYS
    • C22C38/00—Ferrous alloys, e.g. steel alloys
    • C22C38/02—Ferrous alloys, e.g. steel alloys containing silicon
    • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
    • C21—METALLURGY OF IRON
    • C21D—MODIFYING THE PHYSICAL STRUCTURE OF FERROUS METALS; GENERAL DEVICES FOR HEAT TREATMENT OF FERROUS OR NON-FERROUS METALS OR ALLOYS; MAKING METAL MALLEABLE, e.g. BY DECARBURISATION OR TEMPERING
    • C21D8/00—Modifying the physical properties by deformation combined with, or followed by, heat treatment
    • C21D8/06—Modifying the physical properties by deformation combined with, or followed by, heat treatment during manufacturing of rods or wires
    • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
    • C21—METALLURGY OF IRON
    • C21D—MODIFYING THE PHYSICAL STRUCTURE OF FERROUS METALS; GENERAL DEVICES FOR HEAT TREATMENT OF FERROUS OR NON-FERROUS METALS OR ALLOYS; MAKING METAL MALLEABLE, e.g. BY DECARBURISATION OR TEMPERING
    • C21D9/00—Heat treatment, e.g. annealing, hardening, quenching or tempering, adapted for particular articles; Furnaces therefor
    • C21D9/0075—Heat treatment, e.g. annealing, hardening, quenching or tempering, adapted for particular articles; Furnaces therefor for rods of limited length
    • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
    • C22—METALLURGY; FERROUS OR NON-FERROUS ALLOYS; TREATMENT OF ALLOYS OR NON-FERROUS METALS
    • C22C—ALLOYS
    • C22C38/00—Ferrous alloys, e.g. steel alloys
    • C22C38/001—Ferrous alloys, e.g. steel alloys containing N
    • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
    • C22—METALLURGY; FERROUS OR NON-FERROUS ALLOYS; TREATMENT OF ALLOYS OR NON-FERROUS METALS
    • C22C—ALLOYS
    • C22C38/00—Ferrous alloys, e.g. steel alloys
    • C22C38/04—Ferrous alloys, e.g. steel alloys containing manganese
    • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
    • C22—METALLURGY; FERROUS OR NON-FERROUS ALLOYS; TREATMENT OF ALLOYS OR NON-FERROUS METALS
    • C22C—ALLOYS
    • C22C38/00—Ferrous alloys, e.g. steel alloys
    • C22C38/18—Ferrous alloys, e.g. steel alloys containing chromium
    • C22C38/28—Ferrous alloys, e.g. steel alloys containing chromium with titanium or zirconium
    • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
    • C22—METALLURGY; FERROUS OR NON-FERROUS ALLOYS; TREATMENT OF ALLOYS OR NON-FERROUS METALS
    • C22C—ALLOYS
    • C22C38/00—Ferrous alloys, e.g. steel alloys
    • C22C38/18—Ferrous alloys, e.g. steel alloys containing chromium
    • C22C38/32—Ferrous alloys, e.g. steel alloys containing chromium with boron
    • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
    • C21—METALLURGY OF IRON
    • C21D—MODIFYING THE PHYSICAL STRUCTURE OF FERROUS METALS; GENERAL DEVICES FOR HEAT TREATMENT OF FERROUS OR NON-FERROUS METALS OR ALLOYS; MAKING METAL MALLEABLE, e.g. BY DECARBURISATION OR TEMPERING
    • C21D2211/00—Microstructure comprising significant phases
    • C21D2211/004—Dispersions; Precipitations

Definitions

  • the present invention relates to an eco-friendly lead-free free-cutting steel having excellent machinability and a manufacturing method thereof, and more particularly, to an eco-friendly lead-free free-cutting steel and a manufacturing method thereof in which machinability and hot-rolling characteristics are improved by: 1 forming non-metallic inclusions and precipitates by adding an appropriate amount of titanium (Ti), chromium (Cr) and nitrogen (N), etc.; 2 controlling a manganese (Mn)/sulfur (S) ratio among components to about 3.5 or more; 3 limiting a total oxygen (T.[0]) content to about 300 ppm or less and 4 controlling the number of manganese sulfide (MnS) inclusions such that the number of MnS having an area of about 5 ⁇ m 2 or more is in the range of about 300-1000 per mm 2 in a section of a rolling direction.
  • Ti titanium
  • Cr chromium
  • N nitrogen
  • Mn manganese
  • S sulfur
  • a free-cutting steel denotes a steel in which machinability, commonly also called cuttability, is highly improved.
  • the free-cutting steel is widely used as materials for hydraulic parts of an automobile, shafts of office automation equipment enabling use in a printer or the like and cutting parts, etc., and applications and demand therefore has been in a gradually increasing trend.
  • the free-cutting steel basically has excellent cuttability, particularly mechanical cuttability, and for this purpose, cuttability is typically improved by a method of adding various alloying elements or forming inclusions in the free-cutting steel.
  • non-metallic inclusions are used as a mechanism for improving cuttability, and a well-known material among non-metallic inclusions is manganese sulfide (MnS).
  • Cuttability of the free-cutting steel can be obtained by controlling a size, a shape, or a distribution of MnS. More particularly, during cutting of steel using a machining apparatus like a lathe, non-metallic inclusions such as MnS or the like act as a stress concentration source in a contact portion between a tool tip and the steel to generate voids at interfaces between the non-metallic inclusions and a matrix, so that crack growth may be promoted at the voids, which is a principle used to reduce force required for cutting.
  • non-metallic inclusions such as MnS or the like act as a stress concentration source in a contact portion between a tool tip and the steel to generate voids at interfaces between the non-metallic inclusions and a matrix, so that crack growth may be promoted at the voids, which is a principle used to reduce force required for cutting.
  • 1 MnS should exist in a large amount
  • 2 MnS should be distributed randomly
  • the shapes of MnS created in the free-cutting steel may change greatly depending on an oxygen content of a continuous casting tundish, and the shapes are largely classified into three types, i.e., a spherical shape (Type I), a dendritic shape (Type II) and an irregular shape (Type III).
  • MnS is close to the spherical type (Type I).
  • T.[0] total oxygen
  • T.[0] total oxygen
  • MnS will be crystallized into complex sulfides such as Mn(0,S) or the like while solidifying in molten steel at a high temperature together with a deoxidation process.
  • a dendritic (Type II) structure does not crystallize in a molten steel state during solidification when the tundish T,[0] content is relatively as low as much as about a few tens of ppm, but precipitates along primary grain boundaries.
  • the dendritic (Type II) structure easily elongates along a rolling direction in a hot-rolling process of steels, thus greatly degrading anisotropy of a material.
  • the dendritic structure is a shape generated during solidification of ordinary steels except the free-cutting steel, and greatly degrades mechanical properties of steels. Therefore, in order to suppress MnS precipitation in a refining process, many efforts have been made such as reducing an S content extremely to about a few ppm or the like.
  • the irregular shape (Type III) MnS has a characteristic of being formed as isolated inclusions of MnS mainly at a high temperature when the tundish T.[0] content is as low as about a few ppm and a melted aluminium content is high.
  • the irregular shape (Type III) MnS exists in an angular shape in an aluminium deoxidized steel.
  • Another related art for the free-cutting steel is that alloying elements, such as carbon (C), silicon (Si), manganese (Mn), sulfur (S), oxygen (0), bismuth (Bi) or the like, are added to a constant amount, and the number of Bi inclusions per mm 2 in a section of a rolling direction and a ratio of a Bi content are limited to a constant value or more,
  • alloying elements such as carbon (C), silicon (Si), manganese (Mn), sulfur (S), oxygen (0), bismuth (Bi) or the like.
  • the related art is characterized in that oxygen is added to about 0.003 wt% or less, but it is difficult to provide a high-oxygen free-cutting steel having excellent cuttability, in which a MnS shape is controlled to the Type I, i.e. a spherical shape, by the above oxygen content.
  • Another related art for the free-cutting steel is related to a sulfur-based continuous casting free-steel having an equivalent level of cuttability to a free-cutting steel manufactured by a typical ingot making method. It is characterized in that carbon (C), manganese (Mn), phosphorous (P), sulfur (S), nitrogen (N) and oxygen (0) are included in a constant amount, and an average size of MnS inclusions is about 50 ⁇ m 2 or less.
  • C carbon
  • Mn manganese
  • P phosphorous
  • S sulfur
  • N nitrogen
  • oxygen (0) oxygen (0)
  • Another related art for the free-cutting steel is characterized in that carbon (C), manganese (Mn), phosphorous (P), sulfur (S), nitrogen (N) and oxygen (0) are used as basic components, silicon (Si) and aluminum (A1) are limited to about 0.1 wt% or less and about 0.009 wt% or less, respectively, and N is in the range of about 20-150 ppm and a total mass of oxide-based inclusions is about 50% or more.
  • Another related art for the free-cutting steel is related to a manufacturing method of a Bi-S based free-cutting steel, and is characterized in that high-temperature ductility is increased by controlling grain sizes of a free-cutting steel and austenite having excellent physical properties to a constant size.
  • the Bi-S based free-cutting steel included: by wt%, carbon; about 0.05-0.15%, Mn; about 0.5-2.0%, S; about 0.15-0.40%, P; about 0.01-0.1%, 0; about 0.003-0.020%, Bi; about 0.03-0.3%, Si; about 0.01% or less and Al; 0.0009% or less, and the rest includes iron and unavoidable impurities.
  • the Bi-S based free-cutting steel was suggested in which a cross-sectional fraction of MnS-based inclusions absorbing MnS and Bi is about 0.5-2.0%, and the cross-sectional fraction of Bi is about 0.030-0.30%.
  • a cross-sectional fraction of MnS-based inclusions absorbing MnS and Bi is about 0.5-2.0%
  • the cross-sectional fraction of Bi is about 0.030-0.30%.
  • it is related to the Bi-S based free-cutting steel, and it does not provide a method related to controlling MnS shapes like the present invention.
  • An aspect of the present invention provides a free-cutting steel that is appropriate for environmental regulation standards and has excellent characteristics of cuttability, hot-rolling ability and the like.
  • a lead-free free-cutting steel including: about 0.03-0.13 wt% of carbon (C); about 0.1 wt% or less of silicon (Si); about 0.7-2.0 wt% of manganese (Mn); about 0.05-0.15 wt% of phosphorous (P); about 0.2-0.5 wt% of sulfur (S); about 0.001-0.01 wt% of boron (B); about 0.1-0.5 wt% of chromium (Cr); about 0.003-0.2 wt% of titanium (Ti); about 0.005-0.015 wt% of nitrogen (N); about 0.03 wt% or less of oxygen (0); residual iron (Fe); and other unavoidable impurities.
  • the number of manganese sulfide (MnS) inclusions having a particle size of about 5 ⁇ m 2 or more is in the range of about 300-1000 per mm 2 of a material in a section of a wire rod rolling direction as defined herein. In this case, the weight ratio of Mn to S (Mn/S) is 3.5 or more.
  • a method of manufacturing a lead-free free-cutting steel including: a converter refining step of ending an oxygen blowing when a free oxygen concentration is in the range of about 400-1000 ppm by blowing oxygen with a supersonic speed in a molten metal; a tapping step of tapping the molten metal after the ending of the oxygen blowing into a teaming ladle in a non-deoxidation state; a molten steel heating step of performing a ladle furnace (LF) refining until a free oxygen concentration is in the range of about 100-200 ppm after transporting the teaming ladle to the LF; a continuous casting step of casting the molten steel into a billet when the free oxygen concentration is in the range of about 50-150 ppm at a point of time of about 10-50% of total casting time; and a wire rod rolling step of rolling the billet into a wire rod while the billet is maintained at a temperature of about 1200-1350°C in a
  • the molten steel is manufactured into a bloom, and then the bloom may be manufactured into a billet through bloom rolling.
  • the method may further include a bloom rolling step, of rolling the bloom into the billet while maintaining the bloom at a heating furnace temperature of about 1250°C or more for about 4-10 hours.
  • the lead-free free-cutting steel of the invention includes about 0.03-0.13 wt% of carbon (C), about 0.1 wt% or less of silicon (Si), about 0.7-2.0 wt% of manganese (Mn), about 0.05-0.15 wt% of phosphorous (P), about 0.2-0.5 wt% of sulfur (S), about 0.001-0.01 wt% of boron (B), about 0.1-0.5 wt% of chromium (Cr), about 0.003-0.2 wt% of titanium (Ti), about 0.005-0.015 wt% of nitrogen (N), about 0.03 wt% or less of oxygen (0), residual iron (Fe), and other unavoidable impurities.
  • the number of manganese sulfide (MnS) inclusions having a particle size of about 5 ⁇ m 2 or more may be in the range of about 300-1000 per mm 2 of a material in a section of a wire rod rolling direction as defined herein.
  • the continuous casting operation may use a mold electromagnetic stirrer device, a soft reduction device or the mold electromagnetic stirrer device and the soft reduction device.
  • the weight ratio of Mn to S (Mn/S) is 3.5 or more.
  • a S free-cutting steel can be easily manufactured in steelmaking and continuous casting processes.
  • An eco-friendly lead-free free-cutting steel which has an excellent hot-rolling ability as well as cuttability that is greatly increased by crystallizing a large amount of spherically shaped MnS in a steelmaking step, can be also provided.
  • the inventors of the present invention manufactured a free-cutting steel by: 1 forming non-metallic inclusions and precipitates by adding an appropriate amount of titanium (Ti), chromium (Cr) and nitrogen (N), etc.,; 2 controlling a manganese (Mn)/sulfur (S) ratio among components to about 3.5 or more; 3 limiting a total oxygen (T.[0]) content to about 300 ppm or less and 4 controlling the number of manganese sulfide (MnS) inclusions such that the number of MnS having an area of 5 ⁇ m 2 or more is in the range of about 300-1000 per mm 2 in a section of a rolling direction.
  • the MnS inclusions exist in the free-cutting steel with a shape as shown in FIG. 1 .
  • a large amount of (Cr, Ti)S-based or (Cr, Ti)N-based fine precipitates having a size ranging about 0.1-5 ⁇ m are precipitated at grain boundaries during solidification as shown in FIG. 2 , thus enabling to: 1 improve cuttability by preventing work hardening from occurring during a machining operation of parts, and in addition, 2 suppress a build-up edge (BUE, hereinafter refer to as BUE) formation by improving fracture toughness of steels and improve cuttability, of the free-cutting steel by making chip segmentation better.
  • BUE build-up edge
  • C is an element that increases strength and hardness of a material by forming carbides, C plays a role to suppress a BUE formation in a tool during cutting steels by partially existing as pearlite in the free-cutting steel.
  • C content is less than about 0.03 wt%, it is difficult to increase hardness of a material to a desired range, and there is no effect of suppressing a BUE.
  • the C content is more than about 0.13 wt%, hardness of the material is increased excessively such that tool life is greatly reduced. Therefore, the C content is limited in the range of about 0.03-0.13 wt% in the present invention.
  • Silicon is an element that remains in a material due to a pig iron or a deoxidizer. Since most of Si is dissolvec in ferrite if an oxide, i.e. silicon dioxide (SiO 2 ) is not formed, it is known that Si does not give great effects on mechanical properties of an ordinary free-cutting steel. However, according to experiments of the inventors of the present invention or the like, when the Si content is more than 0.1 wt% in a high-oxygen free-cutting steel, SiO a is formed so that tool life is remarkably reduced during machining of the free-cutting steel. Therefore, in principle, Si is not added in the present invention. However, since Si may be entered unavoidably from alloy irons and refractories or the like in a steelmaking process, the Si content existed in the free-cutting steel of the present invention is limited to about 0.1 wt% or less.
  • Mn is an important alloying element that forms MnS non-metallic inclusions for providing machinability of steels, and the MnS inclusions can be effectively crystallized when adding about 0,7 wt% or more. Furthermore, Mn can suppress an effect of increasing surface defects of a bloom during hot-rolling. However, if the Mn content is excessively high of more than about 2.0 wt%, hardness of steels increases so that tool life may be rather decreased. Also, when the Mn content is in the range of about 0.7-2.0 wt%, some of Mn is combined with oxygen to form MnO MnO will play a role to promote a formation of spherical MnS inclusions by acting as a MnS forming nuclei during a solidification process.
  • Phosphorous (P) about 0.05-0.15 wt%
  • P is an element for suppressing a BUE which can be easily formed in a tip of a cutting tool.
  • the P content is less than about 0.05 wt%, it is difficult to expect suppressing effects of a BUE formation.
  • the suppressing effects of the BUE formation is excellent when the P contents is more than about 0.15 wt%, a reduction of cutting tool life caused by increasing hardness of steels will be concerned. Therefore, the P content is limited in the range of about 0.05-0.15 wt% in the present invention.
  • S is used for forming MnS inclusions during solidification in the free-cutting steel.
  • MnS plays a role to reduce wear of cutting tools and improve surface roughness of a workpiece by improving cuttability of steels
  • S is very important in the present invention.
  • S is added to about 0.2 wt% or more.
  • an addition of S in an excessively large amount may promote precipitation of iron sulfide (FeS) having a reticular shape at grain boundaries. Since FeS is very brittle and has a low melting point, hot-rolling ability may be greatly reduced.
  • the S content is increased more than necessary, toughness and ductility of steels are remarkably decreased as well as surface defects of the steels are increased. Therefore, the S content should not be more than about 0.5 wt%.
  • B plays a role to increase hardenability in steels, and for this purpose, is added to about 10-100 ppm in the present invention.
  • B is added to less than about 10 ppm, it is difficult to obtain an appropriate effect of increasing hardenability.
  • the B content is more than about 100 ppm, hot-rolling is difficult due to decrease in high-temperature ductility. Therefore, a range thereof is limited.
  • Chromium (Cr) about 0.1-0.5 wt%
  • Cr is an element that acts to enlarge an austenite region in a carbon steel, and Cr is an important and a universal alloying element which is low cost and has characteristics of forming carbides that do not cause an embrittlement even if Cr is added in a large amount.
  • Coarse (Cr, Mn)S-based non-metallic inclusions are formed during an addition of Cr, and deformation of the non-metallic inclusions is suppressed during rolling and it makes the non-metallic inclusions having a uniform distribution in a matrix phase.
  • Cr is added to improve cuttability, in the present invention. According to experiments of the inventors of the present invention, an effect of improving machinability is not large when Cr is added to less than about 0.1 wt%.
  • Ti shows strong chemical affinity with any element of oxygen (0), nitrogen (N), carbon (C), sulfur (S) and hydrogen (H), and is also particularly used for a deoxidation, a denitrification and a desulphurization reaction, etc. Also, Ti easily forms carbides and acts to refine grains. Even in experiments related to the present invention, it could be confirmed that cuttability is greatly improved by grain refinement when adding Ti to more than about 0.003 wt%. Also, hardness increase during an addition of Ti suppresses a BUE formation such that cuttability, is improved. However, when adding more than about 0.2 wt%, an effect of improving cuttability reaches a limit.
  • TiO 2 titanium dioxide
  • N is an element affecting a BUE formation in cutting tools and surface roughness of cutting parts.
  • the N content is less than about 0.005 wt%, it is not good because the BUE formation is increased and the surface roughness is deteriorated.
  • the BUE formation is decreased as the N content increases, there may be a limitation caused by increasing surface defects of a free-cutting steel bloom after complete casting when the N content is more than about 0.015 wt%. Therefore, the N content is limited to about 0.005-0.015 wt% in the present invention.
  • Oxygen (0) about 0.03 wt% or less
  • the oxygen means a total oxygen (T.[0]) content of a slab (or a bloom) after complete casting.
  • T.[0] total oxygen
  • Type II or Type III shape of MnS precipitates during solidification, and it will be a limitation because these shapes of MnS deteriorate curability of the free-cutting steel. Crystallization of Type I, i.e. spherically shaped MnS is targeted for maximizing cuttability in the present invention.
  • a weight ratio of Mn over S Mn/S ⁇ 3.5
  • a relation of Mn and S is controlled to satisfy that the Mn/S ratio based on wt% is about 3.5 or more. This is for avoiding hot brittleness due to FeS by combining Mn with S, because securing of the Mn content above a certain amount is important. Particularly, when the Mn/S ratio is less than about 3.5, hot-rolling ability is reduced so that it is difficult to manufacture the free-cutting steel pursued in the present invention.
  • the number of MnS the number of MnS having a size of about 5 ⁇ m 2 or more is about 300-1000 per mm 2 in a section of a rolling direction
  • cuttability is greatly changed depending on sizes and distribution of MnS non-metallic inclusions remaining in the steel.
  • cuttability of steels is better as MnS size is large and the number is high.
  • cuttability of the steels is the best when the number of MnS having a size of more than about 5 ⁇ m 2 is about 300-1000 per mm 2 in a section of a rolling direction, i.e. an L direction.
  • the number of MnS When the number of MnS is less than about 300, tool life is reduced due to a decrease in cuttability, and surface roughness of machined parts is also deteriorated. On the other hand, when the number exceeds more than about 1000, it appears that chip carrying ability is poor although tool life may be increased. Therefore, the number of MnS may be controlled to about 300-1000.
  • impurities such as C, Si, Mn, P or the like contained in a molten metal
  • a converter refining oxygen blowing is stopped when free oxygen in the molten metal is in the range of about 400-1000 ppm. This is because that since a carbon content of the molten metal will exceed a compositional range of the present invention when oxygen is less than about 400 ppm, control of the carbon component is difficult.
  • oxygen is more than about 1000 ppm, it is disadvantageous because it may cause excessive erosion of refractories in the converter, a teaming ladle and the like.
  • a step is undergone in which a molten metal after the complete oxygen blowing is tapping into a teaming ladle in a non-deoxidation state, i.e. a state of not deoxidizing the molten metal.
  • a subsidiary material such as an alloy iron may be added during the tapping step if necessary. Adding the alloy iron or the subsidiary material is for making molten steel and slag in an appropriate range.
  • a heating step of molten steel (ladle furnace (LF) heating)
  • the teaming ladle is transported to a ladle furnace (LF), and heating of molten steel is performed.
  • the Heating of the molten metal is performed with increasing a temperature of the molten steel by supplying an electric arc to the molten steel through carbon electrodes installed in advance in the LF.
  • An alloy iron or a subsidiary material may be also added during performing the heating if necessary.
  • the molten steel sample may be collected and an oxygen concentration of the molten steel may be also measured.
  • LF refining may be ended in a free oxygen concentration of the molten metal ranging about 100-200 ppm in the LF. If the LF refining is ended in the free oxygen concentration of less than about 100 ppm, it is difficult to form a desired MnS. On the other hand, if the LF refining is ended in a condition of more than about 200 ppm, it is difficult to predict a change of molten steel components in a subsequent process such that control of components will not be easy. Therefore, the free oxygen concentration at the end of the LF refining is limited in the range of about 100-200 ppm.
  • a continuous casting is performed by transporting the molten steel after the complete LF refining by the heating to a continuous casting machine.
  • the free oxygen concentration of the molten steel is measured after starting the continuous casting, and this is for finding out in advance whether cuttability, of the free-cutting steel is good or bad.
  • the free oxygen concentration is measured at a point of time of about 10-50% of total casting time, and at this time, the free oxygen concentration is sufficient if it is in the range of about 50-150 ppm. If the free oxygen concentration is measured when a casting time is less than about 10%, it is difficult to obtain an accurate free oxygen concentration due to effects of tundish refractories or tundish insulation materials, etc.
  • the soft reduction device is very advantageous to reduce center segregation of the slab and surface defects such as pin holes and blow holes or the like at a surface of the slab.
  • the soft reduction device is very advantageous to reduce center segregation of the slab and surface defects such as pin holes and blow holes or the like at a surface of the slab.
  • a bloom rolling process i.e., a process for manufacturing the billets, may be undergone, and if rolling is performed for the billets, it is sufficient if the bloom rolling process is omitted and wire rod rolling is performed.
  • a subsequent process of performing rolling the bloom into the billet is additionally included.
  • the blooms in the size of about 300 mm X 400 mm and about 400 mm X 500 mm are used for rolling into the billets in the size of about 120 mm X 120 mm and about 160 mm X 160 mm, this is generally called as bloom rolling or billetizing.
  • the most important factors in the bloom rolling process are temperature of the bloom and holding time of a heating furnace. Since a surface of a manufactured billet may be badly damaged if the rolling is performed in a low temperature state of the bloom, it is limited in the present invention for maintaining a heating furnace temperature at about 1250 °C or more for about 4-10 hours.
  • the holding time of the heating furnace is limited to about 4-10 hours.
  • the free-cutting steel is casted for the billet or casted for the bloom and then the billet is manufactured by performing the bloom rolling, rolling of the billet into wire rods is performed subsequently.
  • the most important factors for manufacturing the wire rods from a free-cutting steel billet by the present step are temperature of a billet heating furnace and heating time.
  • a billet temperature in the heating furnace may be maintained at a temperature ranging about 1200-1350 °C for about 2-5 hours. When the billet temperature was less than about 1200 °C, it was difficult to obtain the wire rods having good surface quality even if the holding time of the heating furnace was made long.
  • blooms which have compositions of Experimental Examples and a Comparative Example (SUM24L) in the following Table 1, were manufactured in a high-frequency induction melting furnace in the 200 kg class.
  • the Comparative Example is a lead (Pb) free-cutting steel which is most widely used at present, i.e., SUM24L.
  • the blooms of the Experimental Examples and the Comparative Example were manufactured through the same experimental facilities and manufacturing processes, and the size of the blooms manufactured at that time was about 230 mm ⁇ 230 mm ⁇ 350 mm.
  • the above blooms were heated at about 1300 °C in the heating furnace, and rolled into a plate having a thickness of about 30 mm using a pilot roling mill. Subsequently, the plate was cut into squares having a size of about 30 mm ⁇ 30 mm in a rolling direction, and then the squares were machined into round bars with a diameter of about 25 mm in a lathe. Thereafter, tool life and surface roughness of a cut surface were measured by performing cuttability evaluation experiments on the round bars with a diameter of about 25 mm in a computer numerical control (CNC) lathe.
  • CNC computer numerical control
  • the cuttability evaluation experiments were performed by selecting cutting conditions that include a cutting speed of about 100 m/min, a cutting depth of about 1.0 mm and a feed rate of about 0.1 mm/rev., and a dry condition that does not use a cutting oil was maintained.
  • FIG. 4 is a graph showing tool lives of the Experimental Example and the Comparative Example, and it shows that the Experimental Examples of the present invention present an equivalent level of tool life as compared to comparative steels. Furthermore, it could be confirmed that surface characteristics also show an equivalent level or a better region as compared to the Pb free-cutting steel in FIG. 5 .
  • the reason that the present invention can show an equivalent or a superior level of surface roughness as well as tool life as compared to the Pb free-cutting steel by adding a prescribed amount of Cr, Ti and N instead of Pb which is harmful to the human body is as follows; In case of adding Cr of about 0.1-0.5%, Ti of about 0.003-0,2% and N of about 0.005-0.015% to a high oxygen free-cutting steel having S ranging about 0.2-0.5%, coarse (Cr,Mn)S-based precipitates, and a large amount of (Cr,Ti)S-based and (Cr,Ti)N-based fine precipitates, which have a size of about 1 ⁇ m, are precipitated at grain boundaries during solidification of molten steel.
  • a free-cutting steel bloom having a size of about 300 mm ⁇ 400 mm after complete continuous casting was rolled into a billet having a size of about 160 mm ⁇ 160 mm in a bloom rolling process, and subsequently, the billet was rolled into wire rods having a diameter of about 25 mm in a wire rod rolling process.
  • the bloom and the billet were heated and cooled by typical free-cutting steel rolling conditions. Samples were collected from the wire rods after the complete rolling, and a total oxygen content was measured by an N/O analyzer, and an area and a shape of MnS were observed by an optical microscope.
  • the tool life means the relative number of parts which can be machined by one cutting tool
  • [Table 2] Item Total oxygen content (T.[0]), ppm The number of MnS per unit area (an area of about 5 ⁇ m 2 or more) Tool life (times)
  • Experimental Example 6 133 316 5300
  • Experimental Example 7 138 627 5500
  • Experimental Example 8 290 525 6500
  • Experimental Example 9 235 467 6200 Comparative Example 2 116 288 4400 Comparative Example 3 220 219 3100 Comparative Example 4 315 527 5800 Comparative Example 5 380 427 5700
  • the total oxygen contents of the wire rods are included in the limited range of the present invention of about 300 ppm or less from the above Table 2, if the number of MnS per unit area is in the range of about 300-1000 (the Experimental Examples 6 through 9), the tool life showed about 5000 times or more which is required by a customer company of free-cutting steel parts.
  • the total oxygen contents were included in the range of the present invention like the Comparative Examples 2 and 3, tool life was under 5000 times when the number of MnS per unit area was less than 300. This is considered as a phenomenon that occurred when generation and propagation of cracks are relatively less progressed during cutting due to the lack of MnS having a relatively large area.
  • a S free-cutting steel can be easily manufactured in steelmaking and continuous casting processes.
  • An eco-friendly non-leaded free-cutting steel which has an excellent hot-rolling ability as well as cuttability that is greatly increased by crystallizing a large amount of spherically shaped MnS in a steelmaking step, can be also provide.

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  • Chemical & Material Sciences (AREA)
  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Materials Engineering (AREA)
  • Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
  • Metallurgy (AREA)
  • Organic Chemistry (AREA)
  • Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
  • Thermal Sciences (AREA)
  • Crystallography & Structural Chemistry (AREA)
  • Manufacturing & Machinery (AREA)
  • Treatment Of Steel In Its Molten State (AREA)
  • Heat Treatment Of Steel (AREA)
  • Carbon Steel Or Casting Steel Manufacturing (AREA)
  • Continuous Casting (AREA)
  • Metal Rolling (AREA)

Claims (5)

  1. Acier de décolletage exempt de plomb comprenant :
    0,03 à 0,13 % en poids de carbone (C) ; 0,1 % en poids ou moins de silicium (Si) ; 0,7 à 2,0 % en poids de manganèse (Mn) ; 0,05 à 0,15 % en poids de phosphore (P) ; 0,2 à 0,5 % en poids de soufre (S) ; 0,001 à 0,01 % en poids de bore (B) ; 0,1 à 0,5 % en poids de chrome (Cr) ; 0,003 à 0,2 % en poids de titane (Ti) ; 0,005 à 0,015 % en poids d'azote (N) ; 0,03 % en poids ou moins d'oxygène (O) ; du fer résiduel (Fe) ; et d'autres impuretés inévitables, dans lequel le rapport en poids entre Mn et S (Mn/S) est de 3,5 ou plus, et dans lequel le nombre d'inclusions de sulfure de manganèse (MnS) ayant une taille de particules de 5 µm2 ou plus est dans la plage de 300 à 1 000 par mm2 d'un matériau dans une section d'une direction de laminage de fil machine comme défini ici.
  2. Procédé de fabrication d'un acier de décolletage exempt de plomb, le procédé comprenant :
    une étape d'affinage en convertisseur consistant à terminer un soufflage d'oxygène lorsqu'une concentration en oxygène libre est dans la plage de 400 à 1 000 ppm en soufflant de l'oxygène avec une vitesse supersonique dans un métal en fusion dans un convertisseur ;
    une étape de coulée consistant à couler le métal en fusion après la fin du soufflage d'oxygène dans une poche à quenouille dans un état de non-désoxydation ;
    une étape de chauffage de métal en fusion consistant à réaliser un affinage en four-poche (LF) jusqu'à ce que la concentration en oxygène libre soit dans la plage de 100 à 200 ppm après le transport de la poche à quenouille jusqu'au LF ;
    une étape de coulée continue consistant à couler le métal en fusion en une billette lorsque la concentration en oxygène libre est dans la plage de 50 à 150 ppm à un moment de 10 à 50 % de la durée de coulée totale ; et
    une étape de laminage de fil machine consistant à laminer la billette en un fil machine alors que la billette est maintenue à une température de 1 200 à 1 350 °C dans un four de réchauffage pendant 2 à 5 heures,
    dans lequel l'acier de décolletage exempt de plomb comprend 0,03 à 0,13 % en poids de carbone (C),; 0,1 % en poids ou moins de silicium (Si), 0,7 à 2,0 % en poids de manganèse (Mn), 0,05 à 0,15 % en poids de phosphore (P), 0,2 à 0,5 % en poids de soufre (S), 0,001 à 0,01 % en poids de bore (B), 0,1 à 0,5 % en poids de chrome (Cr), 0,003 à 0,2 % en poids de titane (Ti), 0,005 à 0,015 % en poids d'azote (N), 0,03 % en poids ou moins d'oxygène (O), du fer résiduel (Fe), et d'autres impuretés inévitables, dans lequel le rapport en poids entre Mn et S (Mn/S) est de 3,5 ou plus.
  3. Procédé selon la revendication 2, dans lequel le nombre d'inclusions de sulfure de manganèse (MnS) ayant une taille de particules de 5 µm2 ou plus est dans la plage de 300 à 1 000 par mm2 d'un matériau dans la section de la direction de laminage de fil machine comme défini ici.
  4. Procédé selon la revendication 2, dans lequel l'étape de coulée continue comprend :
    une étape consistant à couler le métal en fusion en un bloom ; et
    une étape de laminage de bloom consistant à laminer le bloom en une billette tout en maintenant une température de four de réchauffage de 1 250 °C ou plus pendant 4 à 10 heures.
  5. Procédé selon la revendication 2 ou 4, dans lequel l'étape de coulée continue utilise un dispositif agitateur électromagnétique de moule, un dispositif de réduction légère ou le dispositif agitateur électromagnétique de moule et le dispositif de réduction légère.
EP09805163.4A 2008-08-06 2009-08-03 Acier facilement usinable, sans pb et respectueux de l'environnement et son procédé de fabrication Not-in-force EP2322680B1 (fr)

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KR1020080077067A KR101027246B1 (ko) 2008-08-06 2008-08-06 절삭성이 우수한 친환경 무연쾌삭강 및 그 제조방법
KR1020090018464A KR101091275B1 (ko) 2009-03-04 2009-03-04 친환경 무연쾌삭강
PCT/KR2009/004329 WO2010016702A2 (fr) 2008-08-06 2009-08-03 Acier facilement usinable, sans pb et respectueux de l'environnement et son procédé de fabrication

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JP (1) JP5277315B2 (fr)
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CN103074466B (zh) * 2013-01-05 2014-07-02 河北钢铁股份有限公司邯郸分公司 一种生产探伤板的低成本炼钢工艺
WO2016199843A1 (fr) * 2015-06-10 2016-12-15 新日鐵住金株式会社 Acier de décolletage
WO2018021452A1 (fr) * 2016-07-27 2018-02-01 新日鐵住金株式会社 Acier pour structures de machines
EP3492614A4 (fr) * 2016-07-27 2020-01-29 Nippon Steel Corporation Acier pour structures mécaniques
TWI654042B (zh) 2017-02-21 2019-03-21 日商新日鐵住金股份有限公司 鋼之熔製方法
CN109778073B (zh) * 2019-02-20 2021-05-11 宝钢特钢长材有限公司 一种易切削汽车同步器用钢及其制备方法
CN110791709B (zh) * 2019-11-11 2020-12-04 广东韶钢松山股份有限公司 结构钢线材、改善结构钢线材切削性能的方法
CN112342464B (zh) 2020-10-19 2021-07-27 中天钢铁集团有限公司 一种oa轴用易切削钢热轧盘条的生产方法
CN113046631B (zh) * 2021-02-22 2022-08-19 南京钢铁股份有限公司 易切削非调质钢及其制备方法
CN113802058A (zh) * 2021-08-17 2021-12-17 首钢集团有限公司 一种低矫顽力易切削钢及其冶炼方法
CN114393182B (zh) * 2022-01-28 2024-02-06 江苏联峰能源装备有限公司 一种易切削齿轮钢硫化物形态的控制方法
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EP2322680A4 (fr) 2015-07-29
TWI391500B (zh) 2013-04-01
WO2010016702A3 (fr) 2010-06-10
WO2010016702A9 (fr) 2010-04-08
CN102165085A (zh) 2011-08-24
JP2011530004A (ja) 2011-12-15
EP2322680A2 (fr) 2011-05-18
CN102165085B (zh) 2013-05-08
WO2010016702A2 (fr) 2010-02-11
TW201006939A (en) 2010-02-16
JP5277315B2 (ja) 2013-08-28

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