Microstructural characterization of M250 grade maraging steel using nonlinear ultrasonic technique

Nonlinear ultrasonic (NLU) technique is used for characterization of microstructures in M250 grade maraging steel subjected to solution annealing at 1093 K for 1 h followed by ageing at 755 K for various ageing durations in the range from 0.25 to 100 h. Using pulse inversion technique, feeble second harmonic is extracted to determine nonlinear ultrasonic parameter, β, and the relative β parameter (RBP) which is the ratio of β parameter of the precipitation hardened specimen to that of the solution annealed specimen. Normalized mean square strain, volume fraction of reverted austenite and hardness have been measured and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) has been carried out to understand the microstructural changes that occur during ageing and to study the correlation between these measured parameters. Hardness and normalized mean square strain are found to increase during initial stages of ageing due to precipitation of intermetallics and decrease at longer durations due to formation of reverted austenite and coarsening of precipitates. This study establishes that NLU technique can be used for non-destructive characterization of ageing behaviour of M250 grade maraging steel.