Microstructure evolution during high cycle fatigue in a low carbon micro-alloyed dual-phase steel sheet
Gaurav Pandey, Basudev Bhattacharya, Somjeet Biswas
Abstract. Ferrite–martensite dual-phase (FMDP) steel sheets processed by cold rolling followed by intercritical annealing and quenching were subjected to high-cycle fatigue (HCF) testing to investigate fatigue-induced microstructural evolution. Fatigue tests were conducted at stress amplitudes of 485–580 MPa, and the resulting microstructural changes were examined using SEM and EBSD. The specimen tested at 485 MPa, corresponding to the endurance limit, exhibited a stable microstructure with negligible plastic strain localization. In contrast, higher stress amplitudes led to the formation of persistent slip bands, microcrack initiation at ferrite–martensite interfaces, grain refinement, and significant increases in crystallographic misorientation. EBSD-based GOS, LAM, and KAM analyses revealed enhanced dislocation accumulation and localized plastic deformation at higher stress levels, correlating well with accelerated fatigue damage and premature failure.
Keywords
Dual Phase (DP) Steel, High Cycle Fatigue (HCF), Microstructure Evolution, EBSD, Crystallographic Texture, Damage Mechanism
Published online 5/10/2026, 7 pages
Copyright © 2026 by the author(s)
Published under license by Materials Research Forum LLC., Millersville PA, USA
Citation: Gaurav Pandey, Basudev Bhattacharya, Somjeet Biswas, Microstructure evolution during high cycle fatigue in a low carbon micro-alloyed dual-phase steel sheet, Materials Research Proceedings, Vol. 65, pp 51-57, 2026
DOI: https://doi.org/10.21741/9781644904138-8
The article was published as article 8 of the book Processing and Characterization of Materials
Content from this work may be used under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 license. Any further distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s) and the title of the work, journal citation and DOI.
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