Constitutive Models for the Strain Strengthening of Austenitic Stainless Steels at Cryogenic Temperatures with a Literature Review

Abstract

Austenitic stainless steels are widely used in cryogenic pressure vessels, liquefied natural gas pipelines, and offshore transportation liquefied petroleum gas storage tanks due to their excellent mechanical properties at cryogenic temperatures. To meet the lightweight and economical requirements, pre-strain of austenitic stainless steels was conducted to improve the strength at cryogenic temperatures. The essence of being strengthened by strain (strain strengthening) and the phase-transformation mechanism of austenitic stainless steels at cryogenic temperatures are reviewed in this work. The mechanical properties and microstructure evolution of austenitic stainless steels under different temperatures, types, and strain rates are compared. The phase-transformation mechanism of austenitic stainless steels during strain at cryogenic temperatures and its influence on strength and microstructure evolution are summarized. The constitutive models of strain strengthening at cryogenic temperatures were set to calculate the volume fraction of strain-induced martensite and to predict the mechanical properties of austenitic stainless steels.