Duplex stainless steels are a group of widely used stainless steels, because of their attractive combination of strength and corrosion resistance. However, these steels embrittle because of a phase separation phenomenon in the ferrite phase when exposed to temperatures within the miscibility gap. This manuscript investigates the phase separation in two commercial stainless steels, the duplex stainless steel (DSS) 22Cr-5Ni (2205 or UNS S32205), and the super-duplex stainless steel (SDSS) 25Cr-7Ni (2507 or UNS S32750), and its subsequent effect on mechanical property evolution. Long-term isothermal aging heat treatments were carried out at industrially relevant temperatures between 250 °C and 350 °C for up to 48,000 hours, and quantitative measurements of the amplitude and wavelength of the phase separated nanostructure were obtained using Small-Angle Neutron Scattering (SANS). These quantifications were used as input parameters in hardness models to predict the hardness evolution. It is concluded that the quantitative information from SANS combined with these hardness models enables the prediction of hardness evolution in DSS at low temperatures, which in turn correlates with the embrittlement of the DSS.

The effect of cooling rate after solution treatment on the initial structure of super duplex stainless steel 25Cr-7Ni (wt.%), and the effect of the initial structure on phase separation (PS) evolution during subsequent aging were investigated. The nanostructure in the bulk of the steel was studied using small-angle neutron scattering (SANS). Ex situ SANS experiments showed that the rate of PS differs during aging, due to the different initial structures imposed by the difference in cooling rate after solution treatment. In situ SANS experiments revealed that the PS is already pronounced after aging at 475 °C for 180 min and that a slower cooling rate after solution treatment will lead to more significant PS. Hence, PS depends on the plate thickness, imposing different cooling rates in the production of duplex stainless steels.