Effect of Al on the oxidation of grain boundaries during hot-rolled coiling of press hardening steel

Effect of Al on the oxidation of grain boundaries during hot-rolled coiling of press hardening steel | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Effect of Al on the oxidation of grain boundaries during hot-rolled coiling of press hardening steel Deyu Xi, Hongliang Zhang, Yunan Jiang, Qingling Cui, Luning Wang, and 1 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-7144888/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Published Journal Publication published 10 Nov, 2025 Read the published version in High Temperature Corrosion of Materials → Version 1 posted 12 You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Press hardening steel (PHS) is the most widely used material in automotive white bodies owing to its excellent formability and low springback. While replacing Ti with Al ensures the hardenability of PHS without compromising its toughness, grain boundary oxidation inevitably occurs during hot-rolled coiling. This phenomenon, driven by the oxygen affinity of alloying elements such as Si and Mn, adversely affects subsequent processing. Current research predominantly focuses on the mechanisms by which Si and Mn contribute to grain boundary oxidation, whereas the influence of Al has seldom been explored. In this study, tube-sealed heating was employed to simulate the hot-rolled coiling process, specifically investigating the effect of Al on grain boundary oxidation. The results demonstrate that Al inhibits grain boundary oxidation through the following mechanisms: Al reduces the oxygen adsorption rate at the scale/matrix interface, thereby lowering the oxidation rate; Al promotes decarburization and facilitates the enrichment of Si and Mn at the scale/matrix interface. This decarburization accelerates the dissociation of FeO, and the majority of the dissociated oxygen ions combine with the enriched Si and Mn at the interface to form oxides. Consequently, less oxygen enters the steel matrix. Oxidation of grain boundaries Press hardening steel Scale/matrix interface Oxygen adsorption rate Decarburization Full Text Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Published Journal Publication published 10 Nov, 2025 Read the published version in High Temperature Corrosion of Materials → Version 1 posted Editorial decision: Revision requested 24 Sep, 2025 Reviews received at journal 24 Sep, 2025 Reviews received at journal 23 Sep, 2025 Reviews received at journal 21 Sep, 2025 Reviewers agreed at journal 17 Sep, 2025 Reviewers agreed at journal 16 Sep, 2025 Reviewers agreed at journal 15 Sep, 2025 Reviewers agreed at journal 15 Sep, 2025 Reviewers invited by journal 01 Aug, 2025 Editor assigned by journal 19 Jul, 2025 Submission checks completed at journal 19 Jul, 2025 First submitted to journal 17 Jul, 2025 You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. 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Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-7144888","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":494430257,"identity":"59d9e5f6-c3f0-43b0-bf6f-78e85a105c23","order_by":0,"name":"Deyu Xi","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Northeastern University","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Deyu","middleName":"","lastName":"Xi","suffix":""},{"id":494430258,"identity":"60afd8e1-ae97-42ad-87fa-741e04b2e327","order_by":1,"name":"Hongliang Zhang","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"AnSteel BenSteel Beiying Iron and Steel Group Co., 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While replacing Ti with Al ensures the hardenability of PHS without compromising its toughness, grain boundary oxidation inevitably occurs during hot-rolled coiling. This phenomenon, driven by the oxygen affinity of alloying elements such as Si and Mn, adversely affects subsequent processing. Current research predominantly focuses on the mechanisms by which Si and Mn contribute to grain boundary oxidation, whereas the influence of Al has seldom been explored. In this study, tube-sealed heating was employed to simulate the hot-rolled coiling process, specifically investigating the effect of Al on grain boundary oxidation. The results demonstrate that Al inhibits grain boundary oxidation through the following mechanisms: Al reduces the oxygen adsorption rate at the scale/matrix interface, thereby lowering the oxidation rate; Al promotes decarburization and facilitates the enrichment of Si and Mn at the scale/matrix interface. This decarburization accelerates the dissociation of FeO, and the majority of the dissociated oxygen ions combine with the enriched Si and Mn at the interface to form oxides. 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