Development of a New Etchant for Austenitic Manganese Steel

Austenite grain size is an important parameter for the ductility of steel. The ductility of Austenitic Manganese Steel is directly dependent on the grain size. Therefore, it is most important to measure the grain size and to investigate the microstructure of the steel to predict the mechanical properties of the steel. To reveal the prior austenite grain boundaries commonly used etchants are picric acid and 2 % Nital. The main drawbacks of these etchants are the lightly etched grain boundaries and uncertainty to reveal the twins. One of the main objectives of the present work was to find out a viable etchant that can efficiently reveal the grain boundaries along with the twins. The results of the presented etchant examinations serve as an important basis for revealing a clear picture of the austenitic grain boundaries