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Low-carbon steel pipelines are frequently used as transport pipelines for various media. As the pipeline transport industry continues to develop in extreme directions, such as high efficiency, long life, and large pipe diameters, the issue of pipeline reliability is becoming increasingly prominent. This study selected Q235 steel, a typical material for low-carbon steel pipelines, as the research object. In accordance with the pipeline service environment and the accelerated corrosion environment test spectrum, cyclic salt spray accelerated corrosion tests that simulated the effects of the marine atmosphere were designed and implemented. Corrosion properties, such as corrosion weight loss, morphology, and product composition of samples with different cycles, were characterized through appearance inspection, scanning electron microscopy analysis, and energy spectrum analysis. The corrosion behavior and mechanism of Q235 low-carbon steel in the enhanced corrosion environment were studied, and the corrosion weight loss kinetics of Q235 steel was verified to conform to the power function law. During the corrosion process, the passivation film on the surface of the low-carbon steel and the dense and stable α-FeOOH layer formed after the passivation film was peeled off played a role in corrosion resistance. The passivation effect, service life, and service limit of Q235 steel were studied and determined, and an evaluation model for quick evaluation of the corrosion life of Q235 low-carbon steel was established. This work provides technical support to improve the life and reliability of low-carbon steel pipelines. It also offers a theoretical basis for further research on the similitude and relevance of cyclic salt spray accelerated corrosion testing.

We investigated the effects of two-way cold rolling and subsequent annealing on the microstructure and tensile properties of low-carbon steel with different initial microstructures. Two types of hot-rolled sheet specimens were prepared: specimen P, consisting of ferrite and pearlite, and specimen M, consisting of martensite. The hot-rolled sheets were cold-rolled in two directions and subsequently annealed. Two-way cold rolling promoted shear-band formation compared with one-way cold rolling. Furthermore, the two-way cold-rolled specimens showed higher strain homogeneity than the one-way cold-rolled specimens. When annealed below the Ac1 temperature, two-way cold rolling accelerated recrystallization in specimen P, but not in specimen M. In the intercritically annealed specimen P, two-way cold rolling increased the average size of recrystallized ferrite grains while reducing their aspect ratio. In addition, the strength–ductility balance of the two-way cold-rolled specimen P was similar to that of the one-way cold-rolled specimen P. In contrast, in the intercritically annealed specimen M, two-way cold rolling reduced the average size and the aspect ratio of recrystallized ferrite grains. As a result, the strength–ductility balance of the two-way cold-rolled specimen M was improved by approximately 15% compared with that of the one-way cold-rolled specimen. This improvement was attributed to the formation of fine and equiaxed recrystallized ferrite grains. The present findings provide a basis for applying two-way cold rolling as a microstructure-control strategy in high-strength steels.

The increasing demand for ultra-low carbon steel (Interstitial free steel of Ti-Nb composite stabilized type) has underscored the importance of the RH degassing process, which is critical to achieving stringent quality standards and high productivity. This study aimed to boost decarburization efficiency by expanding the lower volume of the RH degasser and adjusting the circulation gas flow rates (190 Nm3/h, 230 Nm3/h, 250 Nm3/h). The effects of these variations on decarburization time, carbon content, and mechanical properties were systematically evaluated. The Enlarged RH degasser (ERH) achieved a higher decarburization rate than the conventional RH degasser (CRH) at the same gas flow rate of 190 Nm3/h, identifying 230 Nm3/h as the optimal rate for ERH. The experimental decarburization times to reach a carbon content of 0.003 wt% in ultra-low carbon steel were 12.4 min for CRH and 10.8 min for ERH, thus reducing the time by 1.6 min. Conversely, the calculated decarburization times were 13.11 min for CRH and 10.75 min for ERH, with ERH showing a reduction of 2.36 min. Consequently, calculated times were 0.76 min longer than experimental times. No significant differences in inclusions were observed between the CRH and ERH at circulation times of 3, 4, and 5 min; however, the mechanical properties of the ERH showed improvements at 4 and 5 min. Therefore, from an economic perspective, 4 min was established as the optimum time. Ultimately, enhancing the lower volume of the RH degasser has increased productivity and decreased production costs.

Steel processing requires energy-efficient heat-treatment routes without compromising material performance. Traditional annealing furnaces used for low-carbon (LC) steels are energy-intensive and major contributors to CO2 emissions, creating a need for sustainable alternatives. This study evaluates continuous electric furnace (CEF) annealing as a low-emission route to tailor the microstructure, texture, and mechanical properties of cold-rolled LC steel. Samples were annealed at 750 °C and 850 °C for 60 s, followed by comprehensive microstructural and crystallographic characterization using XRD, SEM, EBSD (IPF, GOS, KAM, ODF), hardness, and tensile testing. Annealing increased recrystallization from ~4% in the as-rolled condition to ~98% at 850 °C, reduced the mean KAM from 1.9° to 0.1°, enhanced the high-angle grain boundary fraction to 0.91, and promoted γ-fiber strengthening while suppressing detrimental θ-fiber components. The 850 °C condition achieved optimal mechanical performance (UTS × TE = 11.1 GPa%). These results demonstrate that CEF annealing enables sustainable processing with better mechanical performance in LC steels.

In the current study, a 2 mm thick low-carbon steel sheet (A283M—Grade C) was joined with a brass sheet (CuZn40) of 1 mm thickness using friction stir spot welding (FSSW). Different welding parameters including rotational speeds of 1000, 1250, and 1500 rpm, and dwell times of 5, 10, 20, and 30 s were applied to explore the effective range of parameters to have FSSW joints with high load-carrying capacity. The joint quality of the friction stir spot-welded (FSSWed) dissimilar materials was evaluated via visual examination, tensile lap shear test, hardness test, and macro- and microstructural investigation using SEM. Moreover, EDS analysis was applied to examine the mixing at the interfaces of the dissimilar materials. Heat input calculation for the FSSW of steel–brass was found to be linearly proportional with the number of revolutions per spot joint, with maximum heat input obtained of 11 kJ at the number of revolutions of 500. The temperature measurement during FSSW showed agreement with the heat input dependence on the number of revolution. However, at the same revolutions of 500, it was found that the higher rotation speed of 1500 rpm resulted in higher temperature of 583 °C compared to 535 °C at rotation speed of 1000 rpm. This implies the significant effect for the rotation speed in the increase of temperature. The macro investigations of the friction stir spot-welded joints transverse sections showed sound joints at the different investigated parameters with significant joint ligament between the steel and brass. FSSW of steel/brass joints with a number of revolutions ranging between 250 to 500 revolutions per spot at appropriate tool speed range (1000–1500 rpm) produces joints with high load-carrying capacity from 4 kN to 7.5 kN. The hardness showed an increase in the carbon steel (lower sheet) with maximum of 248 HV and an increase of brass hardness at mixed interface between brass and steel with significant reduction in the stir zone hardness. Microstructural investigation of the joint zone showed mechanical mixing between steel and brass with the steel extruded from the lower sheet into the upper brass sheet.

Ductile-to-brittle transition (DBT) temperature and brittle fracture stress, σF, are important toughness criteria for structural materials. In this paper, low-carbon steels with an ultrafine elongated grain (UFEG) structure (transverse grain size 1.2 μm) and with two ferrite (α)-pearlite structure with grain sizes 10 µm and 18 µm were prepared. The UFEG steel was fabricated using multipass warm biaxial rolling. The tensile tests with a cylindrical specimen and three-point bending tests with a single-edge-notched specimen were performed at −196 °C. The local stress near the notch was quantitatively calculated via finite element analysis (FEA). The σF for each sample was quantified based on the experimental results and FEA. The relationship between σF and dα in the wide range of 1.0 μm to 138 μm was plotted, including data from past literature. Finally, the conditions of grain size and temperature that cause DBT fracture in low-carbon steel were shown via the stress−d−1/2 map. The results quantitatively showed the superiority of α grain size for brittle fracture.

This study reveals the relationship between the Cu precipitates and mechanical properties of a Cu-baring ultra-low carbon steel after two-phase zone quenching and tempering at 923 K for 0.5–2.5 h. The tensile and microstructural properties were investigated as a function of heat treatment time. The contribution of the precipitation-strengthening mechanism to yield strength was calculated. The size, morphology, and distribution of the precipitated particles were observed using TEM. As the heat treatment time increased, the strength gradually decreased and then remained stable, and the elongation gradually increased and then remained stable. Additionally, the contributions of each strengthening mechanism to the yield strength under different heat treatments were 117, 107, 102, and 89 MPa, respectively. The size and quantity of the precipitates increased with the increase in heat treatment time. After tempering for more than 2 h, the precipitates continued to coarsen, but their quantity decreased. The precipitated Cu had a 3R structure with a length of approximately 17.1 nm and a width of approximately 9.7 nm, with no twinning inside. The stacking order was ABC/ABC. The stable Cu precipitation structure was FCC, maintaining a K-S orientation relationship 11¯1FCC Cu //(0 1 1) α, 1¯10FCC Cu//[11¯1] α.

CoO/Co3O4 nanoparticles (CoO/Co3O4 NPs) were synthesized with egg white. The effectiveness of CoO/Co3O4 NPs to inhibit the corrosion of carbon steel has verified in acidic medium (1 M HCl). It has been found that Langmuir adsorption isotherm is the dominant adsorption process of CoO/Co3O4 NPs on the surface of low-carbon steel. The thermodynamic parameters also demonstrated that the adsorption process of CoO/Co3O4 NPs was a physicochemical, spontaneous, and exothermic process. The electrochemical impedance spectroscopy technique and potentiodynamic polarization were applied. The results obtained in this study showed that CoO/Co3O4 NPs acted as a mixed inhibitor for the anodic reaction and the cathodic reaction, and the efficiency to inhibit the corrosion was 93% at 80 ppm of the inhibitor. The results of scanning electron microscopy (SEM) technique, energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), and X-ray electron spectroscopy (XPS) confirmed the effectiveness that was obtained using the inhibitor to protect the surface of low carbon steel. Thus, low-carbon steel can be protected against corrosion in acidic medium using CoO/Co3O4 NPs as inhibitors.

The electrode coating composition significantly influences weld quality in shielded metal arc welding (SMAW) of low-carbon steel. However, specific research into the effects of different coating types remains limited. In this work, 10-mm-thick S235JR low-carbon steel plates were welded using two distinct coated electrodes. The E7018-P1 basic-coated electrode was applied with currents ranging from 90 to 110 A and voltages between 22 and 25 V. Conversely, the E7010-P1 cellulosic-coated electrode employed currents from 65 to 75 A and voltages between 28 and 32 V. Both electrode types utilized a 3.2-mm-diameter welding wire and maintained a consistent welding speed of 50 to 120 mm/min. The effects of electrodes coating composition on the microstructural and mechanical properties of welded joints were examined. The characterization methods employed included optical microscopy (OM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and mechanical tests such as tensile and Charpy V-notch impact tests. Our results showed that the basic weld exhibited fracture outside the fusion zone (FZ), specifically in the heat-affected zone (HAZ), and demonstrated superior ductility with an elongation (E) of 12.95% compared to the 9.20% of the cellulosic weld. However, its ultimate tensile strength (UTS) of 429.03 MPa was slightly lower than that of the cellulosic weld (445.10 MPa). The Charpy V-notch impact toughness of the basic FZ was approximately 160 J, which is higher than that of the cellulosic FZ (147.5 J). XRD analysis revealed no precipitation of deleterious phases; however, grain refinement was observed in the cellulosic FZ. Ultimately, the weld produced using the basic-coated electrode exhibited superior properties in terms of ductility, toughness, and weld bead smoothness.

Among metal-based additive manufacturing, wire and arc additive manufacturing is receiving increasing attention for the production of components with medium to large dimensions. In the current research, the production of low-carbon steel thin-walled components by wire and arc additive manufacturing was addressed. Firstly, the influence of two depositing direction strategies on the wall shape was investigated. Subsequently, the effect of heat input on the shape stability and the microstructure evolution of the walls was studied. The results indicated that the alternating depositing direction strategy was more suited to build thin walls with relatively regular height. The heat input significantly influenced the shape stability, but had slight effects on the microstructure evolution. The microstructure of the walls varied from the top to the bottom regions, leading to a variation in hardness from 157 ± 3.11 to 192 ± 4.30 (HV5). The microstructure of the built thin walls can be distinguished in three regions: The upper region exhibited lamellar structures; the middle region dominantly featured granular structures of ferrites with a small proportion of pearlites, which appear in the boundaries of grains; and the lower region showed a mix of lamellar and equiaxed structures of ferrites. The tensile properties of the built material also exhibited anisotropic characteristics: The yield strength and ultimate tensile strength vary from 320 ± 6 to 362 ± 8 MPa and from 429 ± 8 to 479 ± 7 MPa, respectively.