Improving the Magnetic Properties of Non-Oriented Electrical Steels by Secondary Recrystallization Using Dynamic Heating Conditions

In the present work, we have used unconventional short-term secondary recrystallization heat treatment employing extraordinary high heating rate to develop coarse-grained microstructure with enhanced intensity of rotating cube texture {100}<011> in semi-finish vacuum degassed non-oriented electrical steels. The soft magnetic properties were improved through the increase of grains size with favourable cube crystallographic orientation. The appropriate final textural state of the treated experimental steels was achieved by strain-induced grain boundary migration mechanism, activated by gradient of accumulated stored deformation energy between neighbouring grains after the application of soft cold work, combined with steep temperature gradient during subsequent heat treatment under dynamic heating conditions. The materials in our experimentally prepared material states were mounted on the stator and rotor segments of electrical motors and examined for their efficiency in real operational conditions. Moreover, conventionally long-term heat treated materials, prepared in industrial conditions, were also tested for reference. The results show that the electrical motor containing the segments treated by our innovative approach, exhibits more than 1.2% higher efficiency, compared to the motor containing conventionally heat treated materials. The obtained efficiency enhancement can be directly related to the improved microstructural and textural characteristics of our unconventionally heat treated materials, specifically the homogenous coarse grained microstructure and the high intensity of cube and Goss crystallographic texture.