Stacking Fault Energies of Seven Commercial

Austenitic Stainless Steels

R. E. SCHRAMM

AND

R. P. REED

The stacking fault energies of seven c o m m e r c i a l austenitic F e - C r - N i , F e - C r - N i - M n and

Fe-Mn-Ni alloys have been determined by X - r a y diffraction line profile analysis. From
comparison with existing data on laboratory alloys with similar compositions, it is coneluded that both Ni and C increase 7 while Cr, Si, Mn, and N d e c r e a s e ~. Regression
analysis of data produced in this study provides an expression relating ~ to c o m m e r c i a l
alloy composition in terms of Ni, Cr, Mn, and Mo alloy concentrations.
T H E stacking fault energy (~) is of both practical and
theoretical interest and is reported here for a s e r i e s
of commercial austenitic steels. The defect properties
of alloys are known to affect mechanical behavior and
the stacking fault energy is essential to any fundamental understanding of the defect structure. Stacking fault
energy influences dislocation c r o s s slip and climb,
which are dominant factors in metal work hardening
and creep behavior. The stacking fault energy also
affects susceptibility to s t r e s s c o r r o s i o n cracking. 1
In austenitic steels the influence of the stacking fault
energy on hydrogen embrittlement must be considered,
since Fe-18 Cr-8 Ni (AISI 304) alloys are known to be
m o r e susceptible to embrittlement than the m o r e stable
Fe-25 Cr-19 Ni (AISI 310) grades, z'3
The stacking fault energy has been previously d e t e r mined for several Ni-base and some Fe-base alloys,
mostly binary systems. 4'S The t e r n a r y system F e - C r Ni is important because it is the basis for austenitic
stainless steels. Most of the measurements that have
been made 6-2~ (Fig. 1) for F e - C r - N i alloys have been
on high-purity laboratory melts with carefully controlled compositions. Nickel, 8,%n'~%~r carbon, s' ~
nitrogen,8,,7 and chromium 9 have been varied to d e t e r mine their effect on 7. We are unaware of any m e a surements on c o m m e r c i a l austenitic steels except a
few on AISI 304 (Table I).
The stacking fault energy of the austenitic (fcc)
phase of the F e - C r - N i alloys depends on the exact
composition of the steel and generally ranges from
10 to 100 m J / m 2 (1 m J / m z = 1 erg/cm~). Measurements of this p a r a m e t e r reported over the last 17
years are collected in Table I. Various methods for
measuring Z have been developed 4 and applied to these
materials, q~ne most frequently used method is the
measurement of extended dislocation nodes by t r a n s mission electron microscopy. Resolution in the electron microscope r e s t r i c t s this method to cases where
;J ~< 50 m J / m z, except where one m e a s u r e s weak-beam
ribbon images. Values reported over the y e a r s are in
reasonable agreement with each other when some of
the earlier ones are c o r r e c t e d according to Brown's
suggestion 23 for an improved theoretical treatment of
dislocation line tension. Recently it was shown that the
technique of analyzing X - r a y diffraction profiles by

R. E. SCHRAMM is Physicist, and R. P. REED is Supervisory Metallurgist, Cryogenics Division, Institute for Basic Standards, Boulder,

Colorado 80302.
Manuscript submitted November4, 1974.
METALLURGICAL TRANSACTIONS A

Fourier analysis can be apptied with relative ease and

accuracy. ~4 The use of X - r a y stacking fault energy
measurements insures that energies higher than 50
m J / m 2 can be determined; so this method seemed the
best approach to m e a s u r e the expected wide stacking
fault energy range of these austenitic steels.
X - r a y line profile analysis was used to obtain ~, for
seven c o m m e r c i a l grade alloys. These include AISI
304L (Fe-18 Cr-8 Ni), AISI 305 (Fe-18 Cr-12 Ni), AISI
310S (Fe-25 Cr-19 Ni), AISI 316 (Fe-17 C r - t 3 Ni-2 Mo),
grade 21-6-9 (Fe-21 C r - 6 N i - 9 Mn), grade 22-13-5
(Fe-22 Cr-13 Ni-5 Mn-2 Mo) and Hadfield steel (Fe-16
Mn-4 Ni). Commercial steels contain significant quantities of other elements that could possibly influence
alloy behavior. Our data on c o m m e r c i a l alloys are
compared with data obtained from better composition
controlled austenitic F e - C r - N i alloys (Table I).
MATERIALS
Melt analyses of seven austenitic steels are listed
in Table II. Two melts of the 21-6-9 alloy were available (melt no. 1 is the same material examined by
Vandervoort ~ for susceptibilityto hydrogen embrittlement).
With a single exception noted below, specimens for
X - r a y examination consisted of powders obtained by
filing from the bulk at room temperature (~24~ and
sifting through a 150 mesh screen. Filing was done
slowly to avoid heating the bulk metal. Half this powder from each alloy was annealed at 1000~ for 1/2 h
at 5 x 10-5 torr. Annealed and cold-worked powders
Cr

O Previous Measurements

i~90

(Table I)
9 This Report

}h/ AAAso

Fe

]O

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

Ni

Fig. l--Fe-Cr-Ni ternary diagram indicating alloys for which

the stacking fau]t energy has been measured.
VOLUME 6A, JULY 1975-1345

Table I. Stacking Fault Energy of Fe-Cr-Ni Alloys

Stacking
Fault
Energy
(mJ/m 2)

Reference

Composition, Pet
Cr

Ni

Method, Variables

Others

Whelan, et al, (1957)

I5-20

18-20

8-11

<0.08C, <2Mn, <O.04P, <0.03S,

< l S i (AISI 304)

Internal stresses

Whelan (1959)

30*

18-20

8-11

<0.08C, <2Mn, <O.04P, <0.03S,

<1 Si (AISI 304)

Extended nodes, b = 1.45A,

G = 8 101~
z

Swann(1963)

14"
16"
30*
36*
44*

17.9
17,6
18,1
17.6
17.8

7.1
7.9
12.8
12.7
17.8

0.06C,
0.06C,
0.02C,
0.02C,
0.03C,

Extended nodes

Breedis (1964)

29.2*
40.7*
51.1"
76.1"
98.0*

19.3
17.3
16.0
13.0
10.4

11.2
11.0
t2.1
14.2
16.2

Douglass, Thomas, Roser

(1964)

28-41 .cxl
58*
131"

18.74
20
20

9.43
20
40

0.07C, 0.59Si, 1.56Mn (A1SI 304)

0.013C
0.012C, 0.006N

Extended nodes, G = 7.4 X 101~

8.5
18.3
22
18
16
18
22.0

11.84
10.28
9.87
9.87
9.87
8
34.0

0.05C, 0.14Si, 0.025Mn

0.079C, 0.02N, 0.3Si, 0.64Mn
0.079C, 0.1Si, 0.34Mn

Twin frequency
Extended nodes, a0 = 3.6
G = 7.4 101~
2

53 *d
64 *d

15.3
15.8

15.9
23.0

48 *c'd

15.9

15.8

70.2 *c'd

t5.4

24.7

Clement, Clement, Coulomb

(1967)

19

16.6

9.5

Thomas, Henry (1967) also

Thomas (1969)

53 c

17,8

Vingsbro (1967)

~8

Fawley, Ouader, Dodd

(1968)

23 a
32 a
40 a'b
38
34
53 a'b
40 a
45 a
57 a
23 b
34 b
38
38
34

Dulieu, Nutting (1964)

~ 5 0 c'd
23-28 *c'a
28-32 *c'd
23-28*
20-25*
30*
>46*

0,11N
0.04N
0.12N
0.004N
0.004N

Extended notes b = t.46N,

G = 8.06 X lOl~
2, v = 0.26

(Probably AISI 304)

0.014C
0.02C, 0.012S, 0.004P, 0.03 iO, 0.006Mn
0.007C, 0.006N, 0.01 S, 0.01P, 0.030,
O.04Mn
0.017C, O.04Si, O.O04N, 0.002S, 0.002P,
0.010, 0.001Mn
0.01 tC, 0.015Si, O.O07N, 0.002S, 0.00217,
0.010, 0.003Mn

Extended nodes, G = 7.4 101~

0.028C

Extended nodes

14.1

0.01C, <0,003S, <0.002P, O.01Si

Extended nodes, b = 1,47A,

G = 8.0 101~
2, v = 0.33

18

13

0.02C

Tetrahedra

10
15
20
25
30
20
20
20
20
10
15
20
25
30
20
20
20
20
30

0.006C 0.005N
0.018C. 0 . 0 0 3 N
0.015C, 0.006N
0.009C. 0,006N
0.011C~ 0.006N
0.012C, 0.004N
0.019C, 0.005N
0.022C. 0.O05N
0.036C. 0.005N
0.012C. 0.044N
O.O10C 0.035N
0.018C. 0.05 IN
0.009C 0.033N
0.010C, 0.029N
0.012C, 0.013N
0.012C, 0.011N
0.017C, 0.047N
0.027C, 0.003N
0.050C, 0.010N

Extended nodes, b = 1.47 .~,

G = 7.4 X 101~
2, v = 0.28
Estimated errors = 15 to 20 pet

44 b
47
43 a
47

20
20
20
20
20
10
15
25
30
20
20
20
20
20
10
15
25
20
20

Latanision, Ruff(1969)

23.1 1.7

18.7

15.9

Murr (1969)

21 c'a

18.43

Silcock, Rookes, Barford

(1966)

48 b

9.52

Extrinsic-intrinsic fault pair images, b = 1.438A,

G = 7.6 101~
2
0.058C, 0.140Cu, 1.050Mn, 0.420Si,
70.300Fe (AISI 304)

Extended nodes, ao = 3.56A,

G = 9.0 lOl~
2, v = 0.30

*The reported value has been multiplied by 2.3 (cf. Brown (t964), G allagher (1970)).
a'b'C'dThese points were used in computing the respective lines in Figs. 2 and 3.
(Table I continued on following page)
1346-VOLUME

6A, JULY 1975

METALLURGICAL TRANSACTIONS A

Table I (Contd)
Stacking
Fault
Energy
(mJ/m 2)

Reference

Composition, Pct
Cr

Ni

Others

Method, Variables

LeCroisey, Thomas
(1970)

45
24

17.8
15.9

14. l
12.5

0.01C
<0.01C

Extended nodes, b = 1.46 A,

G = 7.4 X 10WN/m 2, v = 0.33

Latanision, Ruff(1971)

16.4 1.1
23.6 0.9

18.3
t8.7

10.7
15.9

0.005C
0.005C

Extended nodes, deformed at 135~ and 325~

G = 6.7 101~
2, v = 0.43

Butakova, et el, (1973)

60
30
20
16

5
10
15
18

20
I5
10
8

0.04C
0.04C
0.04C
0.04C

X-ray diffraction

Table It. Composition of Iron-Base Alloys, Composition, Wt Pct

Alloy

Cr

Mn

Me

Si

8.28

18.31

0.82

0.02

0.025

0.30

0.010

0.007

AISI 305

1 t.85

18.02

1.64

0.10

0.074

0.32

0.013

0.002

AISI 310 S

18.8

24.7

1.73

0.44

0.047

0.56

0.022

0.005

AISI 316
21-6-9(melt 1)
21-6-9(melt 2)
22-13-5
Hadfield

13.01
7.11
6.48
12.34
4.1

17.15
21.00
20.30
21.57

1.40
8.75
9.55
5.17
15.7

2.09
0.03

0.055
0.027
0.034
0.04t
0.91

0.53
0.43
0.t3
0.40
1.29

0.027
0.011
0.022
0.020
0.009

0.008
0.003
0.012
0.004
0.017

AISI 304L

Ni

2.20

of each alloy w e r e s p r i n k l e d onto a g l a s s s l i d e coated

with p e t r o l e u m j e l l y .
The m e c h a n i c a l deformation of filing p a r t i a l l y t r a n s f o r m s t h r e e of these s t e e l s (AISI 304L, AISI 305, Hadfield steel) from fcc austenite to bcc m a r t e n s i t e . Although hcp m a r t e n s i t e was expected to be p r e s e n t in
s m a l l quantities, counting over the (10iI)hcp 2~ range
produced no d e t e c t a b l e peak. F o r the AISI 305 and
Hadfield alloys, the bcc m a r t e n s i t e r e p r e s e n t e d l e s s
than 1/3 of the volume and it was p o s s i b l e to a d e quately s e p a r a t e the diffraction lines of the two phases.
But, in the c a s e of the AISI 304L the t r a n s f o r m a t i o n
was n e a r l y total and the fcc line i n t e n s i t i e s w e r e too
weak for a n a l y s i s . F o r this m a t e r i a l the X - r a y s p e c i men was in the form of a bulk r o d of a p p r o x i m a t e l y
1 cm diam. The rod was annealed as noted for the
powders and X - r a y data w e r e collected by diffracting
from a flat c r o s s section of the rod. We then slightly
c o l d - w o r k e d this s u r f a c e by lightly drawing a file
a c r o s s it and again made X - r a y m e a s u r e m e n t s . The
s p e c i m e n was sufficiently d i s t o r t e d for m e a s u r e m e n t ,
but was not t r a n s f o r m e d e x t e n s i v e l y to m a r t e n s i t e .
The main difficulty with this p r o c e d u r e is that r e s i d ual s t r e s s e s a r e undoubtedly p r e s e n t in the bulk m a t e r i a l in both annealed and c o l d - w o r k e d s t a t e s . These
s t r e s s e s tend to introduce a shift in the X - r a y peak
positions and change the s e p a r a t i o n of the (111) and
(200) lines and the calculated value of the stacking
fault p r o b a b i l i t y , m

METALLURGICAL TRANSACTIONS A

Others
A1 < 0.001, Co = 0.03, Cu = 0.01 Nb < 0,005,
Pb < 0.004, Sn < 0.005, Ti < 0.002, V = 0.0t 5,
Zn < 0.01, H ~ 10-4, O = 0.0130, N = 0.0183
A1 = 0.001, Co = 0.01, Cu = 0.09, Nb < 0.01,
Pb < 0.001, Sn = 0.002, Ti = 0.066, V = 0.04,
Zn < 0.005
A1 = 0.005, Co = 0.15, Cu = 0.015, Nb = 0.015,
Pb < 0.004, Sn < 0.005, Ti = 0.003, V = 0.05,
Zn < 0.01
Co = 0.08, Cu = 0.067, N = 0.31
N = 0.26
Co = 0.11,Cu = 0.15

X-RAY METHOD
The s h o r t - r a n g e m i c r o s t r a i n s r e s u l t i n g from any
dislocation configuration contribute to X - r a y diffraction
line profile broadening. Using the W a r r e n - A v e r b a c h
technique, ~'27 it is p o s s i b l e to m e a s u r e this and the
additional broadening caused by s m a l l p a r t i c l e s i z e
by c o m p a r i n g the F o u r i e r cosine coefficients for the
( l l l ) and (222) p r o f i l e s . I n s t r u m e n t a l broadening is
eliminated by c o m p a r i n g the diffraction p a t t e r n of an
annealed s p e c i m e n with that of a d e f o r m e d s p e c i m e n
of the s a m e m a t e r i a l . The r m s m i c r o s t r a i n m e a s u r e d
, 2 ~I/2
h e r e , ~%o;111, is a v e r a g e d o v e r a column 50~ long in
the [111] d i r e c t i o n , which is the c u s t o m a r y p r a c t i c e .
Compared to p u r e e l e m e n t s , za m i c r o s t r a i n m e a s u r e ment v a r i a b i l i t y was usually g r e a t e r ; this p r o b a b l y
r e s u l t e d from i n c r e a s e d f l u o r e s c e n c e due to the p r e s ence of Cr. It was expected that the AISI 304L alloy
would exhibit l e s s s c a t t e r , since the solid s p e c i m e n
was p l a s t i c a l l y s t r a i n e d c o n s i d e r a b l y l e s s than the
powdered s p e c i m e n s .
Stacking faults o c c u r on the (111) c l o s e - p a c k e d
planes in an fee c r y s t a l and r e s u l t in a shift in the
position of the diffraction l i n e s . Comparison between
an annealed s t a n d a r d and a d e f o r m e d s p e c i m e n is the
e a s i e s t approach to m e a s u r e the stacking fault p r o b a bility. To avoid d i f f r a c t o m e t e r z e r o e r r o r s and to inc r e a s e s e n s i t i v i t y , it is b e s t to obtain the p r o f i l e a n gular s e p a r a t i o n of (111) and (200) r e f l e c t i o n s r a t h e r
than absolute 20 positions. As the density of stacking

V O L U M E 6A, J U L Y 1 9 7 5 - 1 3 4 7

f a u l t s i n c r e a s e s , L e . , a s the s t a c k i n g fault p r o b a b i l i t y ,
a , i n c r e a s e s , the d e g r e e of line shifting i n c r e a s e s .
This can be c a l c u l a t e d f r o m : 2~
h20 = (20zo o - 2 0 ~ ) C W -

(20~oo - 2Ore)AN N

45C3. z [tan 02oo + 89

Om]a ,

[1]

w h e r e the 2O's a r e the l i n e p o s i t i o n s in d e g r e e s .

F r o m t h e s e m i c r o s t r a i n and s t a c k i n g fault p r o b a b i l ity c a l c u l a t i o n s , it i s p o s s i b l e to d e t e r m i n e the s t a c k ing fault e n e r g y 7, f r o m t h e i r r a t i o by ~
=

g m wo G (m) ao A-~

( C~o) 111

[2]

where
Km r
6.6 = p r o p o r t i o n a l i t y constant,
G ( u ~ s h e a r m o d u l u s in the (111) fault p l a n e ,
=

+ cll -

the unit c e l l d i m e n s i o n . V e r y l i t t l e of t h i s t y p e of d a t a
e x i s t s in the l i t e r a t u r e for t h e s e a l l o y s , but it is enough
to p r o c e e d if s o m e a s s u m p t i o n s a r e m a d e . E l a s t i c d a t a
on t h r e e a l l o y s with c o m p o s i t i o n s s i m i l a r to t h e s t e e l s
s t u d i e d h e r e a r e l i s t e d in T a b l e IIL 3z'33 While c l l and
c 12 v a r y with c o m p o s i t i o n , the s h e a r m o d u l u s and a n i s o tropy are relatively constant. Therefore, average values of t h e s e p a r a m e t e r s w e r e u s e d f o r a l l of the s t e e l s
r e p o r t e d on h e r e , i . e . ,
G(111) = 0.65 1011 N / m 2.
and
A = 3.43.

[4]

The l a t t i c e p a r a m e t e r of AISI 304 is 3.589/~ 3a and was

a l s o a s s u m e d to be c o n s t a n t through the a l l o y c o m p o s i tion r a n g e of i n t e r e s t . Eq. [2] then r e d u c e s to
2

7 = 17.8 l0 s (%o)1,1 ( m j / m Z ) .

The v a l u e of 6.6 f o r the p r o p o r t i o n a l i t y constant,

Kll~Wo, and the a n i s o t r o p y c o r r e c t i o n , A -~
were
d e t e r m i n e d f o r the e l e m e n t s Ag, Au, Ni, Cu, and A1
b y c o m p a r i s o n of a c c u r a t e e l e c t r o n m i c r o s c o p y m e a 2
s u r e m e n t s with o u r ( % o ) , 1 1 / ~ X - r a y d a t a for the s a m e
e l e m e n t s , z4

[5]

Cg

c1 ),

a o = unit c e l l edge d i m e n s i o n
A = Z e n e r a n i s o t r o p y = 2c,,,,/(c~ - c~2) , and
cij = e l a s t i c s t i f f n e s s c o e f f i c i e n t s .

[3]

The e x p e r i m e n t a l p a r a m e t e r s and the c a l c u l a t e d

s t a c k i n g fault e n e r g i e s a r e l i s t e d in T a b l e IV. The
v a l u e s p r e s e n t e d a r e the a r i t h m e t i c a v e r a g e s of the
t h r e e s e t s of d a t a c o l l e c t e d f r o m e a c h s p e c i m e n . The
n u m b e r s in p a r e n t h e s e s i n d i c a t e the d a t a s c a t t e r found
within each s e t of t h r e e . F o r t h e s e e i g h t a l l o y s p e c i m e n s , the s c a t t e r of the y v a l u e a v e r a g e s about 20 p c t
of the s t a t e d v a l u e . The AISI 304L and Hadfield s t e e l
have the l o w e s t V's of about 20 m J / m z while the high
a l l o y content AISI 310S h a s the h i g h e s t :e of this g r o u p .

E X P E R I M E N T A L PROCEDURE
The e q u i p m e n t and a p p r o a c h u s e d h e r e w e r e b a s i c a l l y the s a m e a s r e p o r t e d p r e v i o u s l y , z4 F i x e d - t i m e
point d a t a w e r e c o l l e c t e d f o r the (111) and (222) p r o f i l e s and the (111) and (200) p e a k p o s i t i o n s with a c o m m e r c i a l X - r a y d i f f r a c t o m e t e r and m o n o c h r o m a t e d
CoK(~ r a d i a t i o n (~ = 1.79021A). In this i n s t a n c e , Eq.
[1] r e d u c e s to A20 = -- 6.5 (~. P u b l i s h e d p r o c e d u r e s
and c o m p u t e r p r o g r a m s z8-31 p r o v i d e d the n e e d e d c o r r e c t i o n s and a n a l y s e s .
F o r the p r e s e n t m e a s u r e m e n t s , a s t e p p e r m o t o r r e p l a c e d the s y n c h r o n o u s e l e c t r i c m o t o r to d r i v e the d i f fractometer X-ray detector for strip-chart recording.
This change and the d i g i t a l output a l r e a d y a v a i l a b l e
f r o m the s c a l e r m a d e it p o s s i b l e to a u t o m a t e the d a t a
c o l l e c t i o n p r o c e s s with a m i n i c o m p u t e r having an 8K
m e m o r y . The s o f t w a r e p r o g r a m (in BASIC) r e q u i r e d
the i n i t i a l and final a n g u l a r l i m i t s , a n g u l a r s t e p i n c r e m e n t , and t i m e of count for each p r o f i l e . With the e n t r y of t h e s e p a r a m e t e r s , no f u r t h e r i n t e r v e n t i o n was
n e c e s s a r y and the c o m p u t e r r e c o r d e d a l l d a t a on m a g netic tape for subsequent processing at a central computation f a c i l i t y . S e v e r a l a d v a n t a g e s to t h i s a u t o m a t i o n
a r e o b v i o u s , but one is f o r e m o s t h e r e - - f o r the f i r s t
t i m e , it b e c a m e p r a c t i c a l to obtain m u l t i p l e m e a s u r e m e n t s on e a c h s p e c i m e n . C o l l e c t i n g t h r e e s e p a r a t e
s e t s of d a t a for each a l l o y a l l o w e d b e t t e r p r e c i s i o n
estimations.
E X P E R I M E N T A L RESULTS
To c a l c u l a t e the s t a c k i n g fault e n e r g y f r o m Eq. [2],
it i s n e c e s s a r y not o n l y to m e a s u r e t h e X - r a y p a r a m e t e r s but to know the e l a s t i c s t i f f n e s s c o e f f i c i e n t s and
1 3 4 8 - V O L U M E 6A, JULY 1975

Table I I I. Elastic Parameters

10 ~l N/m 2

Reference and Alloy

c1~

Salmutter, Stangler (1960)

Fe-12Cr-12Ni
2.332
Mangalick, Fiore (1968)
Fe-18.1Cr-14.1Ni
1.98
Fe-I 8.2Cr- 19.1Ni
1.91

G(t ll)
Shear Modulus

A
Anisotropy

c,2

c~

1.626

1.235

0.647

3.50

1.25
1.19

1.22
t.24

0.650
0-653

3.34
3.44

Table IV. X-Ray Parameters and Stacking Fault Energy of Commercial

Stainless Steels, Numbers in Parentheses are the
Total Spread of Three Measurements

Alloy
AISI 304L
AIS1305
AtSI 310 S
AISI 316
21-6-9(melt 1)
21-6-9(melt 2)
22-13-5
Hadfield

106(e~o>lll

l03

103 (eso)ut
a

6.1 (1.4)
28.6 (7.7)
66.9 (11.6)
27.9 (15.0)
112.1 (5t.7)
68.1 (13.8)
49.7(26.I)
38.9 (5.1)

7 (2)
15 (5)
13 (2)
6 (3)
31 (9)
29 (4)
14(3)
34 (0)

1.0 (0.1)
t.9 (0.4)
5.3 (0.8)
4.4 (0.2)
3.6 (0.6)
2.3 (1 A)
3.6(1.1)
t.2 (0.1)

Stacking Fault
Energy,
7, (mJ/m:)
18 (2)
34 (7)
94 (14)
78 (6)
65 (t2)
41 (20)
64(20)
21 (2)

In the a b s e n c e of Cr (Hadfield s t e e l ) the s t a c k i n g

fault p r o b a b i l i t y d a t a s c a t t e r is c o n s i d e r a b l y r e d u c e d ,
c o m p a r i n g f a v o r a b l y with p e a k p o s i t i o n d e v i a t i o n s of
p u r e e l e m e n t s . ~ Again, with the p r e s e n c e of C r f l u o r e s c e n c e , it w a s not p o s s i b l e to o b t a i n the s a m e r e p e a t a b i l i t y of p e a k p o s i t i o n .
METALLURGICAL TRANSACTIONS A

As noted above, the AISI 304L, AISI 305, and Hadfield s t e e l p a r t i a l l y t r a n s f o r m e d m a r t e n s i t i c a l l y ; this
could p o s s i b l y be a s o u r c e of s y s t e m a t i c e r r o r due to
s o m e line overlap. Since the AISI 304L bulk s p e c i m e n
was lightly cold worked r a t h e r than a powder, the exi s t e n c e of r e s i d u a l s t r e s s e s (not p r e s e n t in the r a n d o m l y o r i e n t e d powders) could introduce shifts in the
line positions, Assuming a r a t h e r high r e s i d u a l s t r e s s
of 30,000 psi (2.1 108 N / m 2) and a Young's modulus of
30 10~ psi (2,1 101~ N/m~), one d i m e n s i o n a l r e s i d u a l
s t r e s s calculations r e s u l t in a =e 3 10"s p o s s i b l e change
of ~, leading to an e s t i m a t e d 50 pct e r r o r of the s t a c k ing fault probability.
DISCUSSION
It has been demonstrated (Table I) that Ni raises the
stacking fault energy of F e - C r ' N i alloys and this has
been associated with its influence on dislocation cross
slip. High Ni alloys display a cellular structure of dis
locations in the austenite phase, {.e., cross slip is
easy.a'35 Several workers have examined quantitatively
the dependence of T on Ni concentration in Fe-Cr-Ni
austenitic alloys. Swarm,8 Douglass, et al, I~ and Dulieu
and Nutting,11holding the Cr concentration at 18 to 20
pct, reported an almost linear dependence on Ni concentration in the range 8 to 27 pct Ni,

-~ 2(pct Ni) (mJ/m~).

[6]

with the Douglass data slightly at v a r i a n c e with the

other data. Eq. [6] was adjusted by a f a c t o r of two f r o m
the r e p o r t e d data following Brown. a3 More recently,
Fawley, e t a l , ~7 have v a r i e d both Cr and Ni c o n c e n t r a tion. At 20 pct Cr, their r e s u l t s a g r e e quite well with
Eq. [6] until Ni c o n c e n t r a t i o n s in e x c e s s of about 20
pct a r e r e a c h e d ; at higher c o n c e n t r a t i o n s y d e c r e a s e d .
Gatlagher, 4 including s o m e of the above r e s u l t s a'~~
plus m o r e r e c e n t m e a s u r e m e n t s , 4'6' ~2, ~, ~4 p e r f o r m e d
a least s q u a r e s fit of available data with Cr c o n c e n t r a tions of 15 to 20 pct and found that
7 ~- 2.8 (pct Ni) (mJ/m~).

[7]

It is of i n t e r e s t to note that all of the above a n a l y s e s

imply that F e - 1 8 pct Cr in the austenitic phase would
have y = 0.
With i n c r e a s i n g Cr, dislocation a r r a y s have been
shown to b e c o m e m o r e planar.l~ Measurements11,~
c o n f i r m that, while holding Ni constant at about 10 pct,
an i n c r e a s e of Cr c o n c e n t r a t i o n f r o m 10 pct to 15 pot
Cr rapidly r e d u c e s ), f r o m about 50 to 20-40 m J / m 2.
L a r g e r Cr c o n c e n t r a t i o n s (15 to 20 pct) p r o d u c e little
significant change of ~.
The C content is v e r y i m p o r t a n t to the m e c h a n i c a l
p r o p e r t i e s of s t e e l s . Carbon also s t a b i l i z e s a g a i n s t
m a r t e n s i t i c t r a n s f o r m a t i o n f r o m fcc to bcc and to hcp
phases, s6 Carbon is known to p r o m o t e a c e l l u l a r d i s location a r r a n g e m e n t . ~7 Although also an interstitial,
N has the opposite effect on the dislocations. Like Cr,
N tends to r e d u c e dislocation tangles and to e n c o u r a g e
planar a r r a y s . 8''~ However, like C, it has been r e ported to have little o r no effect on 7. a'1~
Because
of an affinity for Cr, N is thought to introduce s h o r t r a n g e o r d e r into these alloys 1~
which m a y be r e sponsible for the o b s e r v e d planar dislocation a r r a y s , a
Small quantities of both Si and Mn a r e c o m m o n in
METALLURGICAL TRANSACTIONS A

s t e e l s . While Si d e p r e s s e s 7 in an F e - 1 8 C r - 1 4 Ni a l loy, ~4'15 t h e r e a r e no available data on the influence of

Mn.
To c o r r e l a t e the s t a c k i n g fault e n e r g y of s t a i n l e s s
s t e e l s with their composition, Neff, e t a l . 37 plotted
equal e n e r g y lines on an F e - C r - N i t e r n a r y d i a g r a m .
Toward this s a m e goal, we attempted s o m e s i m p l e
multidimensional l i n e a r l e a s t s q u a r e s r e g r e s s i o n fits
of the data in Table I. Six e l e m e n t s (Cr, Ni, C, N, Si,
Mn) w e r e chosen since t h e r e w e r e available in Table I
sufficient data for s i m p l e f o u r - d i m e n s i o n a l l i n e a r r e g r e s s i o n fitting (e. g., s e e Hoe138). Goodness of fit 39
was m e a s u r e d by the Xz t e s t and, a f t e r an initial fit,
a few of the points with g r e a t e s t deviations w e r e r e jected to a s s u r e that k2 was not significant f o r a c r i t i cal region of 0.05 o r g r e a t e r . The r e m a i n i n g points
subsequently gave the r e s u l t s in Figs. 2 and 3 and the
expressions:
7 = 4 + 1.8 (pct Ni) - 0.2 (pct Cr) + 410 (pct C),

[Sa]

= 34 + 1.4 (pctNi) - 1.1 ( p c t C r ) - 77 (pctN),

[8b]

7 = 34 + 2.2 (pctNi) - 1 . 1 ( p c t C r ) - 13 (pctSi),

[8c]

y = 32 + 2.4 (pct Ni) - 1.2 (pct Cr) - 1.2 (pct Mn)

(mJ/m~).

[8d]

Only data f r o m d i r e c t m e a s u r e m e n t s w e r e used to o b tain Eq. [8a] to [Sd] and these a r e identified in Table I,
using [a], [b], [c], and [d] s u p e r s c r i p t s . F o r the N i - C r - C
line of Eq. [8a] Ca in Fig. 2 and Table I), only data w e r e
100 --

90

80

70
c~

"~ 60
0
50

~ 40
,<

30

20
0
O

10

I .......

.......... l

20
40
60
80
100
120
WEIGHT PERCENT COMPOSITION EQUIVALENT
a: [4+I,8(%~i)-0.2(%Cr)
b:[34+I.4(%N~)-I.O(%Cr)-76(%N)]

I
140

Fig. 2 - - L i n e a r r e g r e s s i o n a n a l y s i s of data in T a b l e I f o r F e N i - C r - C and F e - N i - C r - N .

VOLUME 6A, JULY 1975-1349

and that N, Si, and Mn tend to lower 7 in Fe, 10 to 20

pct Cr, 10 to 20 pct Ni alloys.
It is also of interest to analyze the dependence of
on the composition of the principal solute alloying elements in our c o m m e r c i a l alloys, some of which have
large concentrations of Mn and Mo. Using five-dimensional r e g r e s s i o n analysis for the 7 dependence on Ni,
Cr, Mn, and Mo contributions, the following expression
was obtained:

I00

90

80

70 - E

7 = - 53 + 6.2 (pct Ni) + 0.7 (pct Cr) + 3.2 (pct Mn)

+ 9.3 (pct Mo) ( m J / m ~)

60 - u~
z

OQ

~- 50 - -

40 m

~o

30 --

20

I0

o
0

/
l
20

,,

40

t
60

WEIGHT PERCs

I ........
80

t
I00

....... I
120
COMPOSITION EQUIVALENT

140

c: [34
d: [32+2.4(gMi)-l.3(%Cr)-1.3(%Mn)]

Fig. 3 - - L i n e a r r e g r e s s i o n a n a l y s i s of data in T a b l e I f o r F e Ni-Cr-Si

and Fe-Ni-Cr-Mn.

selected where the N content was low and reasonably

constant (0.003 to 0.006 pct); Cr content varied from
10 to 30 pct, Ni varied from 10 to 20 pct. The data for
the N i - C r - N fit, expressed in Eq. [Sb], were chosen so
that C content was confined to the range 0.010 to 0.15
pct; Cr varied from 10 to 20 pct, Ni varied from 10 to
20 pct. For Ni-Cr-Si and Ni-Cr-Mn analyses Cr content was limited from 8.5 to 22 pct, while Ni varied
only from 9 to 11 pct.
Eqs. [8], for the most part, have two similarities;
nickel increases 7 approximately 2 m J / m e per wt pct,
while chromium d e c r e a s e s y approximately 1 m J / m 2
per wt pct. The effects of the other constituents, which
are present in smaller concentrations, are much m o r e
tenuous. Any process such as precipitation or s m a l l scale segregation would reduce the effective composition in solution, which would not be reflected in the
chemical analyses. F u r t h e r m o r e , variations of dependence in some cases can be obtained by changing data
selection procedures. For instance, if high nitrogen
concentration alloys a r e used in the N i - C r - C fitting,
then a negative dependence of ~, on C content is obtained. Also, a significantly different constant, c o r r e sponding theoretically to the ~ of pure fcc iron at room
temperature, is obtained in Eq. [8a] for the low N, FeN i - C r - C quaternary alloys. This difference of constant
value (4 compared to 32 to 34) lends less credence to
Eq. [Sa]. Such results strongly imply that there exists
considerable interdependence among alloying elements
on their influence on V. Nonetheless, the indications
are that C tends to increase V at low N concentrations,
1350-VOLUME 6A~ JULY 1975

[9]

For this analysis only m a j o r alloying elements were

considered, since the minor elements either were
thought to influence y negligibly or had relatively constant concentration. The results from this analysis
conflict considerably with those presented e a r l i e r in
Eq. [Sa] to [Sd]. The addition of Cr and Mn make a
slightly positive contribution to ~ in Eq. [9] in contrast
to their contribution in lowering y of Eq. [8a] to [Sd].
Furthermore, the dependence of y on Ni concentration
is greater by about a factor of 3 than shown in Eq. [8a]
to [8d]. Compared to the positive values of the constant
in Eq. [Sa] to [Sd], the constant of Eq. [9] is negative;
this perhaps represents tile influence of the other i m purities (C, N, Si, P, S, Co, etc.) contained in the c o m mercially available alloys. There is little hope of c o m pletely resolving these compositional dependencies. It
s e e m s that each elemental dependency is affected by
concentrations of other elements, producing a large
second o r d e r effect on y-composition dependence.
However, it is desirable to obtain a composition :v
dependence expression that works best for austenitic
steels. For this reason Fig. 4 (and Eq. [9]) are included. Notice that there is a reasonable correlation
between our alloys, measured using the X - r a y technique, and the electron m i c r o s c o p y node data of Table
I. All node data that produced ~ values higher than 60
m J / m ~ and nickel concentrations higher than 20 pct
were omitted. The resolution of node radii for higher
alloys is v e r y difficult and subject to g r e a t e r e r r o r .
At nickel concentrations at higher than 20 pct the s t a c k ing fault energy tends to d e c r e a s e with increasing Ni
concentration (Table I, Ref. 5).
In applications where the stacking fault energy significantly influences mechanical or chemical properties,
it should be possible to select a steel composition to fit
the requirements and to estimate 7 for the alloy in use.
When trying this, it is n e c e s s a r y to consider the major
elements present (Cr, Ni, Mn, Mo). Carbon and nitrogen must also be considered if their compositions deviate from approximately 0.3 to 0.8 pct C and g r e a t e r
than about 0.01 pct N. In general, the trend in Eq. [9]
can only be considered indicative of the influence of
composition. A lengthly comprehensive and systematic
study is required to make m o r e quantitative predictions.
CONC LUSIONS
A s e r i e s of c o m m e r c i a l austenitic steels has been
examined, using X - r a y measurements of line broadening and line shifts, to obtain their stacking fault e n e r gies. From this study the following was concluded:
1) The stacking fault energy results, obtained using
X - r a y techniques, agree quite well with the m e a s u r e METALLURGICAL TRANSACTIONS A

100

for s p o n s o r i n g part of this r e s e a r c h and for providing

the a l l o y s and their c h e m i c a l a n a l y s e s . We a r e e s p e cially thankful to Dr. A. Tench who a s s i s t e d in s o m e
X - r a y m e a s u r e m e n t s and data a n a l y s e s . We a l s o app r e c i a t e the c r i t i c a l r e a d i n g s of the m a n u s c r i p t by
Dr. H. M. Ledbetter and by Dr. A. W. Ruff, Jr.

90

80

REFERENCES
70
c~

e
0

~0

50

0
0

~ 40

0 ~

%o

30

0
20

I0

0 V,

20

II

Our Work

Electron Microscopy,
L i t e r a t u r e Data.

.....I........... I

40
60
80
I00
120
WEIGHT PRECENT COMPOSITION EQUIVALENT

1
140

[-53+6.2(%Ni )+0.7(%Cr)+3.2(%Mn)+9.3(%Mo)]

Fig. 4--Relationship between stacldng fault energy and FeNi-Cr-Mn-Mo composition in austenitic stainless steels.

m e n t s of node radii f r o m t r a n s m i s s i o n e l e c t r o n m i c r o s c o p y . H o w e v e r , a g r e a t e r range of 7 (12 to 94

m J / m z) can be s u c c e s s f u l y m e a s u r e d with X - r a y s .
2) Simple r e g r e s s i o n a n a l y s e s of p r e v i o u s data indicate that Ni and C additions tend to i n c r e a s e V while
Cr, Si, Mn and N tend to d e c r e a s e V in F e - C r - N i a u s tenitic a l l o y s .
3) An attempt w a s m a d e to e s t a b l i s h a r e l a t i o n s h i p
between s t a c k i n g fault energy and c o m p o s i t i o n of m a j o r
alloying e l e m e n t s for c o m m e r c i a l - g r a d e austenitic F e C r - N i , F e - M n - N i , and F e - C r - N i - M n s t e e l s . The r e sulting e x p r e s s i o n V = - 53 + 6.2 (pct Ni) + 0.7 (pct Cr)
+ 3.2 (pct Mn) + 9.3 (pctMo), obtained using r e g r e s s i o n
a n a l y s e s of our data, c o r r e l a t e s r e a s o n a b l y w e l l with
p r e v i o u s stacking fault e n e r g y data.
ACKNOWLEDGMENT
The authors w i s h to thank the L a w r e n c e L i v e r m o r e
Laboratory of the A t o m i c Energy C o m m i s s i o n , p a r ticularly D r s . P. R. Landon and R. R. Vanderwoort,

METALLURGICAL TRANSACTIONS A

1, S. Bamartt, R, Stickler, and D. van Rooyen: Corros. Sci., 1963, voL 13,
pp. 9-16.
2, M. L Holzwor~h: Corrosion-NACE, 1969, vol. 25, pp. t07-15.
3. R. B. Benson, R. K. Dann, and L. W. Roberts: Trans. TMS-AIME, 1968, voI.
242, pp. 2199-2205.
4. P. C. J. Gallagher: Met. Trans., 1970, rot. 1, pp. 2429-61.
5. R. P. Reed and R. E. Schramm: National Bureau of Standards, Boulder,
Colorado, unpublished research, 1975.
6. M. J. Whelan, P. B. Hirsch, R. W. Home, and W. Bollmann: Proc. Roy. Soc. A,
1957, vol. 240, pp. 524-38.
7. M. J. Whelan: Proc. Roy. Soc. A, 1959, vol. 249, pp. 114-37.
8. P. R. Swarm: Corrosion, 1963, vol. 19, pp. 102t-112t.
9. J. F. Breedis: Trans. TMS-AIME, 1964, vol. 230, pp. 1583-96.
10. D, L. Douglass, G. Thomas, and W. R. Roser: Corrosion, 1964, vol. 20, pp.
15t-28t.
11. D. Dulieu and J. Nutting: Metallurgical Developments in tfigh-Alloy Steels,
pp, 140-45, Special Report 86, The Iron and Steel Institute, 1964.
t2. J. M. Silcock, R. W. Rookes, and J. Barford: J. Iron SteetlnsL, 1966, vol. 204,
pp. 623-27.
13. A. Clement, N. Clement, and P. Coulomb: Phys. Status. Solidi, 1967, voL 2l,
pp. K97-K98.
14. B. Thomas and G. Henry: Mere. Sci. Rev. Met., 1967, vol. 64, pp. 625-36.
15. B. J. Thomas: Metaux, Corrosion, lndustrie, 1969, no. 532, pp. 405-38.
16. O. Vingsbro: A cta Met., 1967, vol. 15, pp. 615-21.
17. R. Fawley, M. A. Quader, and R. A. Dodd: Trans, TMS-AtME, 1968, voL 242,
pp. 771-76.
18. R. M. Latanision and A. W. Ruff, Jr.: Jr. Appl. Phys., 1969, vol. 40, pp.
2716-20.
19, L. E. Murr: Thin Solid Films, 1969, vol. 4, pp, 389-412.
20. F. LeCroisey and B, Thomas: Phys. Status. Solidi (a), 1970, vol. 2, pp.
K217-K20.
21. R, M. Latanision and A. W. Ruff, Jr.: Met. Trans., 1971, vol. 2, pp. 505-09.
22. E, D. Butakova, K. A. Malyshev, and N. 1. Noskova: Fiz. Metal. Metalloved.,
1973, vol. 35, no. 3, pp. 662-64.
23. L. M. Brown: Phil Mag., 1964, vol. 10, pp. 441-66,
24. R. P. Reed and R. E. Schramm: J. AppL Phys., 1974, vol. 45, pp. 4705-1 h
25. R. R. Vandervoort: Metals Eng. Quart., 1972, voL 12, pp. 10-16.
26. C. J. Newton and A. W. Ruff, Jr.: J. AppL Phys., 1966, vol. 37, pp. 3860-68.
27. B. E. Warren: Prog. MetalPhys., 1959, vol. 8, pp. 14%202.
28. R. E. Schramm: National Bureau of Standards Tech. Note 600, t971.
29. C. P. Gazzara, J. J. Stiglich, Jr., F. P. Meyer, and A. M. Hansen: Advances in
X-Ray Analysis, vol. 12, pp. 257, Plenum Press, New York, 1969.
30. R. L. Rothman and J, B. Cohen: Advances in X-Ray Analysis, vol. 12, p. 208,
Plenum Press, New York, 1969.
31. Residual Stress Measurement by X-Ray Diffraction, SAE J 784a, p. 51, Society
of Automotive Engineers, New York, 1971,
32. K, Salmutter and F. Stangler: Z. Metallk., 1960, vol. 51, pp. 544-48.
33. M~ C. Mangalick and F. Fiore: Trans. TMS-AIME, 1968, vol. 242, pp. 2363-64.
34. R. P. Reed: Acta Met., 1962, vol. 10, pp. 865-77.
35. G. Thomas: Acta Met., 1963, vol. 11, pp. 1369-71.
36. R. P. Reed and J. F. Breedis: Behavior of Materials at Cryogenic Temperatures,
ASTM/STP 387, p. 60, Am. Soc. Testing Mats., 1966.
37. D. V. Neff, T. E. Mitchell, and A. R. Troiano: Trans. A&M, 1969, vol. 62,
pp. 858-68.
38. P. G. Hod: Introduction to Mathematical Statistics, p. 172, John Wiley and
Sons, Inc., New York, 1962.
39. P. G. Hoel: ibid., p. 244.

V O L U M E 6A, JULY 1 9 7 5 - 1 3 5 1