Effect of normalization process on microstructure and texture of W470 non-oriented silicon steel

To address the issue of significant deformed microstructures and undesirable textures in as-hot-rolled W470 non-oriented silicon steel sheets produced without mold electromagnetic stirring, electron backscattered diffraction(EBSD) was employed to systematically investigate the effects of normalization process parameters on the recrystallization behavior, grain size, and texture evolution. The results reveal that the center layer of the W470 as-hot-rolled sheet retains a substantial fraction of non-recrystallized microstructure. For different normalizing temperatures, the recrystallization fraction in the center layer increases progressively with rising normalization temperature from 840 ℃ to 960 ℃, achieving completeness at 930 ℃. For different normalizing temperatures, at a constant temperature of 900 ℃, extending the holding time from 1 to 9 min leads to gradual recrystallization, with full recrystallization attained after 7 min. The normalized sheets exhibit a surface layer dominated by {110}〈110〉 and {114}〈110〉 textures. In contrast, the center layer is characterized by a combination of γ-fiber texture, copper texture ({112 }〈 111〉), and rotated cube texture. Both increasing the normalization temperature and prolonging the holding time enhance the recrystallization fraction and concurrently weaken the intensity of the magnetically unfavorable γ-fiber texture. This work elucidates the synergistic influence of normalization temperature and holding time on the microstructure and texture development of W470 non-oriented silicon steel produced under conditions of lacking mold electromagnetic stirring, which provides some reference for achieving optimized microstructures and textures.