U.P.B. Sci. Bull., Series B, Vol. 78, Iss. 2, 2016 ISSN 1454-2331 EFFECTS OF RECRYSTALLIZATION/STABILIZING ANNEALING ON COLD FORMED PIPES OF W1.4435 STEEL Mihai COJOCARU 1 , Leontin DRUGĂ 2 , Daniela DRAGOMIR 3 The alloying elements which have been further added to Cr-Ni austenitic stainless steel enhance their thermodynamic instability and generate the possibility of hardening by precipitating of fine and disperse carbides and/or intermediary phases [1]. The paper, by using the non-compositional programming method, aimed to resolve a complex and significant issue - to make explicit the interdependencies between the resistance characteristics of W1.4435 austenitic stainless steel pipes and the degree of cold forming applied to their walls and namely the thermal and temporal parameters of recrystallizaton/stabilizing annealing applied after cold forming. Keywords: W1.4435 steel, cold forming, recrystallization/stabilizing annealing, non-compositional programming method 1. Introduction The austenitic stainless steels play an important role in the global production of stainless steels due to their large and various usages [1-4]. The W1.4435 steel is a component of this steel class, its low carbon content below 0.03% and molybdenum content between 2.5%...3% cause its main hardening phases to be the intermetallic phases; the intergranular corrosion susceptibility of this steel is mainly due to possible separation of phase σ [Fe(Cr,Mo)] on grain boundaries. According to Bain et al. [5], the Cr - Ni stainless steels are not susceptible to intergranular corrosion at carbon content equal or below 0.02%; this level is currently considered as being the carbon concentration limit under which no intergranular corrosion occurs for this steel class. However, Heger and Hamilton [6] claim that absolute intergranular corrosion resistance of Cr-Ni stainless steels is attained independently of sensitization regime parameters for carbon content < 0,009%; this level represents the carbon solubility limit in austenite at the lowest sensitization temperature where the carbides separation is still possible. 1 Prof., Materials Science and Engineering Faculty, University POLITEHNICA of Bucharest, Romania, e-mail: cojocarumihaiovidiu@yahoo.co.uk 2 Prof., Romanian Academy for Technical Sciences, Bucharest, Romania, e-mail: ld@uttis.ro 3 Ph.D., UTTIS, Vidra, Romania, email: dana_dragomir@hotmail.com