<![CDATA[Hadfield steel is a high-manganese steel characterized by a high manganese content and is often referred to as high-manganese steel. Its alloy composition is generally maintained at a carbon-to-manganese ratio of approximately 1:10. This steel is known for its superior mechanical characteristics, including toughness, hardness, and wear resistance. In the as-cast condition, however, Hadfield steel initially exhibits inferior mechanical properties owing to the formation of carbide precipitates along grain boundaries caused by slow cooling during solidification. These grain-boundary carbides generate localized stresses and act as potential crack-initiation sites, thereby reducing toughness and ductility. Consequently, subsequent heat treatment, particularly solution treatment, is required to dissolve the carbides back into the austenitic matrix. The present results show that solution treatment significantly affects the mechanical properties and wear resistance of Hadfield steel. Hardness decreased after solution treatment (224.6 → 206.1 → 196.2 HV) because of the reduction of grain-boundary carbides. Nevertheless, the wear rate decreased, indicating improved wear resistance, after solution treatment: 0.299 → 0.179 → 0.119 ×10⁻³ mm³/N·m. After wear testing, the surface hardness increased owing to strain hardening, particularly in the heat-treated (HT) specimens: 230.2 → 262.8 → 272.2 HV. These findings indicate that solution treatment improves wear resistance through microstructural homogenization and enhanced strain-hardening response during wear loading.]]>
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