Optimization of the Two‐ and Three‐Dimensional Characterization of Rare Earth‐Traced Deoxidation Products

Tracing by means of the light rare earths (REs), particularly La and Ce, is a state‐of‐the‐art method used to track deoxidation products during the steelmaking process. Traced heterogeneous multiphase inclusions are analyzed using scanning electron microscopy with energy‐dispersive spectroscopy (SEM/EDS) to perform a 2D characterization. The sequential chemical extraction technique is implemented for a 3D investigation to determine traced particles’ actual sizes and shapes. The automated SEM/EDS measurement must be optimized since RE oxides appear brighter in the backscattered electron images due to their high atomic numbers. Therefore, two grayscales are implemented for the detection of RE‐containing multiphase inclusions. Within this technique, individual RE‐traced heterogeneous nonmetallic inclusions (NMIs) are counted as separate particles. Thus, the measured NMIs must be recombined, which is achieved using a self‐developed MATLAB tool. The extracted particles are also analyzed by automated and manual SEM/EDS measurements to determine the 3D morphologies and sizes of traced NMIs.