Abstract
The modified 9Cr-1Mo steel (P91 steel) is very popular as a boiler tube material of the USC (Ultra-Supercritical) power plants. The steels were tempered in the temperature range of 400 to $650^{\circ}C$ and the mechanical tests, such as impact and hardness tersts were performed at the room temperature for the tempered steels. A drop in the impact value (embrittlement) and the hardeness increase were simultanously observed in the range of temperature between $475^{\circ}C$ and $600^{\circ}C$, particularly at $550^{\circ}C$. TEM observation shows the hardening was caused by $M_2C$, resulting in the embrittlement. And the maximum volume fraction of $M_3C$ was also observed at $550^{\circ}C$, Therefore, the embrittlement seems to be caused by both the $M_2C$ and $M_3C$.