Wear behaviour of some low alloyed steels under combined impact/abrasion contact conditions

The wear behaviour of some low alloyed steels has been investigated using a laboratory impeller–tumbler wear test equipment in which the steel samples are worn by angular granite particles under combined impact/abrasion wear contact conditions. The wear of the steels was evaluated by weight loss of the steel samples while the wear mechanisms of the steels were investigated by post-test light optical microscopy (LOM), scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive X-ray analysis. The worn steel surfaces display a very rough surface topography with pronounced craters and distinct grooves caused by high and low angle impacts, i.e. abrasive wear, respectively. Besides, fragments of embedded granite particles are frequently observed in the worn surface of the steels. The wear of the steels tends to decrease with increasing steel hardness. However, instead of using the bulk hardness value the hardness of the worn/plastically deformed surface layer should be used when modelling the wear resistance. Further, the wear resistance of the steels was found to be dependent on the microstructure and chemical composition. Steels with similar type of microstructure show a linear decrease in weight loss with decreasing grain size and increasing carbon content.     

Wear resistance of steels under wet-abrasive erosion conditions

The wear resistance of 22 different steels with various heat treatments in a silica sand slurry was studied. Two types of slurry were used, a fresh sharp grain slurry, and a worn dull grain slurry.In the sharp grain slurry the wear resistance increased with the hardness of the steel. In the dull grain slurry the wear resistance was divided into two major groups. For the steels containing little or no chromium the wear resistance decreased slightly with an increase in the hardness of the steel. For steels with a higher chromium content the wear resistance was three times that of the steels with a low chromium content. The latter behaviour was thought to be the result of the abrasives removing only the products of corrosion and not the steel substrate.The role of corrosion was confirmed by testing three steels in the two types of slurry test, with and without a corrosion inhibitor.Hadfield manganese steel has poor wear resistance in both the sharp and the dull grain slurry. It is actually slightly worse in the dull grain slurry.     

Wear mechanisms of laser-hardened martensitic high-nitrogen-steels under sliding wear

High-nitrogen tool steels (Fe, 15% Cr, 1% Mo, 0.3% C, 0.3% N) are applied, e.g. in bearings and gears in aeronautics and space technology. Their advantage compared to conventional, nitrogen-free tool steels is a superior corrosion resistance, which can be attributed to Cr, Mo, and N dissolved within the solid solution. In order to gain a sufficient toughness for application, these steels are tempered above 600°C bringing about precipitated carbides and nitrides, which bind Cr and N and, therefore, deteriorate the chemical properties. Within a DFG (German Research Council)-funded research project the authors show, that by means of laser hardening it is possible to dissolve a part of these precipitates — mainly nitrides resulting in improved properties under fatigue, wear and corrosion. This is brought about by a newly generated martensite with compressive residual stresses (fatigue, sliding wear), dissolution of Cr and N (corrosion) and a higher mechanical stability of the surfaces (sliding wear). This contribution focuses on the acting wear mechanisms under dry sliding wear. The investigations are carried out with pin-on-disk tests, with the disk as the actual specimen and a pin made of conventionally hardened 52100 bearing steel (100Cr6). It can be shown, that the wear properties of the high-nitrogen-steel are better than those of comparable conventional tool steels and that a laser treatment leads to a further improvement. Due to the fact that there is a tempered zone between overlapping laser-hardened areas, there is a change of acting mechanisms and, thus a distinct difference in wear rates. For the conventional corrosion resistant martensitic tool steel the difference between the tempered and the hardened zone is not as marked. Neither the wear mechanisms nor the wear rates differ distinctly. These effects and their influence on the wear behaviour is correlated with the microstructure of both steels before and after laser-hardening.     

Wear behaviour of forging steels with different microstructure during dry sliding

Sliding wear behaviour of two types medium carbon microalloyed steels containing various microstructures was investigated on a 320 mesh SiC paper at a sliding speed of 0.33 m/s with a load of 6 N and sliding duration of 4 min under dry sliding conditions (the sliding distance, 80 m). The experimental results showed that the different microstructures cause a great influence on the wear resistance performance of the steels. Water quenched samples with martensite structure have the highest hardness and wear resistance performance. That is because, water cooled samples contained higher amount of carbon in the solid solution. On the other hand, air or sand cooling from forging temperature results in a decrement of hardness and wear resistance in steel-1 and steel-2. However, air cooled samples showed slightly higher wear resistance than sand cooled samples due to finer grain sizes and the larger pearlite and/or precipitation contributions.     

Oxidative wear of heat-treated steels

In the present work, the oxidative sliding wear of a heat-treated steel at low-sliding velocities (less than 1 m/s) has been investigated. It has been shown that this type of wear can be described by a mechanism that considers the formation and agglomeration of oxide debris during sliding. The results have been modeled using available equations for two different types of oxidative wear and it has been shown that the model proposed by Sullivan and Hodgson can be used to predict the sliding wear rate of heat-treated steels in the low-sliding velocity wear regime. In this context, the important role of the surface bulk temperature is highlighted. In view of the above consideration, it is also pointed out that wear maps, developed from laboratory test results, have to be critically used for the design of tribological systems.     

Friction and wear characterization of sintered low alloyed chromium steels for structural components

Sintered and sintered/gas nitrided cylinders made of low alloyed chromium steel Astaloy CrL + 0.45 C at 7.25 g/cm³ density, have been tested for scuffing resistance and wear rate in a crossed cylinders test setup lubricated with a commercial SAE 10W40 engine oil at 90 °C. The results show large potential of 1 h gas nitriding of the sintered chromium steel cylinders. The nitrided cylinders experienced safe wear at 1000 MPa and scuffing at 1100 MPa at 2.5 m/s. At 0.5 and 0.1 m/s at least up to 800 MPa the wear was mild, as sintered chromium cylinders showed scuffing at pressure lower than 320 MPa and limited wear at 0.5 and 0.1 m/s.     

Wear resistance of steels and suction-tube dredger members hardened by surface electrolysis borating during abrasive wear

Findings of comparative bench tests for six grades of carbon and alloyed structural steels hardened by surface electrolysis borating and data of the reliability for borated members under field conditions within a heterogeneous abrasive environment and for borated scoop pins in hinged joints of a scoop chain of a suction-tube dredger are presented.     

High temperature wear resistance of (TiAl)N PVD coating on untreated and gas nitrided AISI H13 steel with different heat treatments

The wear resistance of a PVD (Ti_0.7Al_0.3)N coating deposited on an as-received and gas nitrided AISI H13 has been examined by using ball-on-disc tests at room temperature and at 600 °C. In order to determine the influence of a previous heat treatment on this type of steel on the wear resistance of the (Ti_0.7Al_0.3)N coating, two commercial heat treatments were employed which gave rise to the same substrate hardness. Surface microhardness measurements have been carried out to determine the load-carrying capacity of the coated systems. In general, the wear behavior was found to be independent of the nature of the heat treatment applied to the substrate prior to the nitriding process but strongly dependent on the testing temperature. At room temperature, there were small variations between the different systems tested, whereas at high temperatures, clear differences were found between them. At 600 °C, a typical temperature that could be achieved during the aluminum extrusion processes, the nitrided H13 steel/(Ti_0.7Al_0.3)N PVD duplex coating shows a satisfactory wear resistance compared to both the nitrided steel and the steel substrate only coated with (Ti_0.6Al_0.4)N, which exhibited the worst performance. The satisfactory wear resistance observed for the duplex coating system at high temperature is mainly a consequence of two different aspects. Firstly, its higher load-carrying capacity due to the existence of a hard nitrided layer, as well as its high H/E ratio. Both parameters allow the presence of higher elastic strains without the failure of the ceramic layer, which would normally occur in the case of TiAlN PVD coatings deposited directly on the AISI H13 steel. Secondly, the intrinsic characteristics of the coating, i.e. its chemical constitution, which allows the formation of a dense oxide mixture inside the wear track that impedes both its further oxidation and the deterioration of the mechanical properties as consequence of nitrogen diffusion.     

Effect of composition and structure of nitrided iron alloys on wear resistance under friction and sliding

Characteristic features of the formation of the wear-resistant structure of the nitrided model alloys with body-centered cubic (bcc) and face-centered cubic (fcc) lattices are studied, including Fe-Mo, Fe-Cr, Fe-Al, Fe-Ni-Cr, Fe-Ni-Al, Fe-Ni-Ti, and Fe-Ni-Cr-Al-Ti. Interrelations are established between the parameters of the structure of the nitrided layer and the wear resistance of alloys. It is shown that, in alloys with the bcc lattice, maximum wear resistance is achieved by the formation of incoherent particles of nitrides of alloying elements, and the maximum hardness can be found in the alloy with coherent nitrides. In alloys with the fcc lattice, maximum hardening during nitriding and wear resistance are achieved at the stage preceding the rupture of coherent communication of the nitride with the lattice. Interconnections of characteristics of the structure of the nitrided layer and the wear resistance are discussed in the context of the formation of the wear-resistant structural state of alloys.     

Wear behavior of bainitic steels

A systematic study of the wear properties of a series of 0.5 wt.% Mo, 0.003 wt.% B bainitic steels has been made under dry sliding conditions. In contrast to most of the established wear models and experimental data, it was found that, for eight of the nine materials, the wear rate is not a linear function of load.The wear rate data have been analyzed with respect to chemical composition, hardness, monotonic-cyclic stress strain parameters, fatigue properties, Charpy impact data and microstructure. It is shown that the chromium content has the most significant influence on wear rate. Since these bainitic steels have inherently high impact resistance, which is improved with chromium additions, it is possible to achieve an attractive combination of properties with a steel containing 0.2 wt.% C, 2.0 wt.% Cr and 1.5 wt.% Mn.The wear resistance of the bainitic steels is compared with previous work on pearlitic steels tested under the same conditions. While the best pearlitic steels stand apart, it is seen that the best bainitic steel tested to date is better than some fully eutectoid steels containing 0.7 wt.% C.     

Friction and wear behavior of diamond-like carbon coating on plasma nitrided mild steel under boundary lubrication

The friction and wear properties of synthetic ionic liquid functionalized borate esters as additives in poly-alpha-olefin (PAO) were measured for diamond-like carbon (DLC) coating on plasma nitrided AISI 1045 steel. Results show that the borate esters gave much better friction–reduction and antiwear properties for DLC coating/steel and DLC coating/DLC coating sliding pairs than zinc dialkyldithiophosphate (ZDDP). In addition the DLC coating had much better wear resistance than the nitrided mild steel substrate, indicating that duplicate surface modification was more effective in significantly increasing the wear resistance of mild steel.     

Wear mechanisms of structural steels and effect of wear on their mechanical and acoustic properties during tension

Optical and scanning electron microscopy have been used to study the wear mechanisms of structural steels with various structures and strengths, as well as to assess their mechanical and acoustic properties after friction. The prevailing wear mechanisms have been revealed; they are governed by the strength and structure of the steels and involve the refinement and rotation of grains, the formation of parallel rows of microcracks, the strain dissolution of cementite, and martensitic transformation, as well as the formation of seizure sites in the friction contact zone, shear and intergranular pores, and microcracks. The low-carbon steel with a ultrafine-grained structure has demonstrated a high wear resistance. Friction for 3000 h had a weak effect on the mechanical properties of the steels during tension.     

The unlubricated wear of sintered steels

The unlubricated wear of 10.3% porosity sintered medium-carbon and 12.8% porosity sintered low-alloy steels was investigated under different sliding conditions. Their wear characteristics were found to be similar to their non-sintered counterparts. Within this range of sliding conditions, both mild-oxidational and delamination wear took place, with the former dominating the wear processes. The oxide debris produced changed with the applied load: switching from a low-temperature oxide to a high-temperature one at higher loads. The wear rates agreed reasonably well with Archard's law and with data from other sources, suggesting that Archard's law can account for the wear rates produced by both mild-oxidational wear and delamination wear. This agreement also suggests that within the range of porosites investigated an overall framework can be established in the unlubricated wear of both sintered and non-sintered steels.     

The abrasive-corrosive wear of stainless steels

Laboratory abrasive and abrasive-corrosive testing has been carried out on a range of ferritic, austenitic and martensitic stainless steels and the results compared with the testing of similar materials in situ in the abrasivecorrosive conditions of a gold mine. All grades were found to have better abrasive-corrosive resistance than proprietary abrasion-resistant alloys.The austenitic grades derive their outstanding properties from their capacity to resist unstable fracture of microshear lips on the abraded surface. This is due to the strain capacity afforded by the mechanical inducement of the martensitic phase transformations and the high work-hardening characteristics of the transformation product. The influence of this transformation has been studied as a function of prior cold work and velocity of abrasion on a range of austenitic grades of stainless steels.Notwithstanding these advantages of the austenitic grades, the ferritic grades are superior in terms of cost per unit volume lost and the new duplex ferritic-martensitic steel designated 3CR12 has potential as an abrasionresisting material in corrosive environments.     

低温压力容器用钢及其焊接与检测

主要介绍低温压力容器制造用钢及其焊接特点和检测要求,其中对低温钢的焊接特点以及低温钢压力容器制造的特殊检验要求进行了重点介绍。     

Microstructure and wear resistance of low temperature hot pressed TiB2

Fine-grained TiB₂ compacts have been hot pressed to 98–99% theoretical density at 1400 °C. The compacts were consolidated from sub-micron powders prepared by a high-energy ball milling technique. Titanium diboride (TiB₂) powders were obtained from the milling of commercially synthesized TiB₂ and also from the mechanical alloying (MA) of Ti and B precursors. The formation of TiB₂ from Ti and B powders by mechanical alloying was found to reach completion after 3 h, and wear debris from steel mill vials and media introduced 0.8 to 1.5 wt% Fe in the sintered compacts. The dry erosion resistance of the highest density compacts was examined using an ASTM standard test with an abrasive jet of Al₂O₃ impinging at a normal angle of incidence. Steady-state erosion rates of 0.5 mm³/kg of erodent compare favorably with the measured value of 9 mm³/kg for commercial, fine-grained WC–Co cermets under identical conditions. Microstructures, fracture surfaces, and erosion craters were also examined by electron microscopy.     

Phase transformations in austenitic stainless steels during low temperature tribological stressing

The tribological behaviour at low temperatures is unknown for many materials even for those widely used in cryogenic engineering. Because of the extension of applications of low temperature technologies there is a need for investigations in this field. It is the aim to study the stability of the austenitic structure of FeCrNi alloys under these harsh conditions. This paper deals with tribological experiments with alloys of different stability of the austenitic structure in the temperature range between room and liquid helium temperature. It was found that alloys stable at room temperature show martensitic transformation under tribological stressing and decreased service temperature. The obtained transformation behaviour does not exhibit a linear tendency down to liquid helium temperature. A maximum could be stated.     

Tool wear mechanisms in the machining of steels and stainless steels

In this article, we study the effects of the temperature control on a dehydration tomato slices process when two control strategies are considered: PID controller and optimal linear control when inherent input time delay is considered. The first controller is tuned by D-partitions method and a numerical procedure in order to minimize a quadratic performance index, the second one considers a state predictor to compensate the effects of the input delayed. The energy savings and the intrinsic characteristics in the tomato slices (vitamin C, total phenols, and lycopene levels) are quantified in order to conclude advantages of the two controllers under study.     

On the wear resistance of high-speed steels

The wear resistance of cast and strained high-speed steels are evaluated and compared, and the regularities of variations in their structure and properties depending on the austenitizing temperature are described. The impact of modification on the wear resistance of tungsten-molybdenum high-speed steels has been studied. Data on the steels with improved wear resistance are reported     

Overcoming challenges in the study of nitrided microalloyed steels using atom probe

Nitrided steels are widely used in the engineering field due to their superior hardness and other attractive properties. Atom probe tomography (APT) was employed to study two Nb-microalloyed CASTRIP steels with different N contents. A major challenge of using APT to study this group of materials is the presence of tails after Fe peaks in the mass spectra, which overestimates the composition for alloying elements such as Nb and Cu in the steels. One important factor that contributes to the tails is believed to be delayed field evaporation from Fe²⁺. This artefact of the mass spectrum was observed to be the most severe when voltage pulsing was used. The application of laser pulses with energy ranging from 0.2 to 1.2 nJ successfully reduced the tails and lead to better compositional measurement accuracy. Spatial resolution in the z-direction (along the tip direction) was observed to be less affected by changing laser energy but deteriorates in x-y direction with increasing laser energy. This investigation suggests that pulsed-laser atom probe with ∼0.4 nJ laser energy can be used to study this group of materials with improved mass resolution while still maintaining high spatial resolution.