Influence of microstructure and chromium content on oxidation behaviour of spin cast high speed steels

Abstract

The influence of the chromium content and of the volume fraction of primary carbides on the thermal oxidation behaviour of spin cast high speed steels and semi-high speed steels used for the production of hot mill rolls was studied at 700°C. Oxidation nucleates at the carbide–matrix interface and carbides have a higher oxidation resistance than the matrix. Moreover carbides dissolve a higher amount of chromium than the matrix. As a consequence of these effects, the oxidation rate of these steels decreases by increasing the chromium content of the matrix and by decreasing the carbide volume fraction.     

Characteristics of High Temperature Rupture of a Cast Ni-Based Superalloy M963

The rupture behavior of a cast Ni-base superalloy M963 at high temperature has been investigated. The microstructure examination shows that there exists a large amount of the carbide and     

A model for predicting crack initiation in forged M3:2 tool steel under high cycle fatigue

AISI type M3 class 2 tool steel (or in German designation DIN: HS6-5-3 tool steel) is most commonly used in tooling industry, and also in some engine parts. Those components are usually subjected to cyclic stresses and mostly fail by fatigue. Fatigue crack initiation in this material occupies large fraction of total lifetime and strongly depends on microstructural features of primary and eutectic carbides, such as shape, shape ratio, volume fraction, the distribution of carbides as well as load ratio. To model fatigue initiation mechanisms of forged M3:2 tool steel, McDowell’s model was modified and developed for different length-scales. For fatigue crack formation and short crack growth, a hierarchical approach was used and the life time of these stages were estimated based on the local cyclic plasticity. Through this relation the effect of microstructural features on both fatigue crack formation and short crack growth in the material were identified. The results of the proposed model have explicitly reflected the influence of microstructural features on both fatigue crack formation and propagation in forged M3:2 tool steel. Moreover, the model can be used for improving the fatigue resistance of a tool steel component.     

Hydrogen embrittlement,thermal aging,and role of carbides in fatigue of high strength steel

Abstract

The influences of thermal aging and environment on Paris-Erdogan regime fatigue crack growth rates and mechanisms in a high strength Cr–Ni steel (300M) have been investigated. Crack growth rates were measured in inert (vacuum) and aggressive (hydrogen) environments, for quenched and tempered material before and after thermal aging at 500°C. Aging induced an acceleration of crack growth in vacuum at low values of ?K, but a retardation at high values of ?K. The crack path was transgranular throughout, and followed carbide/matrix interfaces. These effects were associated with the embrittlement of carbide/matrix interfaces by phosphorus segregation, which facilitated transgranular crack growth at low ?K, but produced crack tip shielding by voids surrounding the crack at high ?K. Hydrogen acted synergistically with phosphorus to embrittle carbide/matrix interfaces, but it also localised slip deformation at crack tips, reducing void formation in surrounding material and associated crack tip shielding. This produced an enhancement of crack growth rates at all values of ?K significantly above the threshold regime. The role of carbide/matrix interface embrittlement constitutes a third mechanism of hydrogen embrittlement and temper embrittlement interaction in fatigue crack growth, additional to those of carbide precipitation and grain boundary embrittlement previously reported.

MST/1142     

Fatigue properties and fatigue fracture mechanisms of SiC whiskers or SiC particulate-reinforced aluminium composites

Fatigue properties and fracture mechanisms were examined for three commercially fabricated aluminium matrix composites containing SiC whiskers (SiC_w) and SiC particles (SiC_p) using a rotating bending test. The fatigue strengths were over 60% higher for SiC_w/A2024 composites than that for the unreinforced rolled material, while for the SiC_p/A357 composites, fatigue strengths were also higher than that for the unreinforced reference material. For the SiC_p/A356 composites at a volume fraction of 20%, the fatigue strength was slightly higher than that of the unreinforced material. Fractography revealed that the Mode I fatigue crack was initiated by the Stage I mechanism for the SiC_w/A2024 and SiC_p/A357 composites, while for the SiC_p/A356 composite, the fatigue crack initiated at the voids situated beneath the specimen surfaces. On the other hand, the fatigue crack propagated to the whisker/matrix interface following the formation of dimple patterns or the formation of striation patterns for SiC_w/A2024 composites, while for the SiC_p/A356 and SiC_p/A357 composites the fatigue crack propagated in the matrix near the crack origin and striation patterns were found. Near final failure, dimple patterns, initiated at silicon carbide particles, were frequently observed. Mode I fatigue crack initiation and propagation models were proposed for discontinuous fibre-reinforced aluminium composites. It is suggested that the silicon carbide whiskers or particles would have a very significant effect on the fatigue crack initiation and crack propagation near the fatigue limit.     

原位研究M2高速钢微裂纹的萌生和扩展

使用扫描电子显微镜(SEM)内的原位加载台对M2高速钢进行了原位拉伸实验。结果表明：在M2高速钢的原位拉伸过程中,微裂纹主要在大尺寸共晶碳化物与基体的界面处萌生和扩展。与回火马氏体相比,裂纹更容易在残余奥氏体上萌生。碳化物的尺寸、形状和种类,对微裂纹的萌生和扩展也有重要的影响。减少块状残余奥氏体、一次共晶碳化物和MC碳化物的数量、减小碳化物的尺寸和改善碳化物形状,可减缓微裂纹的萌生和扩展。     

The relationship between TiB<Subscript>2</Subscript> volume fraction and fatigue crack growth behavior in the in situ TiB<Subscript>2</Subscript>/A356 composites

The relationship between TiB₂ volume fraction and fatigue crack growth behavior in the A356 alloy matrix composites reinforced with 3, 5.6, and 7.8 vol% in situ TiB₂ particles has been investigated. The mechanisms of crack propagation in the TiB₂/A356 composites were also discussed. The results show that the 3 vol% TiB₂/A356 composite has nearly the same crack growth behavior as the matrix alloy, while the 5.6 vol% TiB₂/A356 composite exhibits a little bit faster crack growth rate. The 7.8 vol% TiB₂/A356 composite presents the lowest resistance to crack growth, indicating that the crack growth is accelerated by increasing TiB₂ volume fraction. Fractographies reveal that an increase in TiB₂ volume fraction results in a change from the formation of striation and slip to the failure of voids nucleation, growth, and coalescence. Cracks tend to propagate within the matrix and avoid eutectic silicon and TiB₂ particles in the intermediate ΔK region, while prefer to propagate along interfaces of eutectic silicon and TiB₂ particles and link the fractured eutectic silicon particles in the near fractured ΔK region. Furthermore, the propensity for the separation of TiB₂ increases with the increase in TiB₂ volume fraction. The massive voids caused by fractured eutectic silicon and separated TiB₂ particles propagate and coalesce, and then accelerates the crack growth in TiB₂/A356 composites.     

The effect of the reduction of carbon content on the toughness of high chromium white irons in the as-cast state

Three high chromium white cast irons were examined in the as-cast state to determine the effect of the carbon content on the fracture toughness. The plane strain fracture toughness K _Ic and the fracture strength were measured for each alloy. X-ray mapping was used to identify the phases on the fracture surfaces. Scanning electron fractography and optical microscopy were used to determine the volume fraction of each phase on the fracture surfaces. It was found that most fracture occurred in the eutectic carbides, but that for the alloys with a reduced volume fraction of eutectic carbides, a small amount of crack propagation occurred in the austenitic dendrites. This change in crack path correlated with an increase in fracture toughness. The Ritchie-Knott-Rice model of brittle fracture was applied. It was found to sensibly predict the critical length for fracture for each alloy. Deep etching was employed to examine the distribution of eutectic carbides. It was found that the eutectic carbides formed a continuous network in each case.     

Development of new material and heat treatment for tools ensuring high performance in hot seamless tube rolling

Abstract

A new technology has been developed to improve the life of tools used for high temperature steel rolling in seamless tube manufacturing. It is a joint technology combining a new chemical composition and a special heat treatment. The new steel tool material has high Cr, C, and Ni contents compared with those of the conventional tools in order to increase the volume fraction of carbide which increases wear resistance. Through the new heat treatment, the macroscopic distribution pattern of eutectic carbide changes from meshlike to granular form increasing resistance against crack propagation. The validity of the results in the laboratory has been verified on the production line.     

Crack propagation in notched specimens of porous silicon carbide under cyclic loading

Notched specimens of porous silicon carbide with porosity 37% were fatigued under four‐point bending at frequencies of 30 and 0.3 Hz. The fatigue life expressed in terms of time was rather insensitive to the test frequency, while that expressed in terms of cycles was much shorter for the case of 0.3 Hz than for 30 Hz. A time‐dependent mechanism of stress corrosion cracking was mainly responsible for crack propagation, and stress cycling enhanced the crack‐propagation mechanism. The crack length was estimated from the change in compliance of the specimen. The crack‐propagation curve was divided into stages I and II. In stage I, the crack‐propagation rate decreased even though the applied stress intensity factor became larger with crack extension, and then turned to increase in stage II. The transition from stage I to II took place at a crack extension of around 0.8 mm. This anomalous behaviour is caused by crack‐tip shielding due to microcracking and asperity contact. Fractographic observations showed that the fracture path was along the binder phase between silicon carbide particles, or more precisely along the interface between particles and binders.     

The effect of boron on the stereological characteristics of the structural phases present in the structure of the 13% Cr white iron

In this paper, the results of the examination of the effect of boron, in the amounts of 0.26, 0.39 and 0.59 wt%, on the stereological characteristics of the structural phases present in the structure of 13%Cr–2.3%C white iron, are reviewed. The examined stereological characteristics were: volume fraction of phases, dendrite arm spacing-DAS and size of eutectic carbides.It has been concluded that with the increasing of boron content, the volume fraction of the matrix of austenite partially transformed into martensite decreases, whereas the volume fraction of the eutectic carbides increases. The increasing of the boron content also decreases the value of DAS, but at the same time the eutectic carbides become coarser.     

Study of Thermal Fatigue Resistance of a Composite Coating Made by a Vacuum Fusion Sintering Method

Thermal fatigue behavior of a Ni-base alloy chromium carbide composite coating made by a vacuum fusion sintering method are dicussed,Results show that thermal fatigue behavior is associated with cyclic upper temperature and coating thickness,As the thickness of the coating decreases ,the ther-mal fatigue resistance increases,The thermal fatigue resistance cuts down with the thermal cyclic upper temperature rising,The crack growth rate decreases with the increase in cyclic number until crack arrests.Thermal fatigue failure was not found along the interface of the coating/matrix.The tract of thermal fatigue crack cracks along the interfaces of phases.     

Influence of microstructures on thermal fatigue property of a nickel-base superalloy

Effect of microstructures such as the distribution and shape of carbide and γ′ phase on thermal fatigue property of a superalloy was investigated experimentally. The resistance of thermal fatigue of the studied alloy decreases with the rising upper temperature. For the as-cast alloy, the thermal fatigue crack mostly origins from carbide at low upper temperature and results from oxidation at high upper temperature. The thermal fatigue crack of the heat treated alloy is mainly initiated by the oxidized cavity and then propagates through the join of the oxidized cavity. The orientation of crack propagation and direction of dendrite growth of alloy have the angle of 45°. There is γ′ denuded region near the thermal fatigue crack because of oxidation.     

Effect of SiC particles on fatigue crack propagation in SiC/Al composites

Fatigue crack propagation has been studied in two SiC particulate-reinforced aluminium-matrix composites with differing matrix alloys and composite heat treatments. Results indicate that the fatigue crack propagation rate (FCPR) of aged SiC/LY12 Al composites decreases with increasing volume fraction (V_f) of SiC particles; for composites containing 15 volume % SiC particles in an LY12 Al matrix the FCPR is independent of heat treatment (ageing or annealing). Annealed SiC/5083 Al composite has a higher FCPR than annealed SiC/LY12 AI. The influence of SiC particles on crack path is briefly discussed.     

Creep Deformation and Rupture in Smooth and Notched Specimens in HK40 Steel

The effects of the eutectic carbides randsecondary carbides on creep deformation andrupture in smooth bars and CT specimens havebeen studied. The results show that the resistanceof the eutectic carbides of skeleton shape tocrack growth is larger than that of the blockyshape carbides. The dendritic segregation ofsecondary carbides promotes the creep ductility.As the secondary carbide particles become coarser,the creep ductility increases and the crackgrowth rate decreases. However, if the sizeof secondary carbide is too large, the creepstrength decreases too much and therefore crackgrowth rate increases.     

Mechanical behavior of cast SiCp-reinforced Al-4.5%Cu-1.5%Mg alloy

SiC_p-reinforced Al-4.5%Cu-1.5%Mg composite specimens were processed by vigorous stirring of the carbide in a semi-solid alloy slurry, followed by remelting and casting (stir-casting). The tensile and fatigue properties were evaluated in the as-cast and in the heat-treated conditions. In monotonic tensile testing, reinforcement with SiC_p produced a substantial increase in the work hardening of the material. This increase became more significant with increasing volume fraction of carbide. The yield and ultimate tensile strength, and the elastic modulus of the material, increased with heat-treatment and volume fraction of carbide at the expense of ductility. These properties are inferior to those of other reinforced, more complex aluminum alloys processed by other methods. In stress-controlled fatigue tests under fully reversed (R = −1) bending conditions, the fatigue life of the composite was longer than that of the unreinforced specimen at intermediate and lower stress levels. At higher stress levels the improvement was negligible. In heat-treated reinforced alloy specimens the fatigue strength at 1 × 10⁷ cycles decreased with increasing carbide particle size. With solid solution and precipitation strengthening, as well as carbide dispersion strengthening of the alloy, the crack growth threshold stress intensity factor K_th, increased, as did the crack initiation time and the crack growth rate.     

SiC颗粒体积分数对SiCp/Al复合材料疲劳裂纹扩展的影响

本文通过对疲劳裂纹扩展速率的测试和对疲劳裂纹扩展路径及疲劳断口的观察分析,研完了SiC颗粒体积分数对SiCp/Al复合材料疲劳裂纹扩展的影响.结果表明:随着SiC颗粒体积分数的增加,复合材料疲劳裂纹扩展抗力增加,但只有SiC颗粒体积分数为15％时,复合材料的疲劳裂纹扩展抗力才优于基体.      

Fracture Behavior of Particle Reinforced Metal Matrix Composites

The contributions of the reinforcement volume fraction and annealing temperatures to crack opening force and propagation energy are systematically studied by three point bending tests and by SEM investigations. The bending test data show that for the same reinforcement volume fraction, 2618 and 7075 Al composites require much higher force to open the cracks than 6061 matrix. This relates to the much higher levels of solute elements which causes matrix hardening. Studies reveal that the energy absorption level of the materials during crack propagation depends on both matrix strength and ductility which relates to the reinforcement volume fraction, composition and heat treatment conditions. Large deformation zones are found in front of the crack tip before crack propagation which indicate a ductile failure mode for the composites. Studies also reveal that cracks initiate generally at the particle/matrix interfaces for the low volume fraction reinforced composites. However, for the high volume fraction reinforced composites, crack initiation has been found from both reinforcement/matrix interfaces and broken particles. This indicates that increasing reinforcement volume fraction and matrix strengthening tend to change the fracture mode from interface debonding to particle cleavage cracking.     

Fatigue crack propagation and in-situ observations in three tool steel alloys manufactured using a rapid solidification technique

By utilizing special manufacturing conditions, e.g., using only pure elements and applying a rapid cooling rate, tool materials with high quasi-static fracture toughness can be produced. However, tool materials are often subjected to cyclic loading and, hence, their lifetime is dominated by fatigue failure. This study is focused on fracture mechanics and in-situ experiments to characterize the fatigue crack propagation behavior of three newly developed tool steels at a stress ratio R of 0.05. Microstructural examinations revealed that the materials consist of the phases α′-martensite, retained austenite, and complex carbides in different amounts. Results of preliminary tests are presented, in which it was attempted to grow the crack in a plane parallel to the plane of the starter notch. The determined ?K threshold values ranged between 4 and 5 MPa√m with Paris–Erdogan exponents of 3.3–4.6. In-situ observations were performed to understand the inherent damage mechanisms and microstructural effects during fatigue loading. These observations showed that fatigue crack growth is mainly dominated by the ductility of the martensitic–austenitic matrix. Only in cases in which the primary carbides are oriented favorably (with respect to the direction of crack propagation) does the crack follow the coherent carbide network to a certain extent. Furthermore, for the first time, a phase transformation from retained austenite to α′-martensite was detected at the crack tip during fatigue crack propagation for the material group of tool steels.     

城轨列车制动盘SiC_(p)/A356复合材料热疲劳裂纹扩展机理EI北大核心CSCD

为研究制动盘服役温度载荷及材料微结构对SiC_(p)/A356复合材料热疲劳裂纹扩展行为的影响,明确其热疲劳裂纹扩展微观机理,开展SiC_(p)/A356复合材料热疲劳裂纹扩展实验。结果表明:裂纹扩展过程包括由SiC颗粒偏转作用和二次裂纹释放扩展驱动力导致的缓慢扩展阶段和主裂纹与裂纹扩展前端微损伤连接的快速扩展阶段;加热温度较低时,裂纹扩展的“台阶状”特征明显,整体扩展速率较低,裂纹宽度较小,裂纹扩展方式为颗粒断裂、轻量基体撕裂和沿界面开裂;加热温度较高时,“斜直线跃升”阶段更为明显,裂纹宽度较大且扩展速率较高,裂纹扩展以颗粒脱落以及大幅度基体撕裂为主;主裂纹总是通过选择沿SiC颗粒群或者直接穿过α-Al基体以阻力较小的方式向前扩展,Si相承载时极易发生断裂,成为裂纹扩展源,同时裂纹扩展前端的微损伤对其扩展具有引导作用。