Optimization of Cryosoaking Period and Microstructural Transformation on Wear Mechanism of SAE 8620 Gear Steel

Rotating parts such as gears and shafts are invariably subjected to wear. The observed frequent failure of these transmission elements led to this experimental study on the wear resistancel. In the current research study, specimens of gear steel (SAE 8620) were austenized at 1193 K followed by oil quenching and subsequent tempering at 473 K. These steels were soaked at 88 K for different lengths starting from 4 to 20 h of cryosoaking followed by soft tempering at 373 K. Specimens were characterized for microstructural analysis using optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and retained austenite content by X-ray diffraction (XRD). Optimized cryotreated specimens were then compared with conventionally treated specimens for wear behavior and worn surface analysis. Worn surfaces of wear specimens at varying loads (4 and 10 kg) and sliding speeds (2 and 3.5 ms^?1) were examined to identify the mechanism involved during wear. The 2D contour map was interpreted for hardened tempered (HT) and hardened tempered cryotreated HTC (16 h) specimens and the prevailing wear mechanism was explored followed by establishing a correlation with microstructural transformation.     

Influence of cryosoaking period on wear characteristics and surface topography of M35 tool steel

Cryogenic treatment affects tool steels wherein alteration in microstructural features like phases, uniform precipitation of carbides is observed. In this work, improvement in wear resistance of cryotreated material with microstructural features and surface roughness of material has been correlated. Samples of AISI M35 steel were hardened at 1200°C, followed by triple tempering at 555°C in the salt bath, subsequently subjected to cryogenic treatment at minus 185°C for varying cryosoaking period (4–32?h) followed by soft tempering at 100°C. Such samples were characterized for hardness, microstructure, carbide density, wear rate and surface roughness. A correlation of carbide density and roughness has been established with wear resistance.     

Abrasive wear behavior of different case depth gas carburized AISI 8620 gear steel

In this study, abrasive wear behaviors of gas carburized AISI 8620 steels with different case depths were examined. AISI 8620 steels yield excellent carburizing results and are used in manufacturing of gears. Two carburized and quenched specimens with different case depths were produced. Specimens were prepared at HEMA Gear Factory. Wear tests were carried out using pin-on disc test machine. Specimens were abraded under 10, 25 and 40 N loads by using 80 grid Al₂O₃ and SiC abrasive papers. Mass losses were measured using an electronic balance with accuracy of 10⁻⁴ g. Results of this study reveal that data on laboratory samples can be used to interpret the abrasive wear performance of AISI 8620 gas carburized steel gears. It has been observed that gas carburizing time affects the case depth, and in turn, specimen with higher case depth has shown better wear resistance. In addition to this, as the case depth has increased, the hardness of the material has increased as well.     

Sand-water slurry erosion of carburized AISI 8620 steel

The erosion behavior of carburized AISI 8620 steel for sand slurry service was investigated. The jet impingement type of test was used where sand slurry is directed at flat specimens to determine the erosion rates and mechanism of erosion. The effects of steel heat treatments, slurry velocities and particle concentrations on erosion rates were investigated.     

Behavior of medium carbon steel under combined fatigue and wear

The combined fatigue-wear life of medium carbon steel (AISI 1045) was investigated under various combinations of loads and sliding wear conditions using a rotating beam test. The direction of the maximum tensile stress due to bending was perpendicular to that due to wear [1]. Tests were also performed with specimens plated with a thin layer of cadmium or nickel-gold. All of the tests were conducted in the high cycle regime. The results show that the fatigue life of all the specimens at a stress level higher than the endurance limit of the specimen was within the experimental scatter of a typical fatigue test. The effect of sliding wear on fatigue life is manifested primarily by the stress field imposed by the slider on the specimen. In the case of plated specimens, the fatigue life was not significantly affected, although the wear rate was decreased by an order of magnitude.     

Abrasive wear response of cryotreated EN45 steel in simulated wear test rig fixture

Wear by sand abrasion occurs in cutter blades of sugarcane cutting machine. The wear life of components used under sand abrasion conditions is governed by process parameters, properties of abrasive particles in the soil and material properties. In this article, the wear performance of conventionally and cryotreated specimens was tested in the soil containing 20% silica at different blade speeds such as 300, 400, 600 and 750?rev?min^??1 at the varied cutting times of 8, 16, 24 and 32?h respectively using simulated test rig fixture of sugarcane cutting machine. In addition, treated specimens were characterised for the microstructural features, hardness and surface roughness. Microstructural study indicated fine structure of tempered martensite with addition of segregation of silicon and carbon spots in the cryotreated specimen. The surface roughness of cryotreated material was decreased by 50% with respect to conventionally treated one. The mass loss of cryotreated cutting blades was reduced by 28% over conventional treatment at 750?rev?min^??1. The wornout surface and subsurface of conventionally treated specimens showed predominant dislodgment of wear particles.     

Tribological Performance of Boronized,Nitrided, and Normalized AISI 4140 Steel against Hydrogenated Diamond-Like Carbon-Coated AISI D2 Steel

In the current work, AISI 4140 steel was pack-boronized at 950°C for 3 h and gas-nitrided at 550°C for 72 h. All specimens used in this work were prepared from the same steel bar. A 3-µm-thick diamond-like carbon (DLC) coating (a-C:H) was deposited on the AISI D2 high-carbon, high-chromium, cold-worked tool steel by a plasma-assisted chemical vapor deposition technique. Normalized, boronized, and nitrided steel pins were tested against DLC-coated AISI D2 steel at various normal loads (15, 30, 60, and 80 N) for 1,000 and 3,000 m sliding distance in ambient air. Specific wear rate of all pins decreased with increasing load, and a similar trend was observed for the coefficient of friction (COF). Microscopic and energy-dispersive spectroscopic (EDS) analysis confirmed the role of the transfer layer for a low COF with increasing load. At all loads, the specific wear rate of boronized pins was lower than that of the nitrided and normalized pin specimens. Boronized pins showed a specific wear rate in the range of 0.27 × 10^?8 to 0.44 × 10^?8 mm³/Nm and the COF was about 0.1.     

The effects of retained austenite on dry sliding wear behavior of carburized steels

Ring-on-square tests on two kinds of low-alloy carburized steel which were AISI 8620 and 4140 were carried out to study the dry sliding wear behavior. The influence of different retained austenite level of 6% to 40% was evaluated while trying to eliminate other factors. Test results show that the effects of grain size and carburized steel species are negligible in dry sliding wear behavior. While the influence of retained austenite is negligible at 20 kg load condition, wear resistance is decreased at 40 kg load condition as the retained austenite level is increased from 6% to 30%. However, wear resistance is again increased above about 30% of retained austenite level at 40 kg load condition.     

Wear behaviour of AISI D3 and AISI M3:2 tool steels in a mass production shearing operation

The wear of two tool steels (AISI D3 and AISI M3:2) was compared in a normal production shearing operation by scanning electron microscopy at fixed production intervals.After the wear-in period, in which plastic deformation was observed, abrasive wear occurred by the action of small carbides. Wear was more uniform with AISI M3:2 tool steel than with AISI D3 tool steel and the AISI M3:2 tool produced a better finish of the sheared sheet lips.     

Influence of temperature of sub-zero treatments on the wear behaviour of die steel

This study examines the influence of temperature of sub-zero treatment on the wear behaviour of AISI D2 steel. A series of dry sliding wear studies have been made under constant normal load at varying sliding velocities. Emphasis has been laid to understand the operative modes and mechanisms of wear by the estimation of specific wear rates and detailed characterizations of the worn surfaces, wear debris and subsurfaces with the help of scanning electron microscope (SEM) examinations coupled with energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) microanalyses. The obtained results unambiguously infer that lower the temperature of sub-zero treatment higher is the improvement in wear resistance. Wear resistance can increase by 1.5–125 times depending on sliding velocity while hardness increases only by 4.2% at the lowest temperature of sub-zero treatment (77 K) compared to the conventionally treated specimens. These results corroborate well with the reduction in retained austenite content associated with simultaneous increase in the amount of secondary carbide particles with lowering of sub-zero treatment temperature. The operative modes and mechanisms of wear are identified as either mild oxidative or severe delaminative, which depends on the temperature of sub-zero treatment and the sliding velocity of the wear test.     

Characteristics of particles generated at the interface between sliding steel surfaces

This paper is an attempt to further clarify and classify the range of wear modes which can occur at the interface between steel surfaces subjected to sliding motion, a variety of speeds and loads, with and without lubrication. Previous researchers have been able, from examination of the wearing surfaces, to identify a number of distinct wear modes and to classify them according to operating conditions. The present paper shows that it is possible to arrive at a comparable classification of wear modes based on examination of the wear debris rather than the worn surfaces. Consequently, it is possible to determine the wear modes in a machine from observation of the debris in the lubricant without requiring access to the wear surfaces themselves.The wear particles were generated by rotating a cylindrical sleeve of AISI 52100 steel in contact with three types of fixed wearing surfaces, crossed AISI 52100 steel cylinders, fixed spherical balls of AISI 52100 and AISI 1018 steel and a flat plate of AISI 1018 steel. Surface speeds ranged from 0.19 to 5.0 m/s and the load from 1 to 80 kg. These particles were collected and examined in both an optical and a scanning electron microscope. X-ray diffraction studies of selected particle types were also made.These studies revealed six different wear regimes which depended on the test parameters. Each regime produced wear particles of characteristic morphology and composition. All of the types of particles studied here have been found in the lubricating oil of field operating machines.     

Boundary Lubrication RCF Performance of 4 cSt Gas Turbine Engine Oils at 204 °C

The rolling contact fatigue (RCF) and wear performance of three qualified formulations of MIL-L-7808K (4 cSt at 100 °C) were evaluated using AISI VIM-VAR M50 steel. The RCF tester differentiated the fatigue life and wear performance of gas turbine engine lubricants in boundary lubrication regime. Tests were conducted using a ball-on-rod type RCF tester at a maximum Hertzian stress of 4.8 GPa and temperature of 204 °C. Although all the three lubricants meet the military specification, the RCF results suggest that life and wear in the boundary lubrication regime are significantly affected by the formulation. Changes in physical and chemical properties of post test lubricants such as viscosity, acid number and additive concentration were minimal. However, the lowest Fe concentration and COBRA reading, which is a measure of the electrical property of the lubricant, correlated with the highest RCF life and lowest wear.     

Effect of lubricants on micropitting and wear

Micropitting was studied using a three-contact disc machine having a central roller in contact with three harder, annular counter-discs (“rings”) of precisely controlled roughness. Roughness, running conditions, base stock and additive concentration were varied. The response of the same lubricants in a reciprocating sliding wear test operating in the boundary regime was also studied.Results of experimental studies of the rolling contact behaviour of carburised steel rollers are reported. All the tests with the additive present led to micropitting. However, severe micropitting wear was only observed when the calculated film thickness exceeded 12% of the centre-line average roughness of the rings.It was found that there was an approximately inverse correlation between the micropitting damage in the disc machine test and the mild wear in the reciprocating sliding test. This was attributed to the tendency of anti-wear additives to prevent running-in of the rough surface.     

Optimization of Deep Cryogenic Treatment Process for 100Cr6 Bearing Steel Using the Grey-Taguchi Method

This article presents a method for optimizing the deep cryogenic treatment (DCT) process parameters for 100Cr6 bearing steel, based on the Taguchi method with Grey relational analysis. The DCT parameters considered for the optimization included the cooling rate, soaking temperature, soaking time, and tempering temperature, with the quality targets of dimensional stability, wear resistance, and hardness. As per the Grey-Taguchi technique, nine experimental trials based on the L₉ (3⁴) orthogonal array were conducted. The optimum parameters for 100Cr6 bearing steel were arrived at based on Grey relational analysis. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) was performed and soaking temperature was identified as the most influential factor in deep cryogenic treatment of 100Cr6 bearing steel. The improvement in dimensional stability, wear resistance, and hardness of the deep cryotreated samples under optimized treatment conditions was 13.77, 49.02, and 19.35%, respectively. A microstructural examination was carried out to identify the possible mechanism of cryogenic treatment in improving the properties of the 100Cr6 bearing steel. A confirmation test was subsequently conducted to validate the test results.     

Comparison of wear properties of tool steels AISI D2 and O1 with the same hardness

Two commercial cold work tool steels, AISI D2 and O1, were heat treated in order to obtain the same hardness 700 HV (60 HRc) and were subsequently tested in three different modes of wear, namely in adhesion, three-body and two-body abrasion, by using pin-on-disk, dry sand/rubber wheel apparatus and pin abrasion on SiC, respectively. Even though AISI O1 and D2 steel are heat treated to the same hardness, they perform differently under the three modes of wear examined. The results show that the steel microstructures play the most important role in determining the wear properties. For relatively low sliding speeds AISI O1 steel performs up to 12 times better than AISI D2 steel in adhesive wear. For higher sliding speeds, however, this order is reversed due to oxidation taking place on the surface of the AISI D2 steel. The wear rate of both tool steels in three-body and two-body abrasion wear is proportional to the applied load. In three-body abrasive wear, AISI D2 exhibits a normalised wear rate about two times lower than the AISI O1 tool steel, and this is due to the presence of the plate-like hard carbides in its microstructure. Both tool steels perform 3–8 times better in three-body abrasive wear conditions than in two-body abrasive wear.     

齿轮用钢8620 H的研制

为适应齿轮钢更新换代的需求,北满特钢自主开发研制了8620H新型齿轮钢,满足了目前进口汽车生产线齿轮钢的需要.     

An evaluation of the wear behaviour of a dual-phase low-carbon steel

Wear behaviour of dual-phase AISI 1020 steel was investigated. The steel was austenitized at critical transformation temperature and rapidly quenched. Thus, the structure of the steel consists of martensite and ferrite phases in different proportions. Heat treated samples were subjected to wear with a cylinder-on-cylinder sample configuration under dry sliding conditions. Wear resistance was determined as functions of hardness and proportion of martensite phase, and elongation of the steel. The wear resistance of the dual-phase 1020 steel was also compared with those of hardened and tempered AISI 1040 and 8640 steels. It was indicated that the wear resistance of the test steel decreases with martensite proportions, and increases with martensite hardness and elongation of the steel.     

Influence of varied cryotreatment on the wear behavior of AISI D2 steel

Exploration of the benefit of cryotreatment for achieving improvement in wear resistance of die/tool steel is a topic of current research interest. A series of wear tests has been carried out on AISI D2 steel samples subjected to cryotreatment at 77 K for different durations. The wear rates at different loads and sliding velocities, morphologies of the worn-out surfaces and the characteristics of the wear debris have been systematically examined to assess the possible critical duration of cryotreatment to achieve the best wear resistance property. The wear experiments have been supplemented by detailed microstructural investigations with an emphasis to reveal the amount of retained austenite and the characteristics of the secondary carbide particles apart from hardness evaluation. The results unambiguously establish that ‘critical time duration’ exists for achieving the best wear resistance for AISI D2 steel through cryotreatment. This has been explained by the nature of precipitation of fine carbide particles and their possible growth, which govern the wear resistance of the material. Categorization of the secondary carbides to support this explanation is a new approach. The revelation of the wear mechanisms under different wear conditions is an integral part of this work.     

Abrasive wear behavior of boronized AISI 8620 steel

In this study, AISI 8620 steel was boronized using the solid state boronizing technique. Processes were carried out at the temperatures of 850, 900 and 950 °C for 2, 4 and 6 h of treatment. Abrasive wear behavior of the samples boronized at different temperatures and treatment durations have been examined. Using boronized and unboronized samples, abrasive tests were conducted using pin on disc test apparatus. 80 and 120 mesh aluminum oxide (Al₂O₃) abrasive papers were used in the abrasion experiments and the samples were subjected to abrasion under 10, 20 and 30 N loads. Boronized steels exhibited an improvement in abrasive wear resistance reaching up to 500%. Microstructures and wear surfaces of the samples were inspected using SEM microscopy. SEM examinations revealed that the thickness of the boride layer on the steel surfaces changes with changing process durations and temperatures. The presence of boride formed in the borided layer at the surface of the steels were determined by XRD analysis and microhardness values of the iron borides (FeB, Fe₂B) formed on the steel surface were found to be over 1600 HV.     

Antiwear Tribofilm Formation on Steel Surfaces Lubricated With Gear Oil Containing Borate,Phosphorus, and Sulfur Additives

The formation of antiwear tribofilms plays a critical role in the longevity of automotive gears. The focus of this experimental study was on the lubrication efficacy of gear oils with different contents of borate-, phosphorus-, and sulfur-containing additives leading to the formation of protective tribofilms. Experiments were performed with AISI 52100 steel balls sliding against AISI 52100 steel disks in baths of different oils at ambient (～32 °C) and elevated (～100 °C) temperatures under load and speed conditions favoring sliding in the boundary lubrication regime. Friction coefficient responses accompanied by electrical contact voltage measurements provided real-time information about the formation and durability of the antiwear tribofilms. The wear resistance of the tribochemical films was quantified by wear rate data obtained from surface profilometry measurements of wear tracks on the disk specimens and sliding tests performed at ambient temperatures after the formation of the tribofilms during elevated-temperature sliding. Results indicate a strong dependence of tribofilm formation on temperature and type of additives. The slightly lower friction and higher wear resistance obtained at elevated temperatures with blended oils is attributed to the increased chemical reactivity of additives containing borate, phosphorus, and sulfur, leading to the formation of durable tribofilms. Relatively higher wear resistance and faster tribofilm formation were obtained with the borate-enriched gear oil formulations.