Axial fatigue of a gas-nitrided quenched and tempered AISI 4140 steel: effect of nitriding depth

Fatigue testing under fully reversed axial loading (R=?1) and zero‐to‐tension axial loading (R= 0) was carried out on AISI 4140 gas‐nitrided smooth specimens. Three different treatment durations were investigated in order to assess the effect of nitriding depth on fatigue strength in high cycle fatigue. Complete specimens characterization, i.e., hardness and residual stresses profiles (including measurement of stabilized residual stresses) as well as metallographic and fractographic observations, was achieved to analyse fatigue behaviour. Fatigue of the nitrided steel is a competition between a surface crack growing in a compressive residual stress field and an internal crack or ‘fish‐eye’ crack growing in vacuum. Fatigue life increases with nitriding depth until surface cracking is slow enough for failure to occur from an internal crack. Unlike bending, in axial fatigue ‘fish‐eye’ cracks can initiate anywhere in the core volume under uniform stress. In these conditions, axial fatigue performance is lower than that obtained under bending and nitriding depth may have no more influence. In order to interpret the results, special attention was given to the effects of compressive residual stresses on the surface short crack growth (closure effect) as well as the effects of internal defect size on internal fatigue lives. A superimposed tensile mean stress reduces the internal fatigue strength of nitrided steel more than the surface fatigue strength of the base metal. Both cracking mechanisms are not equally sensitive to mean stress.     

The investigation of mechanical properties of ion-nitrided AISI 5140 low-alloy steel

The ion nitriding behavior of AISI 5140 low-alloy steel was investigated under different process parameters including time (1, 4, 8, and 12 h), temperature (400, 450, 500, and 550 °C), and gas mixture ratio (0.05, 0.33, and 3 N₂/H₂). The ion nitriding properties of AISI 5140 steel have been assessed by evaluating fatigue strength, hardness profile, compound layer thickness, and case depth by using a rotating bending fatigue machine, a microhardness tester, and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) with energy dispersive spectrometry (EDS). It was found that ion nitriding improves the fatigue strength, which depends on increasing the case depth, but the compound layer does not have a dominant effect on the fatigue strength. After the fatigue tests, sections of ion-nitrided specimens were observed to have failed by the fish eye phenomenon with the fatigue cracks originating from nonmetallic inclusions.     

Relationship between decarburisation and fatigue strength of through hardened and carburising steels

Abstract

The effect of surface decarburisation upon the fatigue strength in rotating bending of a through hardened low alloy steel and a carburised carburising steel was investigated. The relationships between surface carbon content, depth of decarburisation, microhardness, residual stress, surface finish, and fatigue limit were examined. Whereas the fatigue limit was found to be independent of the depth of decarburisation over the range investigated (up to 1 mm), linear relationships were found between fatigue limit and surface carbon concentration and micro hardness. Furthermore, the presence of residual tensile stresses at the surface were found to lead to a reduction of fatigue limit. The fatigue limit of the rough machined specimens was found not to be significantly lower than that of the polished specimens.

MST/1179     

Laser Nitriding of Ti-5.0Al-2.i5Sn

Laser surface treatment provides excellent wear resistance with good oxidation and corrosion resistance. Laser surface nitriding is one such technique resulting in high surface hardness to a depth of a few microns. This can be carried out in pure nitrogen and dilute nitrogen environments. This paper investigates the effect of laser nitriding on Space Shuttle Main Engine (SSME) Ti-5.0Al-2.5Sn alloy under pure nitrogen environment. The nitriding was carried out using 3 kW CW CO2 laser at different laser powers 900 W, 1.0 kW, and 1.2 kW with scan speeds 0.5 m min^-1, 1.0 m min^-1 and 1.5 m min^-1 respectively. Optical microscopic and Vickers hardness tests were conducted on the test specimen to reveal the effect of laser nitriding in melt zone of laser nitrided trail. The extra high surface hardness of 3785 VHN at 25-50 (m depth was observed using the laser variable 1.0 kW laser power, 1.0 m min^-1 speed and 3 mm beam dia. This may be attributed to the TiN dendrite formation. The melt zone of laser nitrided trail at other processing parameters shows fine needlelike structure of alpha prime with larger grain size and alpha in the heat affected zone with smaller grain size, with an average hardness 450 VHN. This present investigation shows that the surface of the nitrided trail is free from any cracks, even under the pure nitrogen atmosphere for all laser processing conditions.     

Nitriding duration reduction without sacrificing mechanical characteristics and fatigue behavior: The beneficial effect of surface nano-crystallization by prior severe shot peening

Generally a clear beneficial effect of nitriding duration on resultant mechanical characteristics is reported in the literature. Considering the high energy cost in the competitive business environment, this work explores any opportunities to reduce nitriding duration while not sacrificing the resultant mechanical characteristics and fatigue behavior. To this end prior shot peening is applied with particularly severe parameters to generate ultra-fine grains and nano-structures in the surface layers. It was recently shown that the local fatigue strength improvement by combination of severe shot peening and 15 h nitriding could not eventually contribute in further increasing the fatigue limit of high strength low alloy steel smooth specimens as compared to only 15 h nitriding. In the present research combination of severe shot peening with nitriding at 7.5 h is assessed. It is affirmed that improvement by hybrid treatment can be actively exploited in the form of duration reduction. The characterization is carried out by optical and scanning electron microscopy observation, micro-hardness test, surface roughness measurement and X-ray diffraction measurement of residual stress. Fatigue limit of the treated specimens is experimentally determined. A critical comparison between the hybrid process with 50% nitriding duration reduction and the original nitriding process is presented. Based on the result of this study, nitriding duration can be successfully reduced without losing improvements in mechanical characteristics and fatigue behavior if a suitable prior severe shot peening, aimed to surface nano-crystallization, is performed.     

Fatigue strength improvement of a hard chromium plated AISI 4140 steel using a plasma nitriding pre-treatment

The effect of a plasma nitriding (PN) pre‐treatment on the fatigue performance of hard chromium (HC) plated AISI 4140 steel has been investigated by conducting a series of rotary bending fatigue tests at a frequency of 95 Hz. hourglass shaped test specimens of 4‐mm diameter had been plasma nitrided at 510°C for 4, 8 and 12 h. It was found that HC‐plated specimens with a coating layer of 23 ± 2 μm thickness showed approximately 33% reduction in fatigue strength when compared to quenched and tempered (Q&T) specimens. An application of the PN pre‐treatment before the plating process was effective in improving the fatigue performance of HC‐coated steel. An improvement of 71% in the fatigue strength of pre‐treated specimens was recorded as compared with the specimens, which were HC plated only. The results also indicated that prolonged nitriding time did not cause better improvement in the fatigue performance.     

Fatigue life determination of plasma nitrided medical grade CoCrMo alloy

In this paper, the fatigue behaviour of plasma nitrided medical grade forged CoCrMo alloy was studied. Since metallic biomaterials are used for implant applications where high and/or cyclic stresses along with corrosive effects of human body are of concern, enhancing mechanical and surface properties of implant alloys is crucial. Plasma nitriding was implemented at three different temperatures as 600, 700 and 800 °C for time intervals of 1 and 4 h. S–N curves of untreated and nitrided specimens were obtained via axial tension compression fatigue tests. It was found that plasma nitriding treatment reduces the fatigue resistance of forged CoCrMo alloy by the ratios of 7–23% depending on the surface roughness, phase structure and hardness of the modified layer which are determined by the treatment parameters.     

Enhancing the lifetime and corrosion resistance of gears made of carbon steel

Gears for structural machines require high fatigue strength for high performance. Generally, gears made of carbon steel easily corrode, thus, shortening their fatigue life. The aim of this paper is to improve the fatigue strength of carbon steel gears by means of heat treatment method which was nitriding composed of 95 % nitrogen gas as well as 5 % hydrogen gas, and to investigate its properties after nitriding. Therefore, in order to find the optimum nitriding temperature to increase the hardness and corrosion resistance of gears, the gas nitriding process was conducted at two different tube furnace temperatures: low (550 °C) and high (1150 °C), both for four hours. Microstructural and mechanical property evaluation of the low and high temperature nitrided low-carbon steel BS970-080A15 were studied and the results were compared to identify which gear had better performance in terms of hardness as well as corrosion resistance. The results from Vickers hardness test and weight loss analysis proved that high temperature nitrided carbon steel is harder and more corrosion resistant than the low temperature one.     

FACTORS CONTROLLING THE FATIGUE STRENGTH OF NITRIDED TITANIUM

Abstract— The factors affecting the fatigue strength of nitrided titanium were clarified. The fatigue strength depended strongly on the fracture strength of the compound layer formed on the surface by nitriding. We found a Hall-Petch relationship between the fatigue strength of nitrided titanium and the grain size. The findings indicated that the reduction in the fatigue strength by nitriding results from both the formation of the compound layer possessing low fracture strength and grain growth occurring from ordinary nitriding. Furthermore, low-temperature nitriding (620°C, 24 h) was proposed to suppress grain growth. This treatment method improved not only the wear resistance and the corrosion resistance but also the fatigue strength of titanium.     

Shot peening of plasma nitrided steel for fretting fatigue strength enhancement

Abstract

The potential of fretting fatigue strength enhancement by a duplex surface engineering process involving shot peening of plasma nitrided steel, termed duplex SP/PN, is demonstrated. Specimens of 709M40 steel were individually plasma nitrided, shot peened, or duplex SP/PN treated. Fretting fatigue properties of the surface engineered specimens were evaluated. Surface roughness, residual stress, and hardening effect following the various surface treatments were examined and compared. It has been found that the duplex treatment can significantly improve the fretting fatigue strength of the investigated low alloy steel. Under the present testing conditions, the duplex SP/PN treatment increased the fretting fatigue strength (at 10⁷ cycles) of 709M40 steel by more than 70% relative to the nitrided, 120% to the shot peened, and 500% to the untreated steel. The improvement has been explained in terms of the significantly increased surface hardness and compressive residual stress in the near surface region following the duplex SP/PN treatment. By analysing the stress distributions in a shot peened surface, the influence of surface roughness on fretting fatigue strength is also discussed.     

Fatigue strength of shot-peened nitrided steel: optimization of process parameters by means of design of the experiment

ABSTRACT There is a general interest in increasing the fatigue strength of materials. Shot‐peening and nitriding are the two processes commonly used in order to increase the fatigue strength of steel‐notched components. These two processes are often used separately. The effect of a combination of both processes has not been thoroughly investigated so far. The purpose of the present investigation was two‐fold: first, the authors verified whether further improvements can be achieved by a combination of the two treatments; second, the optimal process parameters were determined in order to obtain the maximal increase in fatigue strength. Fatigue tests were conducted on unnotched and notched nitrided and shot‐peened 32CrMoV13 steel specimens. Several process variables were tested. Tests were designed based on the criteria of the Design of the Experiment (DOE). Three‐level experiments were used in order to determine the optimal set of process parameters. It was found that the combination of nitriding and shot‐peening could be applied successfully in order to increase the fatigue limit when extreme performance is sought in notched components.     

退火处理对紫铜组织和机械性能影响的试验研究

研究退火处理对紫铜组织及机械性能的影响,利用X射线衍射、金相观测、硬度测量、拉伸和疲劳试验以及扫描电子显微镜观测等试验手段,对比分析了退火前后紫铜的金相组织、基本力学性能、疲劳寿命、断口显微形貌和疲劳裂纹扩展行为等。考察了表面形貌对材料试件的疲劳寿命的影响,利用带缺口的试件对疲劳裂纹扩展行为进行了观测,给出了退火前后疲劳裂纹扩展速率及疲劳寿命随表面粗糙度增大而改变的定量结果。结果表明：退火后紫铜主要衍射峰出现窄化,其内部晶粒增大;材料屈服应力、弹性模量、维氏硬度及疲劳性能显著降低。试件疲劳寿命受表面粗糙度影响的敏感性在退火后降低。     

Effect of carbon addition on low-temperature plasma nitriding characteristics of austenitic stainless steel

Attempts have been made in the present work to investigate the influence of carbon in the treatment atmosphere on the low-temperature plasma nitriding characteristics of austenitic stainless steels. It was found that treatment gas composition has a significant effect on the structural characteristics of the nitrided layer. The addition of a small amount of carbon-containing gas such as methane (CH₄) to the treatment atmosphere can alter the structural development in the alloyed zone and offer several beneficial effects to the nitriding process. Based on this discovery, a new process has been developed, which involves the simultaneous incorporation of both nitrogen and carbon into the alloyed zone to form a dual-layer structure, which is free from chromium nitride, and carbide precipitates. Such a hybrid structure not only possesses larger layer thickness, high hardness, and more favourable hardness gradient than nitrided-alone layers, but also exhibits much improved corrosion resistance.     

Fatigue behaviour from application of a.c.

High intensity a.c. is increasingly used in many applications; its use is coming under discussion owing to the thermal fatigue effects that are caused. This work is an investigation of the effect of a.c. on the static strength and fatigue properties of mild steel specimens. Pre-application of a.c. to the specimens did not cause any appreciable change in the static properties such as yield point, ultimate strength and amount of elastic elongation. Slight reduction in the total strain has been measured. Pre-application of a.c. to fatigue tested specimens considerably reduced the endurance limit, an effect similar to that found in cumulative fatigue for prestressed materials. The amount of reduction increases as the intensity of applied a.c. increases.     

Effect of hardness on multiaxial fatigue behaviour and some simple approximations for steels

Constant-amplitude in-phase and 90° out-of-phase axial-torsional fatigue tests were conducted on tubular specimens made from a medium-carbon steel with three hardness levels obtained from normalizing, quenching and tempering and induction hardening to find the effect of hardness on multiaxial fatigue behaviour. In addition, the same loadings were applied on the normalized solid specimens to investigate the effect of specimen geometry on multiaxial fatigue life. Similar fatigue life variation as a function of hardness was found for in-phase and out-of-phase loadings, with higher ductility beneficial in low-cycle fatigue (LCF) and higher strength beneficial in high-cycle fatigue (HCF). Multiaxial fatigue data were satisfactorily correlated for all hardness levels with the Fatemi–Socie parameter. Furthermore, in order to predict multiaxial fatigue life of steels in the absence of any fatigue data, the Roessle–Fatemi hardness method was used. Multiaxial fatigue lives were predicted fairly accurately using the Fatemi–Socie multiaxial model based on only the hardness level of the material. The applicability of the prediction method based on hardness was also examined for Inconel 718 and a stainless steel under a wide range of loading conditions. The great majority of the observed fatigue lives were found to be in good agreement with predicted lives.     

Plain fatigue and fretting fatigue behaviour of plasma nitrided Ti-6Al-4V

Fatigue tests with and without fretting against unnitrided fretting pads were conducted on unnitrided and plasma nitrided Ti-6Al-4V samples. Plasma nitrided samples exhibited higher surface hardness, higher surface compressive residual stress, lower surface roughness and reduced friction force compared with the unnitrided specimens. Plasma nitriding enhanced the lives of Ti-6Al-4V specimens under both plain fatigue and fretting fatigue loadings. This was explained in terms of the differences in surface hardness, surface residual stress, surface roughness and friction force between the unnitrided and nitrided samples.     

Influence of electric discharge machining on fatigue limit of high strength aluminum alloy under finish machining

Abstract

The aim of this study was to investigate the fatigue limit of the electric discharge machined aluminum alloy 2024 T6. Machining was performed at 3, 6, 9, and 12 A discharge current values while all other parameters were kept constant. The fatigue tests were performed on a four-point rotating bending machine at the frequency of 50 Hz and at ambient temperature. Fatigue limits at 10⁷ cycles were determined using staircase (up-and-down) method and the obtained data was analyzed statistically. For reference purposes, fatigue strength of the conventionally turned specimens was also found by the same technique. The EDM surface is characterized by its morphology, roughness, hardness, and thickness of the resolidified layer. The effects of discharge current values on these surface characterizing parameters and subsequent influence on fatigue limit have been discussed.     

Fatigue life evaluation of 42CrMo4 nitrided steel by local approach: Equivalent strain-life-time

In this paper, the fatigue resistance of 42CrMo4 steel in his untreated and nitrided state was evaluated, using both experimental and numerical approaches. The experimental assessment was conducted using three points fatigue flexion tests on notched specimens at R = 0.1. Microstructure analysis, micro-Vickers hardness test, and scanning electron microscope observation were carried out for evaluating experiments. In results, the fatigue cracks of nitrided specimens were initiated at the surface. The fatigue life of nitrided specimens was prolonged compared to that of the untreated. The numerical method used in this study to predict the nucleation fatigue life was developed on the basis of a local approach, which took into account the applied stresses and stabilized residual stresses during the cyclic loading and the low cyclic fatigue characteristics. The propagation fatigue life was calculated using fracture mechanics concepts. It was found that the numerical results were well correlated with the experimental ones.     

Ultrasonic fatigue testing of cast steel G42CrMo4 at elevated temperatures

The fatigue life of cast steel G42CrMo4 in two different heat treatment conditions was investigated at room temperature (RT), 473 K and 773 K up to the range of very high cycle fatigue (VHCF), that is, 10⁹ cycles. The fatigue life is determined by casting defects, the hardness of the steel matrix and by temperature. Fatigue life data were discussed in correlation with crack‐initiating defects analysed on fracture surfaces. The SN curves obtained at RT and at 473 K show a large scatter. However, the SN curve at 773 K exhibits a larger slope parameter and a significantly reduced scatter. It is shown that the fatigue behaviour of the cast steel G42CrMo4 changes from 473 to 773 K in the range of VHCF. The fatigue lives of the specimens tested at 773 K were described with a crack growth model.     

The wear and corrosion resistance of shot peened–nitrided 316L austenitic stainless steel

316L austenitic stainless steel was gas nitrided at 570 °C with pre-shot peening. Shot peening and nitriding are surface treatments that enhance the mechanical properties of surface layers by inducing compressive residual stresses and formation of hard phases, respectively. The structural phases, micro-hardness, wear behavior and corrosion resistance of specimens were investigated by X-ray diffraction, Vickers micro-hardness, wear testing, scanning electron microscopy and cyclic polarization tests. The effects of shot peening on the nitride layer formation and corrosion resistance of specimens were studied. The results showed that shot peening enhanced the nitride layer formation. The shot peened–nitrided specimens had higher wear resistance and hardness than other specimens. On the other hand, although nitriding deteriorated the corrosion resistance of the specimens, cyclic polarization tests showed that shot peening before the nitriding treatment could alleviate this adverse effect.