Formation mechanism of bainitic ferrite and carbide

Superledges on the broad faces of bainitic ferrite plates have been observed with transmission electron microscope (TEM). The observed superledges, ranging from less than 1 to 24 nm in height, are imaged in three dimension by way of tilt operation under TEM. Also, an array of smaller superledges are observed to pile up in front of a secondary phase. Pileup of superledges in front of a barrier is indicative of the mobility of an individual superledge. The precipitation of carbide associated with bainitic ferrite is also studied. It is observed that a carbide of a wedgelike shape may exist in front of a superledge with its tip(i.e., thinner end) penetrating the austenite and its root (the other end) originating at α:γ boundary. This condition indicates that the observed carbides may nucleate at the austenite side of α:γ phase boundary and grow toward austenite matrix. This article is based on a presentation made at the Pacific Rim Conference on the “Roles of Shear and Diffusion in the Formation of Plate-Shaped Transformation Products,” held December 18-22, 1992, in Kona, Hawaii, under the auspices of ASM INTERNATIONAL’S Phase Transformations Committee.     

Enhancement Effect of Gold Nanoparticles on the Bioactivity of Hydrogen-producing Microbe

1 IntroductionGold nanoparticles have attracted considerable atten-tionin manyfields duetotheir some special properties al-though goldis very popularfor beingchemicallyinert[1-3].For example ,gold nanoparticles as amplificationtags havebeenthe subject of research directed at gene analysis[4]and antibody or antigen detection[5-7]due to the large di-electric constant ,ease of preparation,andits biocompati-bility[8].Nanoparticles in the range of 1-10 nmin diameterwould display electronic structur…     

Environmental effects on ductile-phase toughening in Nb5Si3-Nb composites

A variety of materials have been toughened via the addition of a ductile phase. Brittle silicide intermetallics such as Nb₅Si₃ have been significantly toughened by niobium particles incorporated during in-situ processing techniques. In the work described here, toughness tests conducted on Nb₅Si₃ were monitored in a scanning electron microscope to view the process of toughening provided by the niobium particles. In particular, the behavior of the ductile phase was monitored and related to the toughness obtained. In an attempt to vary the behavior of the ductile phase, the composite materials were exposed to a variety of gaseous environments and subsequently tested in air. The resulting toughness, resistance-curve behavior, and in-situ results highlight the importance of the behavior of the ductile phase on subsequent properties.     

Monte Carlo simulation of grain growth and recrystallization in polycrystalline materials

The prediction and control of metal grain structures during processing have been major objectives of materials science. However, methodologies that are accurate and can be easily generalized to a variety of processing conditions have been difficult to formulate due to the complexity of the grain interactions. A novel Monte Carlo-based approach that explicitly incorporates these interactions has been developed to simulate the microstructural evolution driven by the minimization of grain boundary energy and lattice defect density. The applicability of this procedure has been demonstrated by the good correspondence between simulation results and experimental observations. This article reviews recent advances in the application of this technique to the investigation of a variety of phenomena, including normal and abnormal grain growth as well as static and dynamic recrystallization.     

Reviewing advances in cathode refractory materials

Refractories for aluminum reduction cell cathodes are changing to meet the needs of new, energy-efficient long-life cathode designs. New refractories and modified versions of old refractories have been introduced, and information on their performance is becoming available. This article reviews some of the advantages and disadvantages of new and old cathode refractory materials.     

Critical current and microstructure in oxide superconductors

Critical current density (J_c) in the presence of a magnetic field is the property that currently limits many applications of the high-critical-temperature oxide superconductors. Poor current transmission at grain boundaries and weak flux pinning are responsible for the low critical current densities observed in bulk materials. Since 1986, substantial progress has been made both in understanding the microstructural factors affecting J_c and in developing practical fabrication methods. Much of the fundamental understanding has been obtained from studies of YBa₂Cu₃O_7?x while the bismuth and thallium-based compounds appear to offer greater potential as the basis for the first practical conductors.     

Scanning probe microscopy: Materials analysis with an added dimension

Encompassing such versatile analytical techniques as scanning tunneling microscopy and atomic (or scanning) force microscopy, scanning probe microscopes produce high-resolution three-dimensional images. Because of their power as quantitative tools for three-dimensional surface measurement and analysis, the techniques are being used in materials science and engineering for the study of a variety of advanced materials and for investigations into numerous phenomena, including reaction chemistry, crystallinity, kinetics, equilibrium processes, tribology, and conductivity.     

Turbulent flow in an intake-manifold

Three-dimensional, turbulent fluid flow analysis with computational methods has emerged as a viable tool in the design process of engine components for passenger cars. If applied in the early stages of the component development such analysis can help reduce the product development time drastically, and may support the design engineer to evaluate several competing design aspects before product completion. However the grid generation for complex geometries still poses a difficult and time consuming taks which strongly influences the accuracy of the numerical solution. The present paper studies the numerical solution of the flow in an inlet-manifold of a five-cylinder engine with two intake-ports for each cylinder. A fast and reliable grid generation technique is discussed in detail. The finite volume based Navier-Stokes solver with schemes of first and second order accuracy for the convective terms is used. Numerical results at several mass flow rates and different boundary conditions at the intake ports are compared with measurements. Finally, the computational results are discussed with respect to their applicability to support the design process of an inlet-manifold.     

A basis for the design of a multiattribute heuristic for single resource project scheduling

Two important characteristics of a project network are the network's topology and the amount of resources available. Most published project scheduling procedures take one or both of these two characteristics into account. Project scheduling procedures that are robust over variations of network characteristics are desirable. The degree of robustness is generally gauged by one or more measures of performance.

The objective of this paper is to compare a set of priority rules that are useful for a single resource project scheduling problem. The set of networks suggested by Patterson (1973) is used along with the set of performance measures proposed by Khattab and Choobineh 1991. The result of this comparison allows one to design a multiattribute heuristic for a single resource project scheduling problem.     

On the role of water vapor and oxygen on the fatigue crack propagation behavior at 550 °C of a Ti6242 alloy

The influence of gaseous atmosphere on the fatigue crack propagation behavior of a Ti6242 alloy is studied at 550 °C. The aim of this paper is to obtain reference data in controlled environments at the atmospheric pressure in view of a further evaluation of the corrosion-fatigue resistance of this alloy in super-critical water medium for a new process for hydrothermal treatment of organic effluents. Tests were conducted in ambient air, high vacuum, and humidified gaseous atmospheres (80 pct RH) including pure argon, 80 pct argon + 20 pct oxygen, and 80 pct nitrogen + 20 pct oxygen. The loading specimen was triangular at a frequency of 0.05 Hz. Some additional tests were performed at frequencies ranging from 0.001 to 35 Hz. The crack propagation rate is shown to be highly sensitive to the environment, with a predominant detrimental influence of water vapor. A crack growth model is proposed accounting for the influence of partial pressures of water vapor, oxygen, test, and frequency.