Effect of minor elements on hot cracking susceptibility of austenitic stainless steel welds

This research evaluates the effects of Si, N and REM on the hot cracking behavior of specially designed austenitic stainless steels. Varestraint hot cracking tests and microstructural examination revealed that solidification cracking of 304 can be minimized by a suitable addition of Si, N and control of the solidification mode. Further, the addition of N to “fully” austenitic 316 weld metal decreased solidification cracking susceptibility. REM additions were also effective in reducing solidification and weld metal HAZ liquation cracking in 347, but was ineffective for reduction in base metal HAZ liquation cracking.     

Hole flanging with cold extrusion on sheet metals by FE simulation

Flange height and lip thickness are generally restricted by the formability of sheet metals in the conventional hole flanging operation. In the current work, cold extrusion was applied and a special forming die set was designed with a stripper subjected to counter-pressure with an aim to obtain a more substantial flange. FEM software DEFORM was utilized to simulate this flange extrusion process with two forming conditions: forming with a fixed die cavity and forming with the stripper subjected to counter-pressure. The results showed the cup preform tended to buckle on its bottom with insufficient counter-pressure. The cup preform would start extruding a flange when critical counter-pressure was reached. The magnitude of the critical counter-pressure increased in flange extrusion of smaller inner diameters. The corresponding overall forming load was greatly reduced as compared to flange extrusion with a fixed die cavity.     

Effect of rinsing and drying on silicon surface cleaning for epitaxial growth

We investigated the effect of the rinsing and drying technique on the oxygen and carbon concentration on a silicon surface. Rinsing in deionized water increased the interfacial oxygen concentration and helped generate defects. Blow-drying was more efficient than spin-drying in reducing interfacial oxygen concentration. Exposure to the atmosphere was detrimental to obtaining high crystallinity in the epitaxial layer. We evaluated the effectiveness of the cleaning process by observing the grown epilayer and the epilayer/substrate interface.     

Exploring the reactivity and nanoscale morphology of de-alloyed layers

De-alloying of a 70Cu-30Pt alloy has been studied with a view to testing the thermodynamic prediction that a novel kind of underpotential or sub-potential electrodeposition may be possible in such highly curved nanoporous solids. After de-alloying in H₂SO₄ solution containing CuSO₄, successive cathodic processes of PtO monolayer reduction, UPD of Cu, and a Cu plating process were identified, all occurring at potentials above the Cu equilibrium potential. The maximum amount of charge in the third plating process was determined to be about three monolayers, averaged over the whole porous surface. This seems to rule out the possibility that this process is some kind of second UPD layer or other non-bulk form of Cu plating. A probable explanation is that small amounts of bulk Cu are plating into regions of high negative curvature within the de-alloyed material. However X-ray diffraction did not show any evidence of bulk Cu.     

Superplastic deformation and crystallization behavior of Cu54Ni6Zr22Ti18 metallic-glass sheet

Superplastic deformation and crystallization behavior of a Cu₅₄Ni₆Zr₂₂Ti₁₈ metallic glass were investigated. A maximum elongation of 650% was obtained at 733 K at 1 × 10⁻² s⁻¹ from the sheet fabricated by squeeze copper-mold casting method. At low strain rates, the strain-rate-sensitivity exponent value was close to 1, suggesting that Newtonian-like behavior governed the plastic flow. At a high strain rate around 10⁻² s⁻¹, a transition from Newtonian to non-Newtonian behavior took place with decrease in m value. Large strain hardening by crystallization occurred during the course of deformation. The strain hardening was found to be caused by crystallization according to the analyses of the relation of true stress vs. testing time, T-T-T diagram and DSC characteristics. The time periods up to the strain before strain hardening at 733 K for the Cu₅₄Ni₆Zr₂₂Ti₁₈ metallic glass were similar to that of the Zr₆₅Al₁₀Ni₁₀Cu₁₅ metallic glass at 696 K as 180–300 s (3–5 min). This coincidence could be explained by comparison of their T-T-T diagrams showing that the incubation times for crystallization of the Cu BMG at 733 K and for Zr BMG at 696 K are similar.     

Effect of low-cycle fatigue on the hot ductility of plain carbon steel

In a continuous casting steelmaking operation, the surface of a slab is under a condition that can be characterized as high-temperature, low-cycle fatigue in which the tensile and compressive stress is repeatedly developed. For this reason, for the evaluation of the hot ductility of a slab, considering the fatigue deformation is more feasible before a tensile or compressive test. In this study, the effects of low-cycle fatigue on the hot ductility of steels with a carbon content of 0.06–0.8 wt.% are investigated at various temperatures. For a carbon content of 0.06%, there were no significant differences between the RA values from a simple tensile test and those from a tensile test after fatigue deformation. The tendency of ductility deterioration with fatigue deformation is evident in 0.1 %C steel, and is due to the deformation-induced ferrite film that forms around the prior austenite grain. Conversely, high carbon steel containing 0.8 %C did not show a recovery of hot ductility in a low temperature region, and the specimen on which the tensile was measured after fatigue showed a higher hot ductility in the low temperature region, which is thought to result from the pearlite refinement effects. As the results obtained in this work showed noticeable differences in the hot ductility of carbon steel through the test conditions, it is suggested that for more accurate data, fatigue deformation be adopted in which the temperature range in an unbending operation is determined in the steelmaking factory.     

Densification and compressive strength ofin-situ processed Ti/TiB composites by powder metallurgy

In the present study, the densification of Ti/TiB composites, the growth behavior ofin-situ formed TiB reinforcement, the effects of processing variables — such as reactant powder (TiB₂, B₄C), sintering temperature and time — on the microstructures and the mechanical properties ofin-situ processed Ti/TiB composites have been investigated. Mixtures of TiB₂ or B₄C powder with pure titanium powder were compacted and presintered at 700°C for 1 hr followed by sintering at 900, 1000, 1100, 1200, and 1300°C, respectively, for 3hrs. Some specimens were sintered at 1000°C for various times in order to study the formation behavior of TiB reinforcementin-situ formed within the pure Ti matrix. TiB reinforcements were formed through different mechanisms, such as the formation of fine TiB and the formation of coarse TiB by Ostwald ripening or the coalescence of fine TiB. There was no crystallographic relationship between TiB reinforcement and the matrix. There were voids at the interface between the TiB reinforcement and the Ti matrix due to the preferential growth of coarse TiB without a particular crystallographic relationship with pure Ti matrix and the surface energy between the Ti matrix and TiB reinforcements. Therefore, the densification of Ti/TiB₂ compacts was hindered by the preferential growth of coarse TiB reinforcements. The mechanical properties ofin-situ processed composites were evaluated by measuring the compressive yield strength at ambient and high temperatures. The compressive yield strength of thein situ processed composites was higher than that of the Ti-6A1-4V alloy. It was also found that the compressive yield strength of the composite made from TiB₂ reactant powder was higher than that of the composite made from B₄C at the same volume fraction of reinforcement. A crack path examination suggested that the bonding nature of interface between matrix and reinforcement made from TiB₂ reactant powder was better than that made from B₄C.     

Process for dense 2D SiC fiber-SiC matrix composites

A new process using SiC fiber fabrics and SiC tapes to produce dense 2D SiC fiber-SiC (SiC/SiC) composites is demonstrated. The strategy for fabricating the SiC/SiC composites involves: (i) alternately stacking the SiC fiber fabrics and SiC tapes at room temperature, (ii) pyrolyzing of the stacked composites, and (iii) hot-pressing the pyrolyzed composites. By controlling the hot-pressing temperature, it is possible to obtain dense 2D SiC/SiC composites with relative densities of >98%. The 2D SiC/SiC composites show no degradation of the SiC fibers and a higher mechanical strength.     

Imprint characteristics of Pt/Pb(Zr,Ti)O3/Ir capacitors

The dynamic and static imprint characteristics of PZT thin film capacitors prepared by a two step reactive sputtering method were studied. The imprint is caused by an internal field generated by the trapping of electronic charges at interfacial layers that are injected, from the electrode. When unipolar pulse stressing is applied to the PZT capacitor, the cumulative time rather than the pulse cycles accounts more for the dynamic imprint characteristics. The amount of voltage shift in the polarization(P)-voltage(V) curve is reduced when the unipolar pulses are applied at elevated temperatures or a high amplitude pulse is applied. For static imprint stressing, the voltage shift increases with the temperature and is readily removed by application of bipolar pulses to the imprinted PZT capacitor at elevated temperatures. A method to estimate the lifetime limitation as a result of imprint failure in 1T/1C FRAMs is proposed.     

Fuzzy adaptive networks in machining process modeling: surface roughness prediction for turning operations

Due to the complexity of the machine tool structure and the cutting process, the dynamics of machining processes are still not completely understood. This is especially true due to the demand of high-speed machining to increase productivity. In order to model and control these complex processes, new approaches, which can represent complex phenomenon combined with learning ability, are needed. The combined neural–fuzzy approach appears to be ideally suited for this purpose. In this paper, the recently developed fuzzy adaptive network (FAN) is used to model surface roughness in turning operations. The FAN network has both the learning ability of neural network and linguistic representation of complex, not well-understood, vague phenomenon. Furthermore, it can continuously improve the initially obtained rough model based on the daily operating data. To illustrate this approach, a model representing the influences of machining parameters on surface roughness is established and then the model is verified by the use of the results of pilot experiments. Finally, a comparison with the results based on statistical regression is provided.