Formation of Ultrafine‐Grained Microstructure of Ti–6Al–4V Alloy by Hot Deformation of α′ Martensite Starting Microstructure

We have presented a formation of ultrafine‐grained microstructure (d_α ≈ 0.2 µm) of industrial Ti–6Al–4V alloy produced by the hot compression of a sample with the acicular α′ martensite starting microstructure. The hot‐deformation behavior was different from the case of the conventional (α + β) starting microstructure, that is, the phase transformation of α′/(α + β) during hot working enhanced the microstructural conversion, especially under the conditions of a low temperature and a high‐strain rate.     

An analysis of bearingless AC motors

Several types of AC bearingless motors are proposed. These bearingless motors have conventional four-pole stator windings and additional two-pole windings, whose currents produce radial forces acting on the rotor. General expressions of the machine inductances and radial forces are derived for the cylindrical rotor and salient-pole motors. No-load characteristics of laboratory squirrel-cage induction and reluctance-type synchronous bearingless motors are provided. The test motors were successfully driven by the control circuits     

Microstructures and mechanical responses of powder metallurgy non-combustive magnesium extruded alloy by rapid solidification process in mass production

Spinning Water Atomization Process (SWAP), which was one of the rapid solidification processes, promised to produce coarse non-combustible magnesium alloy powder with 1–4 mm length, having fine α-Mg grains and Al₂Ca intermetallic compounds. It had economical and safe benefits in producing coarse Mg alloy powders with very fine microstructures in the mass production process due to its extreme high solidification rate compared to the conventional atomization process. AMX602 (Mg–6%Al–0.5%Mn–2%Ca) powders were compacted at room temperature. Their green compacts with a relative density of about 85% were heated at 573–673 K for 300 s in Ar gas atmosphere, and immediately consolidated by hot extrusion. Microstructure observation and evaluation of mechanical properties of the extruded AMX602 alloys were carried out. The uniform and fine microstructures with grains less than 0.45–0.8 μm via dynamic recrystallization during hot extrusion were observed, and were much small compared to the extruded AMX602 alloy fabricated by using cast ingot. The extremely fine intermetallic compounds 200–500 nm diameter were uniformly distributed in the matrix of powder metallurgy (P/M) extruded alloys. These microstructures caused excellent mechanical properties of the wrought alloys. For example, in the case of AMX602 alloys extruded at 573 K, the tensile strength (TS) of 447 MPa, yield stress (YS) of 425 MPa and 9.6% elongation were obtained.     

Effect of surface roughness on elastohydrodynamic traction: Part 1

The effect of surface roughness on traction performance was experimentally studied using a two‐roller tester. The nature of the contact was investigated using electrical resistance and electrical capacitance methods. Increased shear stress was observed in the viscous region, which could be attributed to a higher average shear rate and to greater viscosity under EHD contact conditions due to pressure fluctuations caused by the surface texture.     

Effects of total gas flow rate and sputtering power on the critical condition for target mode transition in Al-O2 reactive sputtering

Reactive sputtering is one of the most commonly used techniques for the fabrication of compound thin films, and the critical condition for target mode transition from metal mode to oxide mode is very important. We investigated the effects of total gas flow rate and sputtering power on the critical condition in Al-O₂ reactive sputtering. It was found that the ratio of the number of sputtered Al atoms (N_Al) to the number of supplied O atoms (N_O) at the critical condition was almost constant, and the ratio of N_Al to N_O was close to the stoichiometric ratio of Al₂O₃ (2 to 3). It is thought that the introduced oxygen is gettered by Al atoms almost completely and the target remains in the metal mode below the critical condition. By increasing the amount of supplied O atoms above the stoichiometric ratio of Al₂O₃, the oxygen supply overcomes the gettering effect. Then, oxygen concentration in the plasma increases abruptly and the target mode changes from metal mode to oxide mode.     

The Uncertainty in SCHF‐DT Thermal Conductivity Measurements of Lotus‐Type Porous Copper

Lotus‐type porous metals with many straight pores are attractive for use as heat‐sinks because a large heat‐transfer capacity can be obtained, due to the small diameter of the pores. In order to use lotus‐type porous copper effectively as a heat sink, it is important to know the effective thermal conductivity considering the effect of pores on heat conduction in the material. Since these metals have anisotropic pores, a steady‐state comparative longitudinal heat‐flow method for measuring thermal conductivity, referring to an ASTM standard, is better than other methods. So far, the effective thermal conductivity of lotus‐type porous copper has been measured by using specimens of different thickness (the SCHF‐DT method). In this paper, the uncertainty in the effective thermal conductivity of a specimen measured using this method was evaluated by comparison between numerical analysis and current experimental data. The following conclusions were drawn: 1) The uncertainty showed good agreement with the uncertainty analysis; 2) The contribution of the thermal grease thickness was large, based on a combined standard uncertainty analysis; and, 3) The effective thermal conductivity perpendicular to the pores of lotus copper can be measured within 10% uncertainty by this method.     

Cavitation resistance of powder metallurgy aluminum matrix composite with AlN dispersoids

The cavitation erosion resistance of P/M aluminum alloy sintered composite with AlN dispersoids, prepared via the in situ synthesis and the conventional premixing process, was evaluated by using a magnetostrictive-vibration type equipment. In situ synthesized AlN particles were effective for the improvement of the erosion resistance of the composite because of their good bonding with the aluminum matrix. The additive AlN by the premixing process were easily detached from the specimen surface due to the insufficient coherence with the matrix, and caused the poor resistance. The cavitation resistance also depended on the porosity of the sintered composite. The continuously opened pores accelerated the wear phenomena by the cavitation due to the high pressure attack on the primary particle boundaries of sintered materials in the collapse of the bubbles.