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A typical trade-off relationship exists between strength and elongation in face-centered cubic metals. Studies have recently been conducted to enhance strength without ductility reduction through surface-treatment-based ultrasonic nanocrystalline surface modification (UNSM), which creates a gradient microstructure in which grains become smaller from the inside to the surface. The transformation-induced plasticity effect in Fe-Mn alloys results in excellent strength and ductility due to their high work-hardening rate. This rate is achieved through strain-induced martensitic transformation when an alloy is plastically deformed. In this study, Fe-6%Mn powders with different sizes were prepared by high-energy ball milling and sintered through spark plasma sintering to produce Fe-6%Mn samples. A gradient microstructure was obtained by stacking the different-sized powders to achieve similar effects as those derived from UNSM. A compressive test was performed to investigate the mechanical properties, including the yielding behavior. The deformed microstructure was observed through electron backscatter diffraction to determine the effects of gradient plastic deformation.
Lightweight steel is a crucial material that is being actively studied because of increased carbon emissions, tightening regulations regarding fuel efficiency, and the emergence of UAM, all of which have been recently labeled as global issues. Hence, new strategies concerning the thickness and size reduction of steel are required. In this study, we manufacture lightweight steel of the Fe-Mn-Al-C system, which has been recently studied using the DED process. By using 2.8 wt.% low-Mn lightweight steel, we attempt to solve the challenge of joining steel parts with a large amount of Mn. Among the various process variables, the laser scan power is set at 600 and 800W, and the laser scan speed is fixed at 16.67 mm/s before the experiments. Several pores and cracks are observed under both conditions, and negligibly small pores of approximately 0.5 μm are observed.
In this study, additive manufacturing of a functionally graded material (FGM) as an alternative to joining dissimilar metals is investigated using directed energy deposition (DED). FGM consists of five different layers, which are mixtures of austenitic stainless steel (type 316 L) and low-alloy steel (LAS, ferritic steel) at ratios of 100:0 (A layer), 75:25 (B layer), 50:50 (C layer), 25:75 (D layer), and 0:100 (E layer), respectively, in each deposition layer. The FGM samples are successfully fabricated without cracks or delamination using the DED method, and specimens are characterized using optical and scanning electron microscopy to monitor their microstructures. In layers C and D of the sample, the tensile strength is determined to be very high owing to the formation of ferrite and martensite structures. However, the elongation is high in layers A and B, which contain a large fraction of austenite.
In the powder bed fusion (PBF) process, a 3D shape is formed by the continuous stacking of very fine powder layers using computer-aided design (CAD) modeling data, following which laser irradiation can be used to fuse the layers forming the desired product. In this method, the main process parameters for manufacturing the desired 3D products are laser power, laser speed, powder form, powder size, laminated thickness, and laser diameter. Stainless steel (STS) 316L exhibits excellent strength at high temperatures, and is also corrosion resistant. Due to this, it is widely used in various additive manufacturing processes, and in the production of corrosion-resistant components with complicated shapes. In this study, rectangular specimens have been manufactured using STS 316L powder via the PBF process. Further, the effect of heat treatment at 800 °C on the microstructure and hardness has been investigated.
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This study investigates the effect of process stopping and restarting on the microstructure and local nanoindentation properties of 316L stainless steel manufactured via selective laser melting (SLM). We find that stopping the SLM process midway, exposing the substrate to air having an oxygen concentration of 22% or more for 12 h, and subsequently restarting the process, makes little difference to the density of the restarted area (~ 99.8%) as compared to the previously melted area of the substrate below. While the microstructure and pore distribution near the stop/restart area changes, this modified process does not induce the development of unusual features, such as an inhomogeneous microstructure or irregular pore distribution in the substrate. An analysis of the stiffness and hardness values of the nano-indented steel also reveals very little change at the joint of the stop/restart area. Further, we discuss the possible and effective follow-up actions of stopping and subsequently restarting the SLM process.
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Stainless steel, a type of steel used for high-temperature parts, may cause damage when exposed to high temperatures, requiring additional coatings. In particular, the Cr2O3 product layer is unstable at 1000°C and higher temperatures; therefore, it is necessary to improve the oxidation resistance. In this study, an aluminide (Fe2Al5 and FeAl3) coating layer was formed on the surface of STS 630 specimens through Al diffusion coatings from 500°C to 700°C for up to 25 h. Because the coating layers of Fe2Al5 and FeAl3 could not withstand temperatures above 1200°C, an Al2O3 coating layer is deposited on the surface through static oxidation treatment at 500°C for 10 h. To confirm the ablation resistance of the resulting coating layer, dynamic flame exposure tests were conducted at 1350°C for 5–15 min. Excellent oxidation resistance is observed in the coated base material beneath the aluminide layer. The conditions of the flame tests and coating are discussed in terms of microstructural variations.
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Oxide dispersion-strengthened (ODS) steel has excellent high-temperature properties, corrosion resistance, and oxidation resistance, and is expected to be applicable in various fields. Recently, various studies on mechanical alloying (MA) have been conducted for the dispersion of oxide particles in ODS steel with a high number density. In this study, ODS steel is manufactured by introducing a complex milling process in which planetary ball milling, cryogenic ball milling, and drum ball milling are sequentially performed, and the microstructure and high-temperature mechanical properties of the ODS steel are investigated. The microstructure observation revealed that the structure is stretched in the extrusion direction, even after the heat treatment. In addition, transmission electron microscopy (TEM) analysis confirmed the presence of oxide particles in the range of 5 to 10 nm. As a result of the room-temperature and high-temperature compression tests, the yield strengths were measured as 1430, 1388, 418, and 163 MPa at 25, 500, 700, and 900°C, respectively. Based on these results, the correlation between the microstructure and mechanical properties of ODS steel manufactured using the composite milling process is also discussed.
In this study, we investigate the effect of the duration of mechanical alloying on the microstructures and mechanical properties of ODS ferritic/martensitic steel. The Fe(bal.)-10Cr-1Mo pre-alloyed powder and Y2O3 powder are mechanically alloyed for the different mechanical alloying duration (0 to 40 h) and then constantly fabricated using a uniaxial hot pressing process. Upon increasing the mechanical alloying time, the average powder diameter and crystallite size increased dramatically. In the initial stages within 5 h of mechanical alloying, inhomogeneous grain morphology is observed along with coarsened carbide and oxide distributions; thus, precipitate phases are temporarily observed between the two powders because of insufficient collision energy to get fragmented. After 40 h of the MA process, however, fine martensitic grains and uniformly distributed oxide particles are observed. This led to a favorable tensile strength and elongation at room temperature and 650°C.
In this study, the high-temperature oxidation properties of austenitic 316L stainless steel manufactured by laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) is investigated and compared with conventional 316L manufactured by hot rolling (HR). The initial microstructure of LPBF-SS316L exhibits a molten pool ~100 μm in size and grains grown along the building direction. Isotropic grains (~35 μm) are detected in the HR-SS316L. In high-temperature oxidation tests performed at 700°C and 900°C, LPBF-SS316L demonstrates slightly superior high-temperature oxidation resistance compared to HR-SS316L. After the initial oxidation at 700°C, shown as an increase in weight, almost no further oxidation is observed for both materials. At 900°C, the oxidation weight displays a parabolic trend and both materials exhibit similar behavior. However, at 1100°C, LPBF-SS316L oxidizes in a parabolic manner, but HR-SS316L shows a breakaway oxidation behavior. The oxide layers of LPBF-SS316L and HR-SS316L are mainly composed of Cr2O3, Febased oxides, and spinel phases. In LPBF-SS316L, a uniform Cr depletion region is observed, whereas a Cr depletion region appears at the grain boundary in HR-SS316L. It is evident from the results that the microstructure and the hightemperature oxidation characteristics and behavior are related.
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In this study, the effects of Co content on the microstructure and Charpy impact properties of Fe-Cr-W ferritic/martensitic oxide dispersion strengthened (F/M ODS) steels are investigated. F/M ODS steels with 0–5 wt% Co are fabricated by mechanical alloying, followed by hot isostatic pressing, hot-rolling, and normalizing/tempering heat treatment. All the steels commonly exhibit two-phase microstructures consisting of ferrite and tempered martensite. The volume fraction of ferrite increases with the increase in the Co content, since the Co element considerably lowers the hardenability of the F/M ODS steel. Despite the lowest volume fraction of tempered martensite, the F/M ODS steel with 5 wt% Co shows the highest micro-Vickers hardness, owing to the solid solution-hardening effect of the alloyed Co. The high hardness of the steel improves the resistance to fracture initiation, thereby resulting in the enhanced fracture initiation energy in a Charpy impact test at – 40°C. Furthermore, the addition of Co suppresses the formation of coarse oxide inclusions in the F/M ODS steel, while simultaneously providing a high resistance to fracture propagation. Owing to these combined effects of Co, the Charpy impact energy of the F/M ODS steel increases gradually with the increase in the Co content.
The automotive industry has focused on the development of metallic materials with high specific strength, which can meet both fuel economy and safety goals. Here, a new class of ultrafine-grained high-Mn steels containing nano-scale oxides is developed using powder metallurgy. First, high-energy mechanical milling is performed to dissolve alloying elements in Fe and reduce the grain size to the nanometer regime. Second, the ball-milled powder is consolidated using spark plasma sintering. During spark plasma sintering, nanoscale manganese oxides are generated in Fe-15Mn steels, while other nanoscale oxides (e.g., aluminum, silicon, titanium) are produced in Fe-15Mn-3Al-3Si and Fe-15Mn-3Ti steels. Finally, the phases and resulting hardness of a variety of high-Mn steels are compared. As a result, the sintered pallets exhibit superior hardness when elements with higher oxygen affinity are added; these elements attract oxygen from Mn and form nanoscale oxides that can greatly improve the strength of high-Mn steels.
Phosphorus is an element that plays many important roles in powder metallurgy as an alloy element. The purpose of this study is to investigate the influence of phosphorus addition on the microstructures and mechanical properties of sintered low-alloy steel. The sintered low-alloy steels Fe-0.6%C-3.89%Ni-1.95%Cu-1.40%Mo-xP (x=0, 0.05, 0.10, 0.15, 0.20%) were manufactured by compacting at 700 MPa, sintering in H2-N2 at 1260 °C, rapid cooling, and low-temperature tempering in Ar at 160 °C. The microstructure, pore, density, hardness, and transverse rupture strength (TRS) of the sintered low-alloy steels were evaluated. The hardness increased as the phosphorus content increased, whereas the density and TRS showed maximum values when the content of P was 0.05%. Based on microstructure observation, the phase of the microstructure changed from bainite to martensite as the content of phosphorus is increased. Hence, the most appropriate addition of phosphorus in this study was 0.05%.
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Selective laser melting (SLM), a type of additive manufacturing (AM) technology, leads a global manufacturing trend by enabling the design of geometrically complex products with topology optimization for optimized performance. Using this method, three-dimensional (3D) computer-aided design (CAD) data components can be built up directly in a layer-by-layer fashion using a high-energy laser beam for the selective melting and rapid solidification of thin layers of metallic powders. Although there are considerable expectations that this novel process will overcome many traditional manufacturing process limits, some issues still exist in applying the SLM process to diverse metallic materials, particularly regarding the formation of porosity. This is a major processing-induced phenomenon, and frequently observed in almost all SLM-processed metallic components. In this study, we investigate the mechanical anisotropy of SLM-produced 316L stainless steel based on microstructural factors and highly-oriented porosity. Tensile tests are performed to investigate the microstructure and porosity effects on mechanical anisotropy in terms of both strength and ductility.
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In this study, two types of SKD61 tool-steel samples are built by a selective laser melting (SLM) process using the different laser scan speeds. The characteristics of two kinds of SKD61 tool-steel powders used in the SLM process are evaluated. Commercial SKD61 tool-steel power has a flowability of 16.68 sec/50 g and its Hausner ratio is calculated to be 1.25 by apparent and tapped density. Also, the fabricated SKD61 tool steel powder fabricated by a gas atomization process has a flowability of 21.3 sec/50 g and its Hausner ratio is calculated to be 1.18. Therefore, we confirmed that the two powders used in this study have excellent flowability. Samples are fabricated to measure mechanical properties. The highest densities of the SKD61 tool-steel samples, fabricated under the same conditions, are 7.734 g/cm3 (using commercial SKD61 powder) and 7.652 g/cm3 (using fabricated SKD61 powder), measured with Archimedes method. Hardness is measured by Rockwell hardness testing equipment 5 times and the highest hardnesses of the samples are 54.56 HRC (commercial powder) and 52.62 HRC (fabricated powder). Also, the measured tensile strengths are approximately 1,721 MPa (commercial SKD61 powder) and 1,552 MPa (fabricated SKD61 powder), respectively.
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In order to expand the application of oxide dispersion-strengthened (ODS) steel, a composite material is manufactured by adding mechanically alloyed ODS steel powder to conventional steel and investigated in terms of microstructure and wear properties. For comparison, a commercial automobile part material is also tested. Initial microstructural observations confirm that the composite material with added ODS steel contains i) a pearlitic Fe matrix area and ii) an area with Cr-based carbides and ODS steel particles in the form of a Fe-Fe3C structure. In the commercial material, various hard Co-, Fe-Mo-, and Cr-based particles are present in a pearlitic Fe matrix. Wear testing using the VSR engine simulation wear test confirms that the seatface widths of the composite material with added ODS steel and the commercial material are increased by 24% and 47%, respectively, with wear depths of 0.05 mm and 0.1 mm, respectively. The ODS steel-added composite material shows better wear resistance. Post-wear-testing surface and cross-sectional observations show that particles in the commercial material easily fall off, while the ODS steel-added material has an even, smooth wear surface.
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In the present work, we use multiwall carbon nanotubes (MWCNT) as the starting material for the fabrication of sintered carbon steel. A comparison is made with conventionally sintered carbon steel, where graphite is used as the starting material. Milling is performed using a horizontal mill sintered in a vacuum furnace. We analyze the grain size, number of pores, X-ray diffraction patterns, and microstructure. Changes in the physical properties are determined by using the Archimedes method and Vickers hardness measurements. The result shows that the use of MWCNTs instead of graphite significantly reduces the size and volume of the pores as well as the grain size after sintering. The addition of Y2O3.to the Fe-MWCNT samples further inhibits the growth of grains.
This study investigates the oxidation properties of Fe-14Cr ferritic oxide-dispersion-strengthened (ODS) steel at various high temperatures (900, 1000, and 1100°C for 24 h). The initial microstructure shows that no clear structural change occurs even under high-temperature heat treatment, and the average measured grain size is 0.4 and 1.1 μm for the as-fabricated and heat-treated specimens, respectively. Y–Ti–O nanoclusters 10–50 nm in size are observed. High-temperature oxidation results show that the weight increases by 0.27 and 0.29 mg/cm2 for the asfabricated and heat-treated (900°C) specimens, and by 0.47 and 0.50 mg/cm2 for the as-fabricated and heat-treated (1000°C) specimens, respectively. Further, after 24 h oxidation tests, the weight increases by 56.50 and 100.60 mg/cm2 for the as-fabricated and heat-treated (1100°C) specimens, respectively; the latter increase is approximately 100 times higher than that at 1000°C. Observation of the surface after the oxidation test shows that Cr2O3 is the main oxide on a specimen tested at 1000°C, whereas Fe2O3 and Fe3O4 phases also form on a specimen tested at 1100°C, where the weight increases rapidly. The high-temperature oxidation behavior of Fe-14Cr ODS steel is confirmed to be dominated by changes in the Cr2O3 layer and generation of Fe-based oxides through evaporation.
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Harmonic structure materials are materials with a core–shell structure having a shell with a small grain size and a core with a relatively large grain size. They are in the spotlight because their mechanical properties reportedly feature strength similar to that of a sintered powder with a fine grain size and elongation similar to that of a sintered powder with a coarse grain size at the same time. In this study, the tensile properties, microstructure, and stretchflangeability of harmonic structure SUS304L made using powder metallurgy are investigated to check its suitability for automotive applications. The harmonic powders are made by mechanical milling and sintered using a spark plasma sintering method at 1173 K and a pressure of 50 MPa in a cylindrical die. The sintered powders of SUS304L having harmonic structure (harmonic SUS304L) exhibit excellent tensile properties compared with sintered powders of SUS304L having homogeneous microstructure. In addition, the harmonic SUS304L has excellent stretch-flangeability compared with commercial advanced high-strength steels (AHSSs) at a similar strength grade. Thus, the harmonic SUS304L is more suitable for automotive applications than conventional AHSSs because it exhibits both excellent tensile properties and stretch-flangeability.
A cold-work tool steel powder is used to fabricate 3-dimensional objects by selective laser melting using a high-pressure gas atomization process. The spherical powder particles form continuous carbide networks among the austenite matrix and its decomposition products. The carbides comprise Nb-rich MC and Mo-rich M2C. In the SLM process, the process parameters such as the laser power (90 W), layer thickness (25 μm), and hatch spacing (80 μm) are kept fixed, while the scan speed is changed from 50 mm/s to 4000 mm/s. At a low scan speed of 50 mm/s, spherical cavities develop due to over melting, while they are substantially reduced on increasing the speed to 2000 mm/s. The carbide network spacing decreases with increasing speed. At an excessively high speed of 4000 mm/s, long and irregularly shaped cavities are developed due to incomplete melting. The influence of the scan pattern is examined, for which 1 × 1 mm2 blocks constituting a processing layer are irradiated in a random sequence. This island-type pattern exhibits the same effect as that of a low scan speed. Post processing of an object using hot isostatic pressing leads to a great reduction in the porosity but causes coarsening of the microstructure.
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In this study, H13 tool steel sculptures are built by a metal 3D printing process at various laser scan speeds. The properties of commercial H13 tool steel powders are confirmed for the metal 3D printing process used: powder bed fusion (PBF), which is a selective laser melting (SLM) process. Commercial H13 powder has an excellent flowability of 16.68 s/50 g with a Hausner ratio of 1.25 and a density of 7.68 g/cm3. The sculptures are built with dimensions of 10 × 10 × 10 mm3 in size using commercial H13 tool steel powder. The density measured by the Archimedes method is 7.64 g/cm3, similar to the powder density of 7.68 g/cm3. The hardness is measured by Rockwell hardness equipment 5 times to obtain a mean value of 54.28 HRC. The optimum process conditions in order to build the sculptures are a laser power of 90 W, a layer thickness of 25 μm, an overlap of 30%, and a laser scan speed of 200 mm/s.
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In order to improve the high-temperature oxidation stability, sintered 434L stainless steel is studied, focusing on the effect of the addition of metallic oxides to form stable oxide films on the inner particle surface. The green compacts of Fecralloy powder or amorphous silica are added on STS434L and oxidized at 950°C up to 210 h. The weight change ratio of 434L with amorphous silica is higher than that of 434L mixed with Fecralloy, and the weight increase follows a parabolic law, which implies that the oxide film grows according to oxide diffusion through the densely formed oxide film. In the case of 434L mixed with Fecralloy, the elements in the matrix diffuse through the grain boundaries and form Al2O3 and Fe-Cr oxides. Stable high temperature corrosion resistance and electrical resistivity are obtained for STS434L mixed with Fecralloy.
In this study, Fe-Cu-Ni-Mo-C low alloy steel powder is consolidated by spark plasma sintering (SPS) process. The internal structure and the surface fracture behavior are studied using field-emission scanning electron microscopy and optical microscopy techniques. The bulk samples are polished and etched in order to observe the internal structure. The sample sintered at 900°C with holding time of 10 minutes achieves nearly full density of 98.9% while the density of the as-received conventionally sintered product is 90.3%. The fracture microstructures indicate that the sample prepared at 900°C by the SPS process is hard to break out because of the presence of both grain boundaries and internal particle fractures. Moreover, the lamellar pearlite structure is also observed in this sample. The samples sintered at 1000 and 1100°C exhibit a large number of tiny particles and pores due to the melting of Cu and aggregation of the alloy elements during the SPS process. The highest hardness value of 296.52 HV is observed for the sample sintered at 900°C with holding time of 10 minutes.
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As wrought stainless steel, sintered stainless steel (STS) has excellent high-temperature anti-corrosion even at high temperature of 800ºC and exhibit corrosion resistance in air. The oxidation behavior and oxidation mechanism of the sintered 316L stainless was reported at the high temperature in our previous study. In this study, the effects of additives on high-temperature corrosion resistances were investigated above 800ºC at the various oxides (SiO2, Al2O3, MgO and Y2O3) added STS respectively as an oxidation inhibitor. The morphology of the oxide layers were observed by SEM and the oxides phase and composition were confirmed by XRD and EDX. As a result, the weight of STS 316L sintered body increased sharply at 1000oC and the relative density of specimen decreased as metallic oxide addition increased. Compared with STS 316L sintered parts, weight change ratio corresponding to different oxidation time at 900oC and 1000oC, decreased gradually with the addition of metallic oxide. The best corrosion resistance properties of STS could be improved in case of using Y2O3. The oxidation rate was diminished dramatically by suppression the peeling on oxide layers at Y2O3 added sintered stainless steel.
As well-known wrought stainless steel, sintered stainless steel (STS) has excellent high-temperature anticorrosion even at high temperature of 800°C, and exhibits good corrosion resistance in air. However, when temperature increases above 900°C, the corrosion resistance of STS begins to deteriorate and dramatically decreases. In this study, the effects of phase and composition of STS on high-temperature corrosion resistances are investigated for STS 316L, STS 304 and STS 434L above 800°C. The morphology of the oxide layers are observed. The oxides phase and composition are identified using X-ray diffractometer and energy dispersive spectroscopy. The results demonstrate that the best corrosion resistance of STS could be improved to that of 434L. The poor corrosion resistance of the austenitic stainless steels is due to the fact that NiFe2O4 oxides forming poor adhesion between the matrix and oxide film increase the oxidation susceptibility of the material at high temperature.
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15Cr-1Mo base oxide dispersion strengthened (ODS) steel which is considered to be as a promising candidate for high- temperature components in nuclear fusion and fission systems because of its excellent high temperature strength, corrosion and radiation resistance was fabricated by using mechanical alloying, hot isostatic pressing and hot rolling. Torsion tests were performed at room temperature, leading to two different shear strain routes in the forward and reverse directions. In this study, microstructure evolution of the ODS steel during simple shearing was investigated. Fine grained microstructure and a cell structure of dislocation with low angle boundaries were characterized with shear strain in the shear deformed region by electron backscattered diffraction (EBSD). Grain refinement with shear strain resulted in an increase in hardness. After the forward-reverse torsion, the hardness value was measured to be higher than that of the forward torsion only with an identical shear strain amount, suggesting that new dislocation cell structures inside the grain were generated, thus resulting in a larger strengthening of the steel.
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The 304 stainless steel powders were prepared by high energy ball milling and subsequently sintered by spark plasma sintering, and the microstructural characteristics and micro-hardness were investigated. The initial size of the irregular shaped 304 stainless steel powders was approximately 42 μm. After high energy ball milling at 800 rpm for 5h, the powders became spherical with a size of approximately 2 μm, and without formation of reaction compounds. From TEM analysis, it was confirmed that the as-milled powders consisted of the aggregates of the nano-sized particles. As the sintering temperature increased from 1073K to 1573K, the relative density and micro-hardness of sintered sample increased. The sample sintered at 1573K showed the highest relative density of approximately 95% and a micro-hardness of 550 Hv.
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