Temperature Dependent Work-hardening Behaviour in an Fe-Mn-Si-Cr-Ni Shape Memory Alloy

The work-hardening behaviour in an Fe-Mn-Si-Cr-Ni alloy has been investigated using tensile test at different temperatures and TEM observation. It was found that besides the intersection of εmartensite, the intersections of ε martensite with stacking fault and the cross-slip of dislocation which is difficult to occur in the alloy with low stacking fault energy are also important factors to the temperature dependent work-hardening behaviour.

Effect of minor Sc addition on microstructure and stress corrosion cracking behavior of medium strength Al–Zn–Mg alloy

Influence of Sc content on microstructure and stress corrosion cracking behavior of medium strength AI-Zn-Mg alloy have been investigated by optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, electron backscatter diffraction, transmission electron microscopy and slow strain rate test. The results indicate that the addition of Sc results in the formation of the quaternary coherent AI3（Sc, Zr, Ti） dispersoids during homogenization treatment, which will inhibit the dynamic recrystallization behavior. The number density ofAl3（Sc, Zr, Ti） particles increases with the increase of Sc content, and thus the recrystallization fraction of hot-extruded alloy is reduced and the peak strength in two-stage artificial aging sample is enhanced. At the same time, the wide of precipitation free zone is reduced, and the content of Zn and Mg in grain boundary particles and precipitation free zone is increased with the increase of Sc content. In peak-aged state, the 0.06 wt% Sc added alloy shows the better stress corrosion cracking resistance than the Sc-free alloy because of the reduction of recrystallization fraction and the interrupted distribution of grain boundary precipitates along grain boundary. However, the further addition of Sc to 0.11 wt% will result in the deterioration of stress corrosion cracking resistance due to the increase of electrochemical activity of grain boundary particles and precipitation free zone as well as hydrogen embrittlement.2017 Published by Elsevier Ltd on behalf of The editorial office of Journal of Materials Science ＆ Technology.

Role ofδ-ferrite in fatigue crack growth of AISI 316 austenitic stainless steel

FF sample(nearly free ofδ-ferrite)and CF sample(containing∼4%δ-ferrite)were prepared from the AISI 316 austenitic stainless steel plate to elucidate the role ofδ-ferrite in the fatigue crack growth under the solution treated and accelerated aged conditions.It is found that the fatigue crack growth resistance of the CF sample is higher than the FF sample under the solution treated condition.However,a significant deterioration of the fatigue crack growth resistance is observed in the CF sample while little variation is found in the FF sample after accelerated aging treatment at 750°C for 10 h.In the solution treated condition,deflected crack growth path is present when the main crack encounters theδ-ferrite in the CF sample due to the differences in the fatigue responses between austenite andδ-ferrite.The measured growth rate of the deflected crack is significantly slower than that of the flat crack of the same length.After the accelerated aging treatment,microcracks are produced at the M_(23)C_(6)/δinterface due to the strain incompatibility between M_(23)C_(6) and retainedδ-ferrite when the decomposedδ-ferrite is subject to plastic deformation in the crack tip plastic zone.The preexisting microcracks in the front of crack tip provide a viable path for crack propagation,resulting in the relatively flat crack path.

Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of Electron Beam Welded Alloy J75

Microstructure and mechanical properties of electron beam post-weld aging treatment （PWAT） conditions. The results welded alloy J75 were studied under as-welded and showed that high-quality welds were produced by electron beam welding. Under as-welded condition, a fine dendritic structure consisting of gamma dendrite matrix and Laves phase was observed in the welds. Better mechanical properties were obtained in the weld zone than that of base metal because of the fine size of the dendritic structure. After PWAT, a discontinuous distribution of γ＇ particles existed in the dendritic structure. The presence of a γ＇ depletion zone in the dendrite core resulted in a significant degradation of mechanical properties of the weld.

Retarding the precipitation of η phase in Fe-Ni based alloy through grain boundary engineering

It is important to inhibit the precipitation of η phases in precipitation strengthened Fe-Ni based alloys,as they will deteriorate not only the mechanical property but also the hydrogen resistance.The present investigation shows that grain boundary engineering(GBE) can retard the formation and growth of ηphase in J75 alloy.After GBE treatment with 5% cold rolling followed by annealing at 1000℃ for 1 h,the fraction of special boundaries(SBs) increases from 38.4% in conventional alloy to 77.2% and the fraction of special triple junctions increases from 10% to 74%.During 800℃ aging treatment,quite amount of cellular η phases adjacent to random grain boundary(RGB) will be found in conventional alloy,and only a few small η phases have been observed in GBE treatment alloy subjected to the same aging treatment for long time.The reason for GBE in inhibiting precipitation of η phase can be attributed to not only introducing high fraction of SBs but also breaking the connectivity of RGB networks.As nucleation and growth of η phases on SBs are difficult due to their lower Ti concentration and diffusion rate,and the disruption of RGB networks reduces supply of Ti atoms to the η phases significantly,which impedes their growth at RGB.

Overview of hydrogen-resistant alloys for high-pressure hydrogen environment:on the hydrogen energy structural materials

With the progressive expansion of hydrogen fuel demand,hydrogen pipelines,hydrogen storage cylinders and hydrogen refuelling stations(HRSs)are the primary components of hydrogen energy systems that face high-pressure hydrogen environments.Hydrogen embrittlement(HE)is a typical phenomenon in metallic materials,particularly in the high-pressure hydrogen environment,that causes loss of ductility and potentially catastrophic failure.HE is associated with materials,the service environment and stress.The primary mechanisms for explaining the HE of materials are hydrogen-enhanced decohesion,hydrogen-induced phase transformation,hydrogen-enhanced local plasticity,adsorption-induced dislocation emission and hydrogen-enhanced strain-induced vacancy.To reduce the risk of HE for metallic structural materials used in hydrogen energy systems,it is crucial to reasonably select hydrogen-resistant materials for high-pressure hydrogen environments.This paper summarizes HE phenomena,mechanisms and current problems for the metallic structural materials of hydrogen energy systems.A research perspective is also proposed,mainly focusing on metal structural materials for hydrogen pipelines,hydrogen storage cylinders and hydrogen compressors in HRSs from an application perspective.

Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of a CuCrZr Welding Joint After Continuous Extrusion

The effect of continuous extrusion forming(CEF) process on the microstructure and mechanical properties of a CuCrZr welding joint was investigated. The experimental results showed that after the CEF process the grains were refined to submicron-scale through dynamic recrystallization,which improved the mechanical properties of the welding joint as well as the base material. Meanwhile,the micron-scale precipitates aggregated at the grain boundaries in the welding process were broken down to smaller ones and recrystallized grains of several micrometers formed around the precipitates after CEF process,which could alleviate the negative effect induced by the micron-scale precipitates during plastic deforming process. Finer grains and smaller micronscale precipitates made contributions to improve the properties of a CuCrZr alloy with a welding joint.

Effect of Cu content on microstructure and properties of Fe-16Cr-2.5Mo damping alloy

Five Fe-16 Cr-2.5 Mo damping alloys with different Cu contents（0%,0.25%,0.5%,1.0% and 2.0%） were prepared.The microstructure was observed by scanning transmission electron microscopy（STEM） and the damping behavior was measured by using a dynamic mechanical analyzer（DMA）.The results show that the grain size of experimental alloy with（0.25–1.0%） Cu was refined compared with the 0 Cu alloy.The Cu element is fully dissolved in the matrix and there are no Cu precipitates and carbides observed.Although the internal stress increases because of Cu addition,the damping capacity of the 0.5 Cu and1.0 Cu alloys has been significantly improved.The reason of damping improvement is that the magnetic domain structure is strongly modified.Meanwhile,the strength was improved gradually due to the Cu solid solution strengthening and grain refining.In the 2.0 Cu alloy,lots of Cu-riched particles appeared in the matrix.These Cu precipitates with 10–15 nm in size are spherical and homogeneously distributed,which strongly induce strength improvement through precipitation strengthening.On the contrary,the elongation and impact energy of the 2.0 Cu alloy decrease sharply.In addition,lots of Cu precipitates will significantly decrease the damping capacity by hindering the mobility of domain walls.

Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of 06Cr13Ni4Mo Steel Treated by Quenching–Tempering–Partitioning Process

A heat treatment process, quenching-tempering-partitioning （Q-T-P）, has been applied to a low carbon martensitic stainless steel 06Crl3Ni4Mo. By using this process, ultrafine reversed austenite can be obtained at room temperature. The microstructures of the reversed austenite and the martensite matrix were characterized by transmission electron microscopy （TEM） and energy dispersive spectroscopy （EDS） in detail. The results show that the ultrafine reversed austenite is enriched in Ni resulting in the austenite stability at room temperature. Two new types of nano-scale carbide precipitates are found in the martensite matrix. Detailed analysis suggests that the two nano-scale precipitates can be identified as ω phase and λ phase carbides, respectively. The orientation relationship between the ω phase and matrix is [011]α [/[2110]ω and （211）α//（0110）ω, while that between the X phase precipitate and matrix is [011]α][[0001]λ and （200）α/（1210）λ. For the present steel, the ultrafine reversed austenite and carbide precipitates obtained by Q-T-P treatment provide a good combination of high strength and toughness.

Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of Simulated Heat-affected Zones of EP-823 Steel for ADS/LFR

EP-823 steel is one of the candidate materials for accelerator-driven systems/lead-cooled fast reactors （ADS/LFR）. Its weldability was investigated by mechanical property tests and microstructure analysis on the enlarged heat-affected zones （HAZs） made by numerical and physical simulation. The finite element numerical simulation could simulate the welding thermal cycle of the characteristic regions in HAZs with extremely high accuracy, The physical simulation performed on a Gleeble simulator could enlarge the characteristic regions to easily investigate the relationship between the microstructure evolution and the mechanical properties of the HAZs. The results showed that the simulated partially normalized zone comprising tempered martensite, newly formed martensite and more tiny carbides has the highest impact energy. The fully normalized zone exhibits the highest hardness because of the quenched martensite and large carbides. The ductile property of the overheated zone is poor for the residual delta- ferrite phases and the quenched martensite.

Effect of Nanoscale Cu-Riched Clusters on Strength and Impact Toughness in a Tempered Cu-Bearing HSLA Steel

The effect of Cu-riched clusters on strength and impact toughness in a tempered Cu-bearing high-strength low-alloy(HSLA)steel is investigated. With increasing the tempering temperature, it is found that the yield strength increases firstly, achieving the maximum value(~ 1053 MPa) at the tempering temperature of 450 ℃, and then decreases significantly with the rise of tempering temperature. The tempering temperature-dependent yield strength is closely related to the precipitation of Cu-riched clusters. When tempering at 450 ℃, the peak strength will be reached as the nanoscale Cu-riched clusters with small size and high number density will cause a strong precipitation strengthening(~ 492 MPa) due to the dislocation shearing mechanism. However, the Cu-riched clusters will coarsen with further increasing tempering temperature, resulting in obvious decrement of yield strength owing to the dislocation bypassing mechanism. Compared with the yield strength,the variation in impact energy displays an inverse tendency and the impact energy is only 7 J for the sample tempered at 450 ℃. The fracture mode can be well explained by the competition between the cleavage fracture strength( σ F) and “yield strength”( σ Y). Although transgranular cleavage fracture can be found in samples tempered at 450 and 550 °C, the crack propagation along the lath boundaries is prevented in the sample tempered at 550 ℃. The reason is that the number density of Cu-riched clusters at lath boundaries decreases and the segregation of Mo element at the lath boundaries is induced,which will increase the bonding energy.

Hydrogen-induced Modification in the Deformation and Fracture of a Precipitation-hardened Fe-Ni Based Austenitic Alloy

Hydrogen-induced modification in the deformation and fracture of a precipitation-hardened Fe-Ni based austenitic alloy has been investigated in the present study by means of thermal hydrogen charging experiment, tensile tests, scanning electron microscopy （SEM） and transmission electron microscopy （TEM）. It is found that the γ＇ particles are subjected to the multiple shearing by dislocations during plastic deformation, which promotes the occurrence of the dislocation planar slip. Moreover, the alloy will be enhanced by hydrogen resulting in the formation of strain localization at macroscale. So, the mechanisms of deformation and fracture in the alloy have been proposed in terms of serious hydrogen-induced planar slip at microscale which can lead to macroscopic strain localization.

Effect of Mo Addition on the Microstructure and Properties of TiNiNb Alloy

The influence of Mo addition on the microstructure and properties of TiNiNb alloy with 4.5 at.% Nb has been investigated systemically. The experimental results indicated that the uniform distribution of Mo depresses the appearance of coarse 13-Nb particles at the grain boundaries and short stripped texture consisting of abundant fine disperse Nb-rich particles appears around the grain boundaries. The yield strength of the alloy was enhanced from 450 to 600 MPa due to the solution strengthening of Nb and Mo and the elongation reached 18% when the Mo content is 0.5 at.%. At the same time, the shape memory effect of the alloy also is improved significantly by the Mo addition. The maximum recoverable strain of the alloy with 0.5 at.% Mo is near 8% and has reached the high level of Ni-Ti binary alloys. This novel high- strength alloy is promising to be used for high pressure tube and the macro-scale coupling with higher-quality requirements.

Effect of Cooling Rate on Microstructure and Effective Grain Size for a Ni–Cr–Mo–B High-Strength Steel

The effect of cooling rate on microstructure and effective grain size(EGS)of a Ni-Cr-Mo-B high-strength steel has been studied by dilatometer,field emission scanning electron microscopy(FESEM),transmission electron microscopy(TEM)and electron backscattered diffraction(EBSD).The results show that the microstructure of the Ni-Cr-Mo-B steel is dependent on cooling rate in the following sequence:lath martensite(LM),mixed LM and lath bainite(LB),mixed LB and granular bainite(GB)and GB.The critical cooling rates for appearance of LB and GB are about 10℃/s and 0.5℃/s,respectively.The LM(>10℃/s)consists of few blocky regions with a width of several micros.Compared with the lath regions,the blocky regions in LM form at higher actual transformation temperatures during cooling.The blocky region area percentage in LM keeps almost constant about 8%at different cooling rates(>10℃/s)due to similar martensite transformation starting temperature(M_(s)).The LB percentage in mixed LM/LB increases gradually with decreasing cooling rate(10-0.5℃/s).The EBSD results show that different microstructures have different EGS.The mixed LM/LB exhibits the smallest EGS due to the separation of the prior austenite grains by the pre-formed LB and the refinement of the LM.Meanwhile,the mixed LM/LB at different cooling rates(10-0.5℃/s)exhibits almost the same EGS because the LB and LM in the mixed LM/LB have a similar high-angle grain boundary density and similar EGS.Because the blocky regions contain few high-angle grain boundaries and have similar area percentages in the LM,the LM at different cooling rates(>10℃/s)exhibits almost the same EGS.The ferrite in GB exhibits as a whole with few high-angle grain boundaries;thus,the mixed LB/GB exhibits the largest EGS.

Stress Relaxation Behavior of a Nb-Stabilized Austenitic Stainless Steel at 550℃

Stress relaxation resistance is one of the most significant properties that are critical to the service life of the fasteners.In this study,the stress relaxation behavior of a Nb-stabilized austenitic stainless steel was investigated.It was revealed that the homogenization treatment at 1250℃could make more primary NbC particles dissolved back into the matrix and consequently get a great number of nano-sized secondary NbC carbides.Therefore,the stress relaxation resistance will be enhanced due to the effective pinning of such higher density of nano-sized secondary NbC carbides on the dislocation movement.