“Abnormal transient creep” in fine-grained Al-5356 alloy observed at low strain rates by high-resolution strain measurement

Transient creep at very low strain rates （less than 10-10 s-1） is still unclear. The traditional uniaxial creep testing is less useful due to unsatisfied resolution strain （~10-6）. To study transient creep behavior at such low strain rates, a high-resolution strain measurement using the helicoid spring specimen technique was employed in a fine-grained Al-5356 alloy at temperatures ranging from 0.47Tm to 0.74Tm （Tm： melting point）. To clarify transient creep mechanism at such low strain rates, transmission electron microscopy （TEM） was used in microstructure observation of crept specimens. The abnormal transient creep, high temperature strengthening at T〉Tp （Tp： the phase transformation temperature, 0.58Tm） or intermediate temperature softening at 0.4Tm〈T￡Tp and double-normal type （creep curves including double work-hardening stages） at T=Tp, were firstly observed. The substructure observation in a crept specimen at T=0.58Tm and e=1×10-4 shows pile-up dislocations including many small jogs with equal interval, and dislocations emitted from grain boundaries. The b-Al3Mg2 phase dissolves under the condition of testing temperatures higher than 523 K, which causes solid-solution quantity of Mg atoms to increase. Therefore, the “abnormal transient creep” may be related to the difference of solid solution strengthening caused by phase change during the creep tests.

Primary-transient creep and anelastic backflow of pure copper deformed at low temperatures and ultra-low strain rates

Creep and anelastic backflow behaviors of pure copper （4N Cu） with grain size dg=40 μm were investigated at low temperatures of T〈0.3Tm （Tm is melting point） and ultra-low creep rates of ε≤1×10^-10 s^-1 by a high strain-resolution measurement （the helicoid spring specimen technique）. Analysis of creep data was based on the scaling factors of creep curves instead of the conventional extrapolated steady-state creep rate. Power-law creep equation is suggested to be the best for describing the primary transient creep behavior, because the pre-parameter does not apparently change with elapsed time. The observed anelastic strains are 1/6 of the calculated elastic strains, and linear viscous behavior was identified from the logarithm plot of the anelastic strain rate versus anelastic strain （slope equals 1）. Therefore, the creep anelasticity is suggested to be due to the unbowing of there-dimensional network of dislocations.

Effect of lower bainite/martensite/retained austenite triplex microstructure on the mechanical properties of a low-carbon steel with quenching and partitioning process

We present a study concerning Fe-0. 176C-1.31Si-1.58Mn-0.26Al-0.3Cr （wt%） steel subjected to a quenching and partitioning （Q＆P） process. The results of scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, and tensile tests demon- strate that the microstructures primarily consist of lath martensite, retained austenite, lower bainite （LB）, and a small amount of tempered martensite; moreover, few twin austenite grains were observed. In the microstrucmre, three types of retained austenite with different sizes and morphologies were observed： blocky retained austenite （-300 nm in width）, film-like retained austenite （80-120 nm in width）, and ul- tra-fine film-like retained austenite （30-40 nm in width）. Because of the effect of the retained austenite/martensite/LB triplex microstructure, the specimens prepared using different quenching temperatures exhibit high ultimate tensile strength and yield strength. Furthermore, the strength effect of LB can partially counteract the decreasing strength effect of martensite. The formation of LB substantially reduces the amount of retained austenite. Analyses of the retained austenite and the amount of blocky retained austenite indicated that the carbon content is critical to the total elongation of Q＆P steel.

Microstructural evolution and mechanical properties of a low-carbon quenching and partitioning steel after partial and full austenitization

In this work, low-carbon steel specimens were subjected to the quenching and partitioning process after being partially or fully austenitized to investigate their microstructural evolution and mechanical properties. According to the results of scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy observations, X-ray diffraction analysis, and tensile tests, upper bainite or tempered martensite appears successively in the microstructure with increasing austenitization temperature or increasing partitioning time. In the partially austenitized specimens, the retained austenite grains are carbon-enriched twice during the heat treatment, which can significantly stabilize the phases at room temperature. Furthermore, after partial austenitization, the specimen exhibits excellent elongation, with a maximum elongation of 37.1%. By contrast, after full austenitization, the specimens exhibit good ultimate tensile strength and high yield strength. In the case of a specimen with a yield strength of 969 MPa, the maximum value of the ultimate tensile strength reaches 1222 MPa. During the partitioning process, carbon partitioning and carbon homogenization within austenite affect interface migration. In addition, the volume fraction and grain size of retained austenite observed in the final microstructure will also be affected.