Microstructure and mechanical properties of Co-28Cr-6Mo-0.22C investment castings by current solution treatment

This study examined the impact of current solution treatment on the microstructure and mechanical properties of the Co-28Cr-6Mo-0.22C alloy investment castings.The findings reveal that the current solution treatment significantly promotes the dissolution of carbides at a lower temperature.The optimal conditions for solution treatment are determined as a solution temperature of 1,125°C and a holding time of 5.0 min.Under these parameters,the size and volume fraction of precipitated phases in the investment castings are measured as6.2μm and 1.1vol.%.The yield strength,ultimate tensile strength,and total elongation of the Co-28Cr-6Mo-0.22C investment castings are 535 MPa,760 MPa,and 12.6%,respectively.These values exceed those obtained with the conventional solution treatment at 1,200°C for 4.0 h.The findings suggest a phase transformation of M_(23)C_(6)→σ+C following the current solution treatment at 1,125°C for 5.0 min.In comparison,the traditional solution treatment at 1,200°C for 4.0 h leads to the formation of M_(23)C_(6)and M_(6)C carbides.It is noteworthy that the non-thermal effect of the current during the solution treatment modifies the free energy of both the matrix and precipitation phase.This modification lowers the phase transition temperature of the M_(23)C_(6)→σ+C reaction,thereby facilitating the dissolution of carbides.As a result,the current solution treatment approach achieves carbide dissolution at a lower temperature and within a significantly shorter time when compared to the traditional solution treatment methods.

Effect of annealing treatment on microstructures and properties of austenite-based Fe-28Mn-9Al-0.8C lightweight steel with addition of Cu

The mechanical properties of an austenite-based Fe-Mn-Al-C lightweight steel were improved by co-precipitation of nanoscale Cu-rich and κ-carbide particles.The Fe-28Mn-9Al-0.8C-(0,3)Cu (wt.%) strips were near-rapidly solidified and annealed in the temperature range from 500 ℃ to 700 ℃.The microstructure evolution and mechanical properties of the steel under different annealing processes were studied.Microstructural analysis reveals that nanoscale κ-carbides and Cu-rich particles precipitate in the austenite and ferrite of the steel in this annealing temperature range.Co-precipitation of nanoscale Cu-rich particles and κ-carbides provides an obvious increment in the yield strength.At the annealing temperature of 600 ℃,both the yield strength and ultimate tensile strength of Fe-28Mn-9Al-0.8C-3Cu (wt.%) steel strip are the highest.The total elongation is 25%,which is obviously higher than that of Cu-free steel strips,for the addition of Cu reduces the large sized κ-carbides precipitated along austenite/ferrite interfaces.When the annealing temperature rises to 700 ℃,the strength and ductility of the two steel strips deteriorate due to the formation of massive intergranular κ-carbides precipitated along austenite/ferrite interfaces.It can be concluded that a proper co-precipitation of Cu-rich particles and κ-carbides would improve the properties of austenite-based Fe-Mn-Al-C steel.

Effects of hot top pulsed magneto-oscillation on solidification structure of steel ingot

Achieving a uniform structure with few defects in heavy steel ingot is of high commercial importance. In this present work, in order to verify the potential of pulsed magneto-oscillation(PMO) applied in the production of heavy ingot, an induction coil was located at the hot top of the steel ingot to develop a novel technique, named hot top pulsed magneto oscillation(HPMO). The influences of HPMO on the solidification structure, macro segregation and compactness of a cylindrical medium carbon steel ingot with the weight of 160 kg were systematically investigated by optical microscope(OM) and laser induced breakdown spectroscopy original position metal analyzer(LIBSOPA-100). The results show that HPMO not only causes significant grain refinement and promotes the occurrence of columnar to equiaxed transition(CET) but also can homogenize the carbon distribution and enhance the compactness of the steel ingot. Therefore, HPMO technique has the potential to be applied in the production of heavy steel ingots on an industrial scale.

Solidification characteristics of Fe-Ni peritectic al oy thin strips under a near-rapid solidification condition

This paper is an experimental investigation of the structure evolution and the solute distribution of 2 mm thick strips of Fe-(2.6, 4.2, 4.7, 7.9wt.%)Ni peritectic alloy under a near-rapid solidification condition, which were in the regions of δ-ferrite single-phase, hypo-peritectic, hyper-peritectic and γ-austenite single-phase, respectively. The highest area ratio of equiaxed grain zone in the hyper-peritectic of Fe-4.7wt.%Ni alloy strip was observed, while other strips were mainly columnar grains. The lowest micro-segregation was obtained in the Fe-7.9wt.%Ni alloy strip, while micro-segregation in the Fe-4.7wt.%Ni alloy was the highest. As opposed to the microsegregation, the macro-segregation of all the Fe-Ni strips was suppressed due to the rapid solidification rate. Finally, the structure formation mechanism of Fe-Ni alloy strips was analyzed.

Influence of pulse magneto-oscillation on the efficiency of grain refiner

Solidification experiments were carried out in Al-Cu （w（Cu） = 5%） alloy to investigate the influence of pulse magneto-oscillation （PMO） on the efficiency of the Al3Ti1B refining agent at high superheat. The experimental solidification results show that the degree of superheat has remarkable influence on the efficiency of the grain refiner. However, the application of PMO has the potential to reduce the influence of superheat variation on the efficiency of the grain refiner. Finally, the mechanism underlying this phenomenon is discussed by performing a numerical simulation to show the forced flow inside the melt caused by PMO.

Influence of electromagnetic parameters on solidification structure of pure AI in the case of identical power

Pulsed magneto-oscillation （PMO） as a new electromagnetic technology to generate the grain refinement in metals and alloys was significantly developed in recent years. The influence of electromagnetic parameters on the grain size reduction in pure AI was investigated under the application of PMO with a constant inputting power. The experimental results show that the grain refinement degree could be improved with the increase in the current intensity in the case of the identical power. Moreover, through analysing the electromagnetic force and resistance force applied on the nucleus, a criterion of the nucleus detached from the mould wall was constructed. Based on the criterion, the detachment of nuclei with finer radius could cause better effect of the grain refinement, when applying a higher current peak. The movement of the detached grains was considered by analysing the influence of electromagnetic force and forced flow.

Influence of pulsed magneto-oscillation on microstructure and mechanical property of rectangular 65Mn steel ingot

The pulsed magneto-oscillation （PMO） technique has the potential to be applied in the production of heavy steel ingot. In order to confirm it and achieve more insights, the solidification of rectangular 65Mn steel ingot with the size of 220 mm×220 mm × 1000 mm was investigated under the impact of PMO. Experimental results present that PMO treatment can remarkably refine the solidified microstructure of 65Mn steel ingot in comparison with the reference ingot without PMO. The application of PMO not only significantly reduces the grain size, but also promotes the morphology transition of equiaxed grains from well-developed dendritic structures to globular structures. And the resulted globular morphology is mainly due to the fact that the PMO-induced forced flow enhances the stability of crystal growth. As a consequence, the average tensile strength of as-cast samples is enhanced from 643.4 to 762.9 MPa under the application of PMO.

Distributions of Electromagnetic Fields and Forced Flow and Their Relevance to the Grain Refinement in Al–Si Alloy Under the Application of Pulsed Magneto-Oscillation

Distributions of electromagnetic fields and induced forced flow inside a metal melt are crucial to understand the grain refinement of the metal driven by pulsed magneto-oscillation(PMO).In the present study,PMO-induced electromagnetic fields and forced flow in Ga-20 wt%In-12 wt%Sn liquid metal have been systematically investigated by performing numerical simulations and corresponding experimental measurements.The numerical simulations have been confirmed by magnetic and melt flow measurements.According to the simulated distribution of electromagnetic fields under the application of PMO,the strongest magnetic field,electric eddy current and Lorentz force with inward radial direction inside the melt are concentrated adjacent the sidewall of cylindrical melt at the cross section of middle height of coil.As a result,a global forced flow throughout the whole cylindrical column filled with Ga-20 wt%In-12 wt%Snmelt is initiated with a flow structure of two pair of symmetric vortexring.The PMO-induced electromagnetic fields and forced flow in Al-7 wt%Si melt have been numerically simulated.The contribution of electromagnetic fields and forced flow to the grain refinement of Al-7 wt%Sialloy under the application of PMO is discussed.It indicates that the forced flow may play a key role in the grain size reduction.

Microstructure and mechanical behavior of a low-density Fe-12Mn- 9Al-1.2C steel prepared using centrifugal casting under near-rapid solidification

It is vital for emission reduction and energy saving to lighten the weight of automobile. Low-density Fe-Mn-Al-C steels with high strength and excellent ductility have become a promising type of material in the automotive industry. Thus, a new approach was proposed by using centrifugal casting to produce the low-density Fe-12Mn-9Al-1.2C steel with high performance under near-rapid solidification in a near-net shape. The produced steel strips, with a thickness of 2.5 mm and a density of 6.89 g/cm3, were examined for their microstructures and mechanical properties. The results showed that mechanical properties of as-cast steel strip reached 1182 MPa in ultimate tensile strength and 28.1% in total elongation. Aging treatment at 400 or 600℃ for 3 h enhanced tensile strength of the steel strips, while aging at 800℃ dramatically decreased its elongation. Moreover, Young＇ s modulus of the steel strip improved with the increment of aging temperature. The relationship between the mechanical properties and the microstructures was discussed. The results demonstrated that advanced low-density steels with promising mechanical properties could be directly produced from liquid by this simple process.

Fine equiaxed dendritic structure of a medium carbon steel cast using pulsed magneto-oscillation melt treatment

The application of a pulsed magneto-oscillation （PMO） technique during the solidification of a commercial high melting point medium carbon steel ingot （φ0140 mm × 450 mm） produced fully equiaxed grains in the cast ingot, indicating that the PMO process significantly promotes heterogeneous nucleation near the solid-liquid interface. The vigorous convection induced by PMO forced the partly solidified grains to move from the solid-liquid interface and became randomly distributed throughout the melt, which resulted in the formation of uniformly sized equiaxed dendrites throughout the whole ingot. Building on the developed nucleation mechanism and a flow field simulation of pure aluminum, a PMO-induced grain refinement model for steel is proposed.

Phase modulation of bcc-structured Fe35Mn25Al15Cr10Ni15 high-entropy alloy by interstitial carbon

High-entropy alloys （HEAs） usually contain more than five alloying elements. The ductility of a body-centered cubic （bcc）- type HEA typically is lower than that of their face-centered cubic （fcc） counterpart. And low ductility restricts engineering applications of the bcc-structured HEAs. In engineering materials, improvement in ductility usually results in deduction of mechanical strength. A method to improve both mechanical strength and ductility in a bcc-structured HEA was proposed by adding interstitial carbon. Experimental results showed that replacement of 5 at.% Cr with 5 at.% C in a bcc-structured Fe35Mn25Al15Cr10Ni15 HEA resulted in an increase in fcc phase from 0.3 to 93.7 vol.%. Strength and ductility increased at the same time. The transition of bcc-structure to fcc-structure along with a remaining small amount of bcc phase improved mechanical properties. This work indicates that interstitial carbon can be employed to modulate the fraction of constituent phases in a bcc-structured HEA to enhance engineering mechanical properties.

Melt flow,solidification structures,and defects in 316 L steel strips produced by vertical centrifugal casting

Vertical centrifugal casting can significantly enhance the filling capability of molten metals,enabling the production of complex thin-walled castings at near-rapid cooling rates.In this study,the melt flow,solidification structures,and defects in 316 L steel cast strips with a geometry of 80 mm×60 mm×2.5 mm produced by vertical centrifugal casting were numerically and experimentally analyzed under different rotation speeds.With gradually increasing the rotation speed from 150 r/min to 900 r/min,the simulated results showed the shortest filling time and minimum porosity volume in the cast strip at a rotation speed of 600 r/min.Since a strong turbulent flow was generated by the rotation of the mold cavity during the filling process,experimental results showed that a“non-dendritic”structure was obtained in 316 L cast strip when centrifugal force was involved,whereas the typical dendritic structure was observed in the reference sample without rotation.Most areas of the cast strip exhibited one-dimensional cooling,but three-sided cooling appeared near the side of the cast strip.Moreover,the pores and cracks in the 316 L strips were detected by computed tomography scanning and analyzed with the corresponding numerical simulations.Results indicated the existence of an optimal rotational speed for producing cast strips with minimal casting defects.This study provides a better understanding of the filling and solidification processes of strips produced by vertical centrifugal casting.

Numerical study of heat transfer of gas-atomized Fe-6.5 %Si （mass and solidification behavior fraction） droplets

During spray atomization process, the heat transfer and solidification of droplets play very important roles for the deposition quality. Due to the difficulties of experimental approach, a numerical model is developed, which integrates liquid undercooling, nucleation recalescence and post-re- calescence growth to present the full solidification process of Fe-6.5%Si （mass fraction） droplet. The droplet velocity, temperature, cooling rate as well as solid fraction profiles are simulated for droplets with different sizes to demonstrate the critical role of the size effect during the solidification process of droplets. The relationship between the simulated cooling rate and the experimentally obtained secondary dendrite arm spacing is in excellent agreement with the well-established formula. The pre-constant and exponent values lie in the range of various rapid solidified Fe-based alloys reported, which indicates the validity of the numerical model.