Influence of microstructural characteristics on corrosion behavior of Mg-5Sn-3In alloy in Hank’s solution

The microstructural observation,the mass loss test,potentiodynamic polarization measurements and corrosion morphology examinations were conducted to study the influence of microstructural characteristics on corrosion behavior of Mg–5Sn–3In alloys in Hank’s solution after extrusion.The results show that the corrosion rate of the as-cast alloy is similar to that of as-extruded alloy;however,the local corrosion susceptibility is greatly weakened in the as-extruded alloy,especially in the extrusion direction.The relatively uniform corrosion morphology of the as-extruded alloy is attributed to refined Mg_(2)Sn particles,uniform distribution of Mg_(2)Sn particles and favorable crystal orientation.Meanwhile,the cytotoxicity tests confirm that the Mg–5Sn–3In alloy exhibits cytotoxicity of Grade 0−1 for NIH3T3 cells,suggesting an acceptable cytotoxicity of this alloy in the vitro assay.

Design and preparation of aluminum alloy with high thermal conductivity based on CALPHAD and first-principles calculation

To obtain the aluminum alloy with high thermal and mechanical properties,the effects of alloying elements and the second phases on the thermal conductivity of Al alloys were investigated by CALPHAD and first-principles calculation,respectively.The properties of the second phases,including Young's modulus,Poisson's ratio and minimum thermal conductivity,were systematically studied.Results show that the ranking order of the effects of the alloying elements on the thermal conductivity is Mg>Cu>Fe>Si,and for Al-12Si alloys,the mathematical model of the relationship between the alloying elements and the thermal conductivity can be expressed as λ=ax^(2)-bx+c when the second phase precipitates in the matrix.All kinds of ternary phases of Al-Fe-Si have higher deformation resistance,rigidity,theoretical hardness,Debye temperature and thermal conductivity than the other phases which possibly exist in the Al-12Si alloys.Based on the guidance of CALPHAD and first-principles calculation,the optimized chemical composition of Al alloy with high conductivity is Al-11.5Si-0.4Fe-0.2Mg(wt.%)with a thermal conductivity of 137.50 W·m^(-1)·K^(-1)and a hardness of 81.3 HBW.

Optimization design of wide face water slots for medium-thick slab casting mold

A three-dimensional finite-element model has been established to investigate the thermal behavior of the medium-thick slab copper casting mold with different cooling water slot designs. The mold wall temperatures measured using thermocouples buried in different positions of the mold with the original designed cooling system were analyzed to determine the corresponding heat flux profile. This profile was then used for simulation to predict the temperature distribution and the thermal stress distribution of the molds. The predicted temperatures during operation matched the plant measurements. The results showed that the maximum temperature, about 635 K in the wide hot surface, was found about 60 mm below the meniscus and 226 mm from the center of the mold. For the mold with the type I modified design, there was an insignificant decrease in temperature of about 5 K, and for the mold with the type II modified design, the maximum temperature was decreased by about 15 K and the temperature of the hot surface was distributed more uniformly along the length of the mold. The corresponding maximum thermal stress at the hot surface of the mold was reduced from 408 MPa to 386 MPa with the type II modified design. The results indicated that the modified design II is beneficial to the increase of mold life and the quality of casting slabs.

Effect of Nb doping on microstructures and thermoelectric properties of SrTiO_3 ceramics

Nb-doped SrTiO3 thermoelectric ceramics with different niobium concentrations,sintering temperatures and Sr-site vacancies are successfully prepared by high energy ball milling combined with carbon burial sintering.For fully understanding the effect of niobium doping on SrTiO3,thermoelectric transport properties are systematically investigated in a temperature range from 300 K to 1100 K.The carrier mobility can be significantly enhanced,and the electrical conductivity is quadrupled,when the sintering temperature rises from 1673 K to 1773 K（beyond the eutectic temperature（1713 K） of SrTiO3–TiO2）.The lattice vibration can be suppressed by the lattice distortion introduced by the doped niobium atoms.However,Sr-site vacancies compensate for the lattice distortion and increase the lattice thermal conductivity more or less.Finally,we achieve a maximum value of figure-of-merit z T of 0.21 at 1100 K for Sr Ti（0.9）Nb（0.1）O3 ceramic sintered at1773 K.

Microstructure and texture evolution of Cu-Cr-Co-Ti alloys during the two-stage cryorolling

This study entailed an investigation of the mechanical properties,microstructural and texture orientation evolutions of Cu-Cr-Co-Ti alloys prepared via twostage cryorolling and intermediate aging treatment.To this end,X-ray diffraction and electron backscatter diffraction were employed.The results indicate that the two-stage cryorolling and intermediate aging treatments led to the development of profuse twin bundles and significantly enhanced the mechanical properties.The initial cryorolling led to coplanar slip and developed a strong Y({111}<112>)orientation,accelerating the formation of Goss({011}<100>)orientation and a Brass-type texture.The intermediate aging treatment relieved the restriction on dislocation slip and reoriented the grains toward the Copper({112}<111>)and Z({111}<110>)orientations.The Z orientation,with a relatively high volume fraction,dominated the macrotexture.Secondary cryorolling intensified twinning and shear banding,transforming the Copper-type shear bands into Brass-type shear bands with rhomboidal prism morphology.The areas inside the Brasstype shear bands exhibited a Y orientation,and the areas outside the shear bands exhibited a stable Brass-type texture.The evident decrease in the weighted Schmid factors demonstrated that the two-stage cryorolling and intermediate aging treatment can modify the texture evolution and aid the design of high-performance Cu alloys.

Influence of Cryorolling on the Precipitation of Cu–Ni–Si Alloys: An In Situ X-ray Diffraction Study

The effect of cryorolling on the precipitation process of deformed Cu-Ni-Si alloys was investigated through in situ synchrotron X-ray diffraction technique. The results demonstrate that the precipitation process is significantly accelerated by cryorolling. Cryorolling produces higher dislocation density, which provides more heterogeneous nucleation sites for Ni2Si precipitates, hence promotes precipitation. In the early stage of aging, the enhanced nucleation of precipitates accelerates the depletion of supersaturation, and finer precipitates are obtained. In addition, recrystallization is promoted as a result of high stored energy in the cryorolled Cu-Ni-Si alloys, which facilitates the formation of discontinuous precipitation in the late stage of aging.

Real-time Observation on Coarsening of Second-Phase Droplets in Al–Bi Immiscible Alloy Using Synchrotron Radiation X-ray Imaging Technology

The coarsening process of second-phase droplet in solidifying Al-20 wt% Bi immiscible alloy is in situ studied using synchrotron radiation imaging technology.The collision-induced coarsening and Ostwald coarsening phenomena are directly observed and analyzed.It is found that through observation,collision-induced coarsening phenomenon occurs between droplets with little difference in radius,while Ostwald coarsening phenomenon occurs among droplets with much difference in radius.Moreover,the coarsening rate of Ostwald coarsening is much higher than that of collision-induced coarsening.

3D Morphology and Formation Process of the Icosahedral Quasicrystalline Phase in Rapidly Solidified Al-Mn Alloy

Three-dimensional morphology and formation process of icosahedral quasicrystal phase have been investigated in a melt-spun AI-18Mn alloy （in wt%）. Three distinct layers corresponding to varying temperature gradient have been observed on the cross section of the ribbons. 3D morphologies of cellular and dendritic icosahedral phase have been obtained through electro-etching. A model has been proposed to describe the formation process of the icosahedral phase and a-A1 during the rapid solidification. The icosahedral phases are primarily precipitated from the melt into fine cellular and dendritic particles, and subsequently engulfed by the a-A1 which propagates in a planar morphology.

Pencil painting like preparation for flexible thermoelectric material of high-performance p-type Na_(1.4)Co_(2)O_(4) and novel n-type NaxCo_(2)O_(4)

Flexible thermoelectric materials are presented with potential applications in electronic devices and energy conversion due to their convenient preparation,good flexibility,and various forms.However,as ductility is rarely observed in inorganic semiconductors and ceramic insulators,reports on applications of inorganic oxide materials in flexible thermoelectric materials are sparse.Here,we report a new method for the synthesis of a flexible Na_(1.4)Co_(2)O_(4) thermoelectric material based on Na_(1.4)Co_(2)O_(4) bulk materials,which are prepared by a self-flux method and painted on print paper.Seebeck coefficient and power factor of the obtained thermoelectric material are 78-102 μVK^(-1) and 159e223 mWm^-(1)K^(-2),respectively,in a temperature range of 303-522 K,which are superior to those values of other conductive polymers and their compounds.More interestingly,the n-type Na_(1.4)Co_(2)O_(4) flexible material is obtained in the painting process at higher pressure with Seebeck coefficients of109 to183 μVK^(-1) in a temperature range of 303-522 K.The convenient preparation method of these novel flexible thermoelectric materials may be expanded to the synthesis of other flexible thermoelectric materials,which will be the focus of future work.