Evolution of the microstructure and solute distribution of Sn-10wt% Bi alloys during electromagnetic field-assisted directional solidification

The effects of forced flows at different velocities on microstructure and solute distribution during the directional solidification of Sn-10 wt% Bi alloys under a simultaneous imposition of a transverse static magnetic field(TSMF) and an external direct current(DC) have been investigated experimentally and numerically. The experimental results show that the solid-liquid interface will gradually become sloping with the increase of the forced flow velocity when the thermoelectric magnetic convection(TEMC)dominates the forced flow at solidification front. However, the interface will gradually become planar as the flow velocity further increases when the electromagnetic convection(EMC) dominates the forced flow. Moreover, when the flow velocity gradually increases, the primary dendrite spacing decreases from384 to 105 μm accordingly. The simulation results show that the solute distribution at the two sides of the sample can be significantly changed by the forced flow at solidification front. The rejected solute will be unidirectionally transported to one side of the sample along the TEMC(a low-velocity forced flow),thereby causing the formation of a sloping interface. However, the rejected solute will be returned back along the EMC(a higher-velocity force flow), which results in a planar interface. Furthermore, the solute content at the two sides of the sample under the forced flows at different velocities was measured. The results are in good agreement with the simulation results, which shows that the solute content difference between the two sides of the sample reaches the maximum when a 0.5 T TSMF is applied, while the solute content difference decreases to zero with a simultaneous application of a 0.5 T TSMF and a 1.6 × 10~5 A/m^2 external DC.

In-situ observation of solid-liquid interface transition during directional solidification of Al-Zn alloy via X-ray imaging

The morphological instability of solid/liquid(S/L)interface during solidification will result in different patterns of microstructure.In this study,two dimension(2 D)and three dimension(3 D)in-situ observation of solid/liquid interfacial morphology transition in Al-Zn alloy during directional solidification were performed via X-ray imaging.Under a condition of increasing temperature gradient(G),the interface transition from dendritic pattern to cellular pattern,and then to planar growth with perturbation was captured.The effect of solidification parameter(the ratio of temperature gradient and growth velocity(v),G/v)on morphological instabilities was investigated and the experimental results were compared to classical"constitutional supercooling"theory.The results indicate that 2 D and 3 D evolution process of S/L interface morphology under the same thermal condition are different.It seems that the S/L interface in 2 D observation is easier to achieve planar growth than that in 3 D,implying higher S/L interface stability in 2 D thin plate samples.This can be explained as the restricted liquid flow under 2 D solidification which is beneficial to S/L interface stability.The in-situ observation in present study can provide coherent dataset for microstructural formation investigation and related model validation during solidification.

6.5 wt%Si high silicon steel sheets prepared by composite electrodeposition in magnetic field

A new preparation method of near-net-shape 6.5 wt% Si high silicon steel sheets was proposed by combining composite electrodeposition(CED) and diffusion annealing under magnetic field. The obtained sheets were characterized by scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive spectrometry, analytical balance and a silicon steel material measurement system. The results show that the surface morphology,the elemental distribution, the cathode current efficiency and the silicon content of coatings were obviously influenced by the micro and macro magnetohydrodynamics(MHD) flows under magnetic field.With the effect of magnetic field, the silicon particles content of coatings showed an increasing trend and the diffusion process showed that an approximately uniform 6.5 wt% silicon steel sheet has been successfully obtained. The magnetism measurement showed that the high silicon steel sheet has the lower iron loss, and the iron loss further decreased under magnetic field. The new method proposed in this article,which is more environmentally friendly and low energy consumption, is feasible to prepare high silicon steel sheets.

A precipitate-free AlCoFeNi eutectic high-entropy alloy with strong strain hardening

Over recent years,eutectic high-entropy alloys(EHEAs)have intrigued substantial research enthusiasms due to their good castability as well as balanced strength-ductility synergy.In this study,a bulk cast Al_(19.25)Co_(18.86)Fe_(18.36)Ni_(43.53)EHEA is developed with fine in-situ lamellar eutectics.The eutectics comprise alternating ordered face-centered-cubic(L1_(2))and ordered body-centered-cubic(B2)phases with semicoherent interfaces.The resulting microstructure resembles that of most reported as-cast EHEAs,but the B2 lamellae are devoid of nano-precipitates because of the Cr-element removal in current tailored eutectic composition.Surprisingly,the B2 lamellae still feature much higher deformation resistance than the L1_(2) lamellae,so that less lattice defects are detected in the B2 lamellae until the fracture.More interestingly,in the L1_(2) lamellae we identify a dynamic microstructure refinement that correlates to extraordinary strain hardening in tension.The precipitate-free EHEA consequently shows excellent tensile ductility of~10%and high ultimate strength up to~956 MPa.

Frequency-multiplexing photon-counting multi-beam LiDAR

We report a frequency-multiplexing method for multi-beam photon-counting light detection and ranging(Li DAR),where only one single-pixel single-photon detector is employed to simultaneously detect the multibeam echoes.In this frequency-multiplexing multi-beam Li DAR,each beam is from an independent laser source with different repetition rates and independent phases.As a result,the photon counts from different beams could be discriminated from each other due to the strong correlation between the laser pulses and their respective echo photons.A 16-beam Li DAR system was demonstrated in three-dimensional laser imaging with 16 pulsed laser diodes at 850 nm and one single-photon detector based on a Si-avalanche photodiode.This frequencymultiplexing method can greatly reduce the number of single-photon detectors in multi-beam Li DAR systems,which may be useful for low-cost and eye-safe Li DAR applications.

Nondestructive effect of the cusp magnetic field on the dendritic microstructure during the directional solidification of Nickel-based single crystal superalloy

The mechanical-property improvement of directionally-solidified Nickel-based single crystal(SC)superalloy with the single-direction magnetic fields is limited by their destructiveness on the dendritic microstructure.Here,the work present breaks through the bottleneck.It shows that the application of the cusp magnetic field(CMF)ensures that the dendrites are not destroyed.This feature embodies that the primary dendrite trunks arrange regularly and orderly,as well the secondary dendrite arms grow symmetrically.By contrast,both the unidirectional transverse and longitudinal magnetic field destroy the dendrite morphology,and there are a number of stray grains near the totally-re melted interface.The nondestructive effect is achieved mainly by the combined action of the thermoelectromagnetic force on the dendrites and thermoelectromagnetic convection in the melt during directional solidification.The investigation should contribute a new route for dramatically and effectively improving the crystal quality and mechanical properties of the directionally-solidified alloys.

Motion and removal behavior of inclusions in electrode tip during magnetically controlled electroslag remelting:X-ray microtomography characterization and modeling verification

Detailed three-dimensional(3 D)microtomography characterizations of inclusions in electrode matrix,mushy zone(MZ)and liquid melt film(LMF)were performed to elucidate the motion and removal behavior of inclusions in electrode tip during magnetically controlled electroslag remelting(MC-ESR)process.A transient 2 D numerical model was also built to verify the experimental results and proposed mechanisms.The number and size of inclusions exhibited an obvious increasing trend from edge to mid region in LMF,while remained almost the same in electrode matrix and MZ.The inclusions in LMF migrated from edge to mid region of LMF,accompanied with removal process.In addition,the kinetic conditions for inclusion migrating to LMF/slag interface(LSI)were enhanced during MC-ESR process,thereby improving the inclusion removal efficiency in LMF.This work highlights the 3 D characterization and motion/removal mechanisms of inclusions in electrode tip,as well as sheds new light on preparing high purity materials.

Inhibition of Cusp magnetic field on stray-crystal formation in platform region during directionally solidified single-crystal superalloy

The stray crystal in the platform region is one of the common main defects in single-crystal superalloy blades. The simple and effective method to eliminate this defect is urgent to be explored. This work found that the Cusp magnetic field can effectively inhibit the stray-crystal formation in the platform. The tendency of stray-crystal formation decreases as the magnetic-field strength increases at a certain withdrawal rate and temperature-gradient. The suppressing effect decreases as the withdrawal rate or the temperature-gradient increases. Finally, the inhibiting mechanism on the stray-crystal formation from the Cusp magnetic field is proposed based on the experiments and the numerical simulation. The magneticfield application strengthens the flow velocity and changes the flow structure near the liquid-solid interface, and further reduces the radial temperature difference. Accordingly, the secondary dendrites in the heat-conduction undercooled zone expands towards the corner in a faster speed, which reduces the stray-crystal formation in the platform corner. This study provides an effective and simple method for decreasing the stray-crystal formation during the preparation of single-crystal with platform region.

Enhanced electrical,mechanical and tribological properties of Cu-Cr-Zr alloys by continuous extrusion forming and subsequent aging treatment

As a promising material for the new generation of high-speed railway contact wires,the comprehensive optimization of the electrical conductivity,strength,hardness and wear resistance of the Cu-Cr-Zr alloy has received extensive attention.In this paper,a high-performance Cu-1Cr-0.1Zr alloy with an ultimate tensile strength of 599.1 MPa,a uniform elongation of 8.6%,a microhardness of 195.7 HV_(0.2) and an electrical conductivity of 80.07%IACS was achieved by the continuous extrusion forming(CEF)and subsequent peak-aging treatment.The grain refinement strengthening,dislocation strengthening and precipitation strengthening are identified to be responsible for the excellent electrical and mechanical properties of Cu-Cr-Zr alloy.The wear behavior of Cu-Cr-Zr alloy was investigated by examining the evolution of worn surface morphology and subsurface microstructure.The microhardness(H)and reduced elastic modulus(E_(r))of the subsurface below the worn surface measured by nanoindentation were calculated to gage the tribological performance of Cu-Cr-Zr alloy.Results show that the continuously extruded and subsequently peak-aged specimen has the best wear resistance,which indicates that the tribological properties of CuCr-Zr alloy strongly depend on its strength and hardness.It can be concluded that the CEF and subsequent aging treatment process provides a new and high-efficiency procedure for the continuous preparation of Cu-Cr-Zr alloys.