A crystal plasticity based approach to establish role of grain size and crystallographic texture in the Tension–Compression yield asymmetry and strain hardening behavior of a Magnesium–Silver–Rare Earth alloy

Existence of tension–compression yield asymmetry is a serious limitation to the load bearing capablities of Magnesium alloys in a number of light weight structural applications.The present work is aimed at nullifying the tension to compression asymmetry problem and strain hardening anomalies in a Magnesium–Silver–Rare Earth alloy by engineering different levels of microstructural conditions via friction stir processing and post process annealing.The existence and extent of yield asymmetry ratio in the range of microstructural conditions was experimentally obtained through quasistatic tensile and compression tests.The yield asymmetry problem was profoundly present in specimens of coarse grained microstructures when compared to their fine grained and ultra fine grained counterparts.The impact of the microstructure and associated mechanisms of plasticity on the macroscopic strain hardening behavior was established by Kock–Mecking’s analysis.Crystal plasticity simulations using Viscoplastic Self Consistency approach revealed the consequential role of extension twinning mechanism for the existence of yield asymmetry and anomalies in strain hardening behavior.This was especially dominant with coarsening of grain size.Electron Microscopy and characterization were conducted thoroughly in partially deformed specimens to confirm the predictions of the above simulations.The role of crystallographic texture for inducing the polarity to Tension–Compression yield asymmetry was corroborated.A critical grain size in Magnesium–Silver–Rare earth alloy was hereby established which could nullify influences of extension twinning in yield asymmetry ratio.

Fabrication of nanoporous silver by de-alloying Cu?Zr?Ag amorphous alloys

Nanoporous silver（NPS） with a ligament size ranging from 15 to 40 nm was fabricated by de-alloying（Cu_（50）Zr_（50））_（100-x）Agx（x = 10at%, 20at%, 30at%, and 40at%） amorphous ribbons in a mixed aqueous solution of hydrofluoric（HF） acid and nitric acid under free corrosion conditions. Nanoporous silver ligaments and pore sizes were able to be fine-tuned through tailoring the chemical composition, corrosion conditions, and de-alloying time. The ligament size increases with an increase in Ag content and de-alloying time, but decreases with an increase in HF concentration. This phenomenon may be attributed to the dissolution of Zr/Cu and the diffusion, aggregation, nucleation, and recrystallization of Ag, leading to an oriented attachment of adjacent nanocrystals as revealed by TEM analysis.

Microstructure and properties evolution of in-situ fiber-reinforced Ag-Cu-Ni-Ce alloy during deformation and heat treatment

Silver-based alloys are significant light-load electrical contact materials(ECMs).The trade-off between mechanical properties and electrical conductivity is always an important issue for the development of silver-based ECMs.In this paper,we proposed an idea for the regulation of the mechanical properties and the electrical conductivity of Ag-11.40Cu-0.66Ni-0.05Ce(wt%)alloy using in-situ composite fiber-reinforcement.The alloy was processed using rolling,heat treatment,and heavy drawing,the strength and electrical conductivity were tested at different deformation stages,and the microstructures during deformation were observed using field emission scanning electron microscope(FESEM),transmission electron microscope(TEM)and electron backscatter diffraction(EBSD).The results show that the method proposed in this paper can achieve the preparation of in-situ composite fiber-reinforced Ag-Cu-Ni-Ce alloys.After the heavy deformation drawing,the room temperature Vickers hardness of the as-cast alloy increased from HV 81.6 to HV 169.3,and the electrical conductivity improved from 74.3%IACS(IACS,i.e.,international annealed copper standard)to 78.6%IACS.As the deformation increases,the alloy strength displays two different strengthening mechanisms,and the electrical conductivity has three stages of change.This research provides a new idea for the comprehensive performance control of high-performance silver-based ECMs.

Effect of trace calcium on melting behavior of Ag-Cu-Zn brazing alloy by thermal analysis kinetics

The purity of the brazing alloys applied is necessary to be improved with the increasing cleanness of steel. Calcium is easily brought into the widely ased brazing alloy, Ag-Cu-Zn, during the producing process. This paper aims at revealing the effect of calcium on the melting behavior of the brazing alloy. The thermal analysis kinetics of silver alloy with trace calcium was studied by using differential scanning calorimetry （ DSC ） , and the enthalpy peaks were analyzed by differential methods. The rate constant of phase transformation in the probable brazing temperature range goes up with increasing calcium content, according to the values of the apparent activation energy, E, and the frequeney constant, A. It is concluded that the calcium addition could improve the melting performance of Ag-Cu-Zn brazing alloy.

Comparison of corrosion and oxygen evolution behaviors between cast and rolled Pb–Ag–Nd anodes

The corrosion and oxygen evolution behaviors of cast and rolled Pb–Ag–Nd anodes were investigated by metalloscopy, environmental scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction analysis, and various electrochemical measurements. The rolled anode exhibits fewer interdendritic boundaries and a dispersed distribution of Pb–Ag eutectic mixtures and Nd-rich phases in its cross-section. This feature inhibits rapid interdendritic corrosion into the metallic substrate along the interdendritic boundary network. In addition, the anodic layer formed on the rolled anode is more stable toward the electrolyte than that formed on the cast anode, reducing the corrosion of the metallic substrate during current interruption. Hence, the rolled anode has a higher corrosion resistance than the cast anode. However, the rolled anode exhibits a slightly higher anodic potential than the cast anode after 72 h of galvanostatic polarization, consistent with the larger charge transfer resistance. This larger charge transfer resistance may result from the oxygen-evolution reactive sites being blocked by the adsorption of more intermediates and oxygen species at the anodic layer/electrolyte interfaces of the rolled anode than at the interfaces of cast anode.

Amplified Detection of Iron Ion Based on Plasmon Enhanced Fluorescence and Subsequently Fluorescence Quenching

A facile and rapid approach for detecting low concentration of iron ion(Fe3+) with improved sensitivity was developed on the basis of plasmon enhanced fluorescence and subsequently amplified fluorescence quenching.Au1Ag4@Si O2 nanoparticles were synthesized and dispersed into fluorescein isothiocyanate(FITC) solution. The fluorescence of the FITC solution was improved due to plasmon enhanced fluorescence. However, efficient fluorescence quenching of the FITC/Au1Ag4@Si O2 solution was subsequently achieved when Fe3+, with a concentration ranging from17 n M to 3.4 l M, was added into the FITC/Au1Ag4@Si O2 solution, whereas almost no fluorescence quenching was observed for pure FITC solution under the same condition. FITC/Au1Ag4@Si O2 solution shows a better sensitivity for detecting low concentration of Fe3+compared to pure FITC solution. The quantized limit of detection toward Fe3+was improved from 4.6 l M for pure FITC solution to 20 n M for FITC/Au1Ag4@Si O2 solution.

New Asymmetric Model for Predicting Ternary Thermodynamic Properties

The prediction of the thermodynamic properties of ternary systems from the properties of their sub-binary systems is of great importance to phase diagram calculations. In the present study, a new asymmetric model which has more clear physical significance has been developed for evaluating the ternary thermodynamic properties from its three binary components. The model is considered to be rigorous in the case where the pseudobinary systems of fixed X2/X3 are regular are regular solution. The application of new model to the prediction of ternary enthalpies of mixing for Bi-Ga-Sn, Au-Ag-Sn and NaCl-KCl-CaCl2 systems shows that the calculated results by new model are closer to experimental data than those by Toop's model.

Corrosion behavior of three Ag–50Cu alloys prepared by different processes in NaCl solutions

Corrosion behavior of two nanocrystalline bulk Ag–50Cu alloys and one coarse-grained counterpart prepared by liquid-phase reduction(LPR), mechanical alloying(MA) and powder metallurgy(PM) methods,respectively, were investigated in Na Cl solutions. They were finished by means of PARM273 A and M5210 electrochemical apparatus through potentiodynamic polarization method and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy(EIS) technique. The results show that corrosion rates of three Ag–50Cu alloys increase with the increment of Na Cl solution concentrations. Corrosion rates of LPRAg–50Cu alloy are a little higher than those of PMAg–50Cu alloy,but evidently lower than those of MAAg–50Cu alloy. The difference in corrosion rates is attributed to the large reduction in the grain size and homogeneous microstructure of nanocrystalline alloys. Passive current densities decrease and afterward increase for PMAg–50Cu alloy,decrease for MAAg–50Cu alloy, and increase for LPRAg–50Cu alloy with the increment of Na Cl solution concentrations. After the grain sizes are refined, passive current densities become lower.

Exploring the degradation behavior of MgXAg alloys by in vitro electrochemical methods

Magnesium as biodegradable biomaterial could serve as bone augmentation material in implant dentistry.The knowledge about the predictability of the biodegradation process is essential as this process needs to go hand in hand with the formation of new bone to gradually replace the augmentation material.Therefore,this work aimed to assess if the electrochemistry(EC)measurements of the corrosion process correlate with the surface features at various time points during the surface degradation,in order to describe the degradation process of Mg and Mg alloys more reliably,under the assumption that differences in EC behavior can be detected and related to specific patterns on the surface.In this test setup,a special optical chamber was used for electrochemical measurements on Mg and Mg-alloys(Mg2Ag,Mg4Ag,and Mg6Ag).Specimens were investigated using different circulating cell culture solutions as electrolytes,these were minimum essential medium(MEM),Hank’s Balanced Salt Solution(HBSS),and MEM+(MEM with added sodium hydrogen carbonate)at 37℃.Open circuit potential measurements(OCP)over 30 min followed by cyclic polarization were performed.The electrochemistry data,including OCP,exchange current density and corrosion potential,were compared with visible changes at the surface during these treatments over time.The results show that the addition of silver(Ag)leads to a“standardization”of the degradation regardless of the selected test medium.It is currently difficult to correlate the visible microscopic changes with the data taken from the measurements.Therefore,further investigations are necessary.

Effects of Ag Addition on Precipitation and Fatigue Crack Propagation Behavior of a Medium-Strength Al–Zn–Mg Alloy

Effects of trace addition of Ag on the fatigue crack propagation behavior and microstructure of a mediumstrength aged AI-Zn-Mg alloy were investigated in the present work. The results show that a combination of enhanced tensile strength and improved fatigue crack propagation resistance in Al-Zn-Mg alloys is achieved with small addition of Ag. The enhanced strength is attributed to the high density of η＇ precip- itates within the grains and narrow precipitate free zones in the vicinity of grain boundaries. The main contribution to the improvement of fatigue crack propagation resistance comes from the coarser precipitates within the grains. When subjected to two-step aging. Ag-added alloy shows larger semi-coherent matrix precipitates. These relatively coarser precipitates increase the homogeneity of deformation and therefore improve the fatigue crack propagation resistance. In addition, microstructure analysis indicates that the size and distribution of inclusions as well as the grain structures of Al-Zn-Mg alloys are independent of Ag addition.