Effect of Heat Treatment on Delayed Fracture Resistance of High Strength Steel 30CrMnSi2NiNb

The steel specimens of nominal composition 0.3C-1.0Cr-1.0Mn-2.0Si-1.0Ni-0.04 Nb were quenched and tempered or isothermally quenched from various temperatures.It is found that the steel quenched and tempered with a tensile strength of 1 500-1 600 MPa has a KISCC（critical stress intensity factor） value below 15.0 MPa · m1/2.The steel isothermally quenched with a tensile strength of 1 350-1 750 MPa has a KISCC value about 20.0 MPa·m1/2.In addition,with increase of isothermal quenching temperature,the tensile strength decreases greatly and KISCC value does not pronouncedly change.The microstructure of isothermally quenched specimens is composed of bainite and retained austenite.The delayed fracture resistance is dependent on the stability of austenite,which is in turn related to the retained austenite volume fraction and carbon content in austenite.

Microstructure and mechanical property of resistance spot welded joint of aluminum alloy to high strength steel with especial electrodes

Dissimilar material joining of 6008 aluminum alloy to H220 YD galvanized high strength steel was performed by resistance spot welding with especial electrodes that were a flat tip electrode against the steel surface and a domed tip electrode upon the aluminum alloy surface. An intermetallic compound layer composed of Fe2Al5 and FeAl3 was formed at the steel/ aluminum interface in the welded joint. The thickness of the intermetallic compound layer increased with increasing welding current and welding time, and the maximum thickness being 7. 0 μm was obtained at 25 kA and 300 ms. The weld nugget diameter and tensile shear load of the welded joint had increased tendencies first with increasing welding current （ 18 -22 kA） and welding time （ 50 - 300 ms）, then changed little with further increasing welding current （ 22 - 25 kA） and welding time （300 -400 ms）. The maximum tensile shear load reached 5.4 kN at 22 kA and 300 ms. The welded joint fractured through brittle intermetallic compound layer and aluminum alloy nugget.

Effect of Heat Treatment on Mechanical Property of High Cr-W Cast Iron

The microstructure of high Cr-W cast iron after heat treatment were analyzed, and the effect of various heat treatment temperature and time on mechanical properties of high Cr-W cast iron were studied, and the best process parameter of heat treatment was provided in this paper. The results show that the heat treatment can improve the mechanical property of high Cr-W cast iron, and higher synthetic mechanical property of high Cr-W cast iron can be obtained when treated with normalization at 980 ℃ for 2 h and tempered at 400 ℃ for 2 h.

Relief of Residual Stresses in 800 MPa Grade High Strength Steel Weldments by Explosion Treatment and its Effect on Mechanical Properties

The explosion treatment technique has been used in the relief of residual stresses in 800 MPa grade high strength steel manual welded joints. The residual stresses on surface and through thickness of the weldment were measured for both as-welded and explosion-treated sample, the mechanical properties of welded joints under different conditions were also tested. The effect of explosion treatment on the fracture toughness of materials with a residual defect was investigated by crack opening displacement （COD） test. The results show that explosion treatment can reduce not only the surface residual stress but also the residual stress through thickness in the welded joints. The effect of explosion treatment on the mechanical properties and a residual defect in welded joint were inconspicuous.

Effect of Heat Treatment on Microstructure and Mechanical properties of high strength low alloy(HSLA)steel

In this paper,a Fe-based Mn-Ni–Cr–Mo high strength low alloy(HSLA)steel was prepared by using Vacuum melting,following by hot rolling with 78%deformation and various heat treatment processes.Microstructure were characterized by optical microscope(OM),scanning electron microscope(SEM)equipped with energy dispersive spectrometer.Tensile tests were performed.After direct quenching(Q)from 860℃,the samples were subjected to secondary quenching(L)at different intercritical temperatures within the two-phase region and various tempering temperatures(T).Results show that QLT treatment increases elongation and decreases yield ratio compared with conventional quenching and tempering process(QT).The optimum QLT heat treatment parameter in terms of temperature are determined as Q:860℃,L:700℃,and T:600℃,resulting in the better combined properties with yield strength of 756MPa,tensile strength of 820MPa,tensile elongation of 16.76%and yield ratio of 0.923.

Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of Aer Met 100 Ultra-high Strength Steel Joints by Laser Welding

AerMet100 ultra-high strength steel plates with a thickness of 2 mm were welded using a COz laser welding system. The influences of the welding process parameters on the morphology and microstructure of the welding joints were investigated, and the mechanical property of the welding joints was analyzed. The experimental results showed that the fusion zone of welding joint mainly consisted of columnar grains and a fine dendrite substructure grew epitaxially from the matrix. With the other conditions remaining unchanged, a finer weld microstructure was along with the scanning speed increase. The solidification microstructure gradually transformed from cellular crystal into dendrite crystal and the spaces of dendrite secondary arms rose from the fusion line to the center of the fusion zone. In the fusion zone of the weld, the rapid cooling caused the formation of martensite, which led the microhardness of the fusion zone higher than that of the matrix and the heat affected zone. The tensile strength of the welding joints was tested as 1 700 MPa, which was about 87% of the matrix. However, the tensile strength of the welding joints without defects existed was tested as 1832 MPa, which was about 94% of the matrix.

Effects of heat treatment on the microstructures and mechanical properties of a new type of nitrogen-containing die steel

Nitrogen can increase the strength of steels without weakening the toughness and improve the corrosion resistance at the same time. Compared with conventional nitrogen-free die steels, a new type of nitrogen-containing die steel was developed with many superior properties, such as high strength, high hardness, and good toughness. This paper focused on the effects of heat treatment on the microstruc- tures and mechanical properties of the new type of nitrogen-containing die steel, which were investigated by the optimized deformation process and heat treatment. Isothermal spheroidal annealing and high-temperature quenching as well as high-temperature tempering were ap- plied in the experiment by means of an orthogonal method after the steel was multiply forged. The mechanical properties of nitro- gen-containing die steel forgings are better than the standard of NADCA #207-2003.

Evolution of carbides and carbon content in matrix of an ultra-high carbon sintered steel during heat treatment process

DTA, thermal expansion, XRD, and SEM were used to evaluate the effect of quenching temperature on the mechanical properties and microstructure of a novel sintered steel Fe-6Co-1Ni-5Cr-5Mo-1C. Lattice parameters and the mass fraction of carbon dissolved in the matrix of the steel quenched were investigated. It is discovered that the hardness of the steel increases with quenching temperature in the range of 840-900℃ and remains constant in the range of 900 to 1100℃. It decreases rapidly when the temperature is higher than 1100℃. The mass fraction of carbon dissolved in the matrix of the steel quenched at 840℃ is 0.38, but when the quenching temperature is increased to 1150℃, it increases to 0.98. The carbides formed during sintering are still present at grain boundaries and in the matrix of the steel quenched at low quenching temperatures, such as 840℃. When the quenching temperature is increased to 1150℃, most of the carbides at grain boundaries are dissolved with just a small amount of spherical M23C6 existing in the matrix of the quenched steel.

MICROSTRUCTURE AND MECHANICAL PROPERTY DEVELOPMENT IN THE SIMULATED HEAT AFFECTED ZONE OF V TREATED HSLA STEELS

The simulated heat affected zone （HAZ） of the high strength low alloy （HSLA） steels containing 0%, 0.047%, 0.097% and 0.151% vanadium, respectively, were studied with Gleeble-2000 thermomechanical simulator to determine the influence of vanadium addition on the mechanical properties of the HAZ. The HAZ simulation involved reheating the samples to 1350℃, and then cooling to ambient temperature at a cooling rate of 5℃/s ranging from 800 to 500℃ （△8/5=60s）. The mechanical properties including tensile strength and -20℃ impact toughness were conducted. The microstructures of the base steel and the simulated HAZs were investigated using optical microscope, scanning electron microscope （ SEM ） and transmission electron microscope （TEM）. Based on the systemutic examination, the present work confirmed that about 0.05% vanadium addition to low carbon low alloy steels resulted in expected balance of strength and toughness of the HAZ. And more than 0.10% levels addition led to detrimental toughness of the HAZ SEM study showed that the simulated 0.097% and 0.151%V HAZs consisted of more coarse ferrite plates with greater and more M-A constituents along austenite grain and ferrite plate bound- aries. The impact fracture surfaces of the simulated 0.097% and 0.151%V HAZs showed typically brittle mode with predominant cleavages. The size of the facet in the fracture surface increased with increasing vanadium level from 0.097% to 0.151%.As a result, the simulated 0.151% V HAZ has the lowest impact toughness of the four specimens.

Effect of High Pressure Heat Treatment on Microstructure and Compressive Properties of Low Carbon Steel

The effect of high pressure heat treatment on microstructure and compressive properties of low carbon steel were investigated by optical microscope,transmission electron microscope,hardness tester and compression test methods.The results show that martensite appears in low carbon steel at 1-5GPa GPa and 950°C for 15 minutes treatment,high pressure heat treatment can improve the hardness and compressive properties of the steel,the yield strength of the steel increases with increasing pressure,and its compressive properties are better than that treated under normal pressure quenching.

Effect of Heat Treatment Process on Properties of 1000 MPa Ultra-High Strength Steel

Two types of steel, C-Mn-CrMo B microalloyed steel and C-Mn-Mo-Nb-Cu-B microalloyed steel, are designed to develop 1000 MPa ultra high strength steel. Two kinds of processes, thermomeehanical controlled process （TMCP） combined with traditional off-line quenching and tempering （QT） process versus controlled rolling process （CR） combined with direct quenching and tempering （DQ＋T） process, are applied. The effect of heat treatment processing mode on the microstructure and mechanical properties is studied. The relationship between microstructure and mechanical properties is investigated by SEM and TEM. After tempering at 450 to 550 ℃ for 1 h, the steel produced by TMCP＋QT process shows combination of excellent strength and low temperature toughness. The yield strength is above 1 000 MPa, elongation above 15% and impact energy at -40 ℃ more than 30 J. After tempering at 450 ℃, a large number of ε-Cu particles precipitated in C-Mn-Mo-Nb-Cu-B steel produced by CR＋DQ＋T process lead to a significant increase in yield strength. And after tempering at 500 to 600 ℃, the yield strength of the steel is further improved to 1 030 MPa because of precipitates, such as nitride or carbide of niobium, carbide of molybedenum and vanadium. When the tempering temperature is increased above 620 ℃, the yield strength is still higher than 1 000 MPa and elongation is above 20% and impact energy at --40 ℃ is more than 35 J. After tempering at above 500 ℃, the toughness of the steel treated by TMCP＋QT process is superior to that of steel by CR＋DQ＋T process.

Study of the influence of heat treatment procedure on the microstructure and mechanical properties of H13 mandrel steel

In this study,the microstructural evolution of H13 mandrel steel during its manufacturing process and the influence of the preheat treatment procedure and the second-step tempering temperature on its microstructural and mechanical properties were investigated.The experiment results showed that,using an H13 mandrel steel billet in the as-annealed condition produced by Baosteel as a raw material,the preheat treatments of normalization,spheroidization annealing,or normalization plus spheroidization annealing,as described in this paper,had no significant effect on the final mechanical properties after quenching and tempering.H13 mandrel steel met all the mechanical property requirements via quenching and tempering without preheat treatment.In the temperature range from 600 to 680 t,with an increase in the second-step tempering temperature,the strength gradually decreased whereas the plasticity and toughness gradually improved.Using the quenching-plus-first-tempering procedure of 1030℃/l h/oil cooling+600℃/5 h/air cooling,good balance between strength and toughness could be achieved by selecting 650℃ as the second-step tempering temperature.The test results also showed that the holding time of the second tempering played a big role in the mechanical properties.When this holding time was extended from 1 to 2 h,the hardness of the H13 mandrel steel decreased and the extent of this reduction increased with an increase in the second-step tempering temperature.In the temperature range of 1030 to 1090℃,the yield strength,tensile strength,and hardness gradually increased,however,the impact toughness decreased with increases in the quenching temperature.

Effect of Heat Treatment Parameters on the Mechanical and Microstructure Properties of Low-Alloy Steel

This study examines the effect of heat treatment at three different temperatures of 800°C, 950°C and 1100°C on the microstructure and mechanical properties of low-alloy steel with an addition of manganese, chrome and lead. To determine an impact of the applied heat treatment operations, testing of mechanical properties and microstructural examinations of the steel with 0.23%, 0.24%, 0.29% and 0.31% C were conducted. This work shows that the mechanical strengths of the alloy steel are improved with increasing the heat treatment temperature. In addition, the microstructure trends toward recrystallized ferrite grains as the heat treatment temperature increases.

Effect of Heat Treatment on Mechanical Properties and Microstructure of NST 37-2 Steel

Engineering materials, mostly steel, are heat treated under controlled sequence of heating and cooling to alter their physical and mechanical properties to meet desired engineering applications. In this study, the effect of heat treatment (annealing, normalising, hardening, and tempering) on the microstructure and some selected mechanical properties of NST 37-2 steel were studied. Sample of steel was purchased from local market and the spectrometry analysis was carried out. The steel samples were heat treated in an electric furnace at different temperature levels and holding times;and then cooled in different media. The mechanical properties (tensile yield strength, ultimate tensile strength, Young’s modulus, percentage reduction, percentage elongation, toughness and hardness) of the treated and untreated samples were determined using standard methods and the microstructure of the samples was examined using metallographic microscope equipped with camera. Results showed that the mechanical properties of NST 37-2 steel can be changed and improved by various heat treatments for a particular application. It was also found that the annealed samples with mainly ferrite structure gave the lowest tensile strength and hardness value and highest ductility and toughness value while hardened sample which comprise martensite gave the highest tensile strength and hardness value and lowest ductility and toughness value.

A novel microstructural design and heat treatment technique based on gradient control of carbon partitioning between austenite and martensite for high strength steels

Based on gradient control of carbon partitioning between martensite and austenite during heat treatment of steels,a stepping-quenching-partitioning(S-Q-P) process is developed for high strength steels.The S-Q-P process involves several quenching processes at progressively lower temperatures between martensite-start(Ms) and martensite-finish(Mf) temperatures,each followed by a partitioning treatment at either the initial quenching temperature or above that temperature.A novel microstructure is designed based on the S-Q-P process.Sizes and distributions of retained austenite and high-carbon martensite surrounded by martensite laths can be manipulated by the partitioning duration and temperature,and quenching temperature of the S-Q-P process.Alloying element Si is employed in the S-Q-P steel to suppress formation of carbides and create suitable amount of retained austenite.A steel of 0.39C-1.22Mn-1.12Si-0.23Cr(wt.%) treated by the S-Q-P process is endowed with some special microstructural characteristics:some strips of retained austenite located at edges of martensite blocks with high density of dislocations and between martensite laths,some small blocks of twinned martensites distributed among bundles of the low-carbon martensite lath.The mechanical properties of the medium carbon steel after the S-Q-P process can reach ultimate tensile strength(Rm) of 1240 MPa,total elongation(EI) of 25%,and product of strength and ductility(PSD) of 31.2 GPa% that are much more improved than those after the conventional quenching-tempering(Q-T) and currently prevailing quenching-partitioning(Q-P) treatments.The PSD of the tested steel after the S-Q-P process increases by 67% and 32% as compared with those after the Q-T and Q-P processes,respectively.

Achieving Fine-Grained Microstructure and Superior Mechanical Property in a Plain Low-Carbon Steel Using Heavy Cold Rolling Combined with Short-Time Heat Treatment

A new thermomechanical process consisting of heavy cold rolling(HCR)and short-time heat treatment(STH)is developed to fabricate fine-grained martensite microstructure in a low-cost plain low-carbon steel.To achieve the optimal mechanical properties after STH,three different ferrite-pearlite(F-P)dual-phase microstructures are prepared via hot rolling(HR),HR and austenitizing,and HR and HCR.The microstructure evolution and the comprehensive mechanical properties of the alloy during STH are then investigated.We find that the volume fractions of transformed martensite after STH increase with decreasing grain sizes of the pre-STH F-P dual phases.The rapid heating and short-time holding of STH promote grain nucleation and inhibit grain growth,resulting in microstructure refinement.The formation of martensites with different morphologies and different carbon concentrations in the HR and HCR+STH alloy is identified,owing to the inhomogeneous carbon distribution by STH.Tensile experiments demonstrate that STH greatly improves the comprehension mechanical properties of the alloy.Excellent mechanical properties,with a yield strength of 1224 MPa,a tensile strength of 1583 MPa,a uniform elongation of 4.0%and a total elongation of 7.3%are achieved in the HR and HCR+STH alloy.These excellent mechanical properties are principally attributed to the microstructure refinement and martensite formation induced by STH,with a yield strength improvement of 134%and a tensile strength improvement of 150%relative to the HR alloy.

Phase change materials as quenching media for heat treatment of 42CrMo4 steels

In the present work,paraffin phase change material is used as quenchant for the heat treatment of 42CrMo4 alloy and compared with water,air,and CuO doped paraffin.The samples were prepared based on ASTM E 8M-98 standard for tensile test and then heated up to 830°C,kept for 4 h in an electric resistance furnace and then quenched in the mentioned media.Elastic modulus,yield strength,ultimate tensile strength,elongation,and modulus of toughness were determined according to the obtained stress?strain curves.Moreover,the hardness and microstructural evolution were investigated after the heat treatment at different media.The samples quenched in paraffin and CuO-doped paraffin are higher in ultimate tensile strength(1439 and 1306 MPa,respectively)than those quenched in water(1190 MPa)and air(1010 MPa).The highest hardness,with a value of HV 552,belonged to the sample quenched in CuO-doped paraffin.The microstructural studies revealed that the non-tempered steel had a ferrite/pearlite microstructure,while by quenching in water,paraffin and CuO-doped paraffin,ferrite/martensite microstructures were achieved.It is also observed that using the air as quenchant resulted in a three-phase bainite/martensite/ferrite microstructure.

Discussion on the heat treatment process of cold rolled Q345 steel in laboratory

A new kind of DP steel with about 40% martensite in matrix was developed from cold rolled Q345 steel by continuous annealing simulation.Microstructure and mechanical properties obtained by conventional heat treatment certified that the microstructure matrix is composed of ferrite,pearlite and martensite,the samples exhibited high tensile strength and low yield ratio,however,the elongation is very low,only about 10%.Due to the high carbon content,low soaking temperature and relatively higher rapid cooling start temperature should be adopted for the new process.