Preparation and wear properties of TiB_2/Al-30Si composites via in-situ melt reactions under high-energy ultrasonic field

TiB2/Al-30Si composites were fabricated via in-situ melt reaction under high-energy ultrasonic field. The microstructure and wear properties of the composite were investigated by XRD, SEM and dry sliding testing. The results indicate that TiB2 reinforcement particles are uniformly distributed in the aluminum matrix under high-energy ultrasonic field. The morphology of the TiB2 particles is in circle-shape or quadrangle-shape, and the size of the particles is 0.1-1.5μm. The primary silicon particles are in quadrangle-shape and the average size of them is about 10μm. Hardness values of the Al-30Si matrix alloy and the TiB2/Al-30Si composites considerably increase as the high energy ultrasonic power increases. In particular, the maximum hardness value of the in-situ composites is about 1.3 times as high as that of the matrix alloy when the ultrasonic power is 1.2 kW, reaching 412 MPa. Meanwhile, the wear resistance of the in-situ TiB2/Al-30Si composites prepared under high-energy ultrasonic field is obviously improved and is insensitive to the applied loads of the dry sliding testing.

Mechanism and Kinetic Model of In-situ TiB_2/7055Al Nanocomposites Synthesized under High Intensity Ultrasonic Field

In-situ TiB2/7055Al nanocomposites are fabricated by in situ melt chemical reaction from 7055Al-K2TiF6-KBF4 system under high intensity ultrasonic field,and the mechanism and kinetic model of in-situ melt chemical reaction are investigated.X-ray diffraction （XRD） and scanning electron microscope （SEM） analyses indicate that the sizes of in-situ TiB2 nanoparticles are in the range of 80-120 nm.The results of ice-water quenched samples show that the whole process contains four stages,and the overall in-situ reaction time is 10 minutes.The in situ synthesis process is controlled mainly by chemical reaction in earlier stage （former 3 minutes）,and by the particulate diffusing in later stage.The mechanism of key reaction between Al3Ti and AlB2 under high intensity ultrasonic in the 7055Al-K2TiF6-KBF4 system is the reaction-diffusion-crack-rediffusion.Furthermore,the reactive kinetic models in 7055Al-K2TiF6-KBF4 system are established.

Effect of high-intensity ultrasonic field on process of semi-continuous casting for AZ80 magnesium alloy billets

Under the high-intensity ultrasonic field,AZ80 magnesium alloy was semi-continuously cast.The effects of ultrasonic intensity on the as-cast microstructures and mechanical properties were investigated.The results show that the microstructures of the alloy cast under high-intensity ultrasonic field are fine and uniform,and the grains are equiaxed,rose-shaped or globular with an average size of 257μm.High-intensity field significantly decreases the grain size,changes the morphologies of theβ-Mg17Al12 phases and reduces their area fraction.It is also shown that a proper increase in ultrasonic intensity is helpful to obtain fine,uniform and equiaxed as-cast microstructures.The optimum ultrasonic parameters are that frequency is 20 kHz and ultrasonic intensity is 1 368 W.The mechanical tests show that the mechanical properties of the as-cast AZ80 magnesium alloy billets cast under ultrasonic field are greatly improved,and with increasing the ultrasonic intensity,the mechanical properties of the entire alloy billets are much higher and more uniform than those of the alloy without ultrasonic field.

In situ(Mg_2Si+MgO)/Mg composites fabricated from AZ91-Al_2(SiO_3)_3 with assistance of high-energy ultrasonic field

In situ （Mg2Si＋MgO）/Mg composites fabricated from AZ91-A12（SiO3）3 under high-energy ultrasonic field were investigated by XRD, DSC and SEM. The results indicate that the size, morphology and distribution of the in situ Mg2Si particles are greatly optimized with the assistance of the high-energy ultrasonic field. The amounts of the in situ Mg2Si particles are increased, the sizes are refined, the distributions become uniform, and the morphologies are changed to smooth olive-shape or spherical shape. The amounts of brittle fl-Mgl7All2 phases are decreased and the morphologies are granulated. The values of the tensile strength ab and HB hardness are increased. These are due to the cavitation effects and acoustic streaming effects induced by the high-energy ultrasonic field.

Research progress on semi-continuous casting of magnesium alloys under external field

High-performance magnesium alloys are moving towards a trend of being produced on a large scale and in an integrated manner.The foundational key to their successful production is the high-quality cast ingots.Magnesium alloys produced through the conventional semi-continuous casting process inevitably contain casting defects,which makes it challenging to manufacture high-quality ingots.The integration of external field assisted controlled solidification technology,which combines physical fields such as electromagnetic and ultrasonic fields with traditional semi-continuous casting processes,enables the production of high-quality magnesium alloy ingots characterized by a homogeneous microstructure and absence of cracks.This article mainly summarizes the technical principles of those external field assisted casting process.The focus is on elaborating the refinement mechanism of different types of electromagnetic fields,ultrasonic fields,and combined physical fields during the solidification of magnesium alloys.Finally,the development prospects of producing highquality magnesium alloy ingots through semi-continuous casting under the external field were discussed.

Mechanism and microstructure of nickel-ceria composite coatings prepared by pulse current deposition under the ultrasonic field

In recent research, a novel method combined with pulse current （PC） deposition and the ultrasonic （U） field was used to fabricate pure nickel and nickel-ceria composite coatings, respectively. Morphology, crack propagation, and crystal texture were observed and analysed by using environment scanning electron microscopy （E-SEM） and transmission electron microscopy （TEM）. Orthogonal experiment [L16 （45）] was designed to optimize the parameters of pulsed power and the appropriate amount of RE addition based on microhardness. Effect of RE addition and pulsed current on the mechanism of co-electrodeposition was also investigated and compared. Experimental results indicated that it produced the alloying coatings, exhibiting compact grain and amorphous state. Nano-sized RE would preferentially occupy and pad at the edge of cracked gaps and micropore to limit the growing location and space for coarse Ni grain. Furthermore, during annealing at 480 ℃ for 2 h, a solid-solution precipitated phase named NiCexO1-x （0

Direct-chilling casting of Mg alloy under electromagnetic and ultrasonic combined field

The effects of low frequency electromagnetic (LFEC) field and ultrasonic (US) field on the microstructures, macrosegregation of alloying elements and the mechanical properties of DC cast AZ80 alloy were studied. The results show that both LFEC and US fields can refine the grains of the billets, which results in the increase in mechanical properties and uniformity of alloying element distribution. The effective refinement takes place on the edge of ingots when LFEC field is applied, while in the center of billets when field US is adopted. Combined the characteristics of LFEC and US fields, a new process for direct-chilling (DC) casting of Mg-electromagnetic-ultrasonic (ECUS) casting is developed, by which the grains are refined significantly and are more uniform in the whole ingots, and the mechanical properties of the ingots are improved.

Optimization of the acid leaching process by using an ultrasonic field for metallurgical grade silicon

In the experiment, acid leaching under an ultrasonic field （20 kHz, 80 W） was used to remove AI, Fe, and Ti impurities in metallurgical grade silicon （MG-Si）. The effects of the acid leaching process parameters, including the particle size of silicon, the acid type （HC1, HNO3, HF,） and the leaching time on the purification of MG-Si were investigated. The results show that HC1 leaching, an initial size of 0.1 mm for the silicon particles, and 8 h of leaching time are the optimum parameters to purify MG-Si. The acid leaching process under an ultrasonic field is more effective than the acid leaching under magnetic stirring, the mechanism of which is preliminarily discussed.

Nondestructive Testing and Characterization of Residual Stress Field Using an Ultrasonic Method

To address the difficulty in testing and calibrating the stress gradient in the depth direction of mechanical components, a new technology of nondestructive testing and characterization of the residual stress gradient field by ultrasonic method is proposed based on acoustoelasticity theory. By carrying out theoretical analysis, the sensitivity coefficients of different types of ultrasonic are obtained by taking the low carbon steel（12%C） as a research object. By fixing the interval distance between sending and receiving transducers, the mathematical expressions of the change of stress and the variation of time are established. To design one sending-one receiving and oblique incidence ultrasonic detection probes, according to Snell law, the critically refracted longitudinal wave（LCR wave） is excited at a certain depth of the fixed distance of the tested components. Then, the relationship between the depth of LCR wave detection and the center frequency of the probe in Q235 steel is obtained through experimental study. To detect the stress gradient in the depth direction, a stress gradient LCR wave detection model is established, through which the stress gradient formula is derived by the relationship between center frequency and detecting depth. A C-shaped stress specimen of Q235 steel is designed to conduct stress loading tests, and the stress is measured with the five group probes at different center frequencies. The accuracy of ultrasonic testing is verified by X-ray stress analyzer. The stress value of each specific depth is calculated using the stress gradient formula. Accordingly, the ultrasonic characterization of residual stress field is realized. Characterization results show that the stress gradient distribution is consistent with the simulation in ANSYS. The new technology can be widely applied in the detection of the residual stress gradient field caused by mechanical processing, such as welding and shot peening.

Effect of applied pressure and ultrasonic vibration on microstructure and microhardness of Al-5.0Cu alloy

The squeeze pressure field and power ultrasonic field were applied during the conventional casting process of Al-5.0Cu alloy simultaneously. The effects of individual squeeze pressure or power ultrasonic and their coupling on the microstructures and microhardness of Al-5.0Cu alloy were studied by optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, image analysis and micro Vickers hardness test. The results show that compared with the conventional casting, refined microstructures, homogeneous distribution of α（Al） and θ（Al2Cu） and improved microhardness can be obtained when squeeze pressure or power ultrasonic is applied individually. For the case of combined fields, both the treated region and the improvement of microstructure and properties can be enhanced.

Hydrometallurgical purification of metallurgical grade silicon

The effects of the particle size of ground metallurgical grade silicon （MG-Si）, the sort of acids, and the type of stirring on the purified efficiency of MG-Si were investigated. It was found that a particle size less than 0.1 mm was most effective for acid leaching; the extraction yield of impurities was increased by 9% with HF leaching compared with HCl leaching and HNO3 leaching, and increased by 7% with ultrasonic stirring compared with mechanical stirring. The principle of hydrometallurgical purification of metallurgical grade silicon under ultrasonic fields was also discussed.

Microstructure Refinement of Sn-Sb Peritectic Alloy under High-Intensity Ultrasound Treatment

In this paper the solidification behavior of Sn-Sb peritectic alloy and the mechanism of grain refinement in solidification process under high-intensity ultrasonic field are investigated. Three different powers of high-intensity ultrasound are introduced into molten Sn-Sb peritectic alloy to study the refining effectiveness. The results show that the application of high-intensity ultrasound during solidification process of Sn-Sb peritectic alloy can refine α phase and β phase and eliminate gravity segregation of the alloy. As acoustic intensity is increased from 400 W to 800 W, not only the homogenous fine structure can be obtained, but also the cubic β phase crystals tend to be spherical. Microstructure of the sample treated by 600 W high-intensity ultrasound demonstrates the best refining effect.

Ultrasonic displacement field generated by laser pulse line source

Applying the Fourier transform to the wave equations of elastic medium at its surface a laser pulse line source is acted, the integral representations of solutions are obtained. Displacement waveforms are calculated numerically by using double FFT. The calculated results include the displacements of the elastic half space of Aluminum medium, and epicenter and off-epicenter of an Aluminum plate. The two exciting sources of thermoelastic and ablating generation are considered respectively. The experiment was made on the Aluminum medium with a Nd:YAG laser and the normal displacement signals are detected by a laser interferometer. The numerical results are quite in agreement with experiments.

Measurement of acoustic field radiated by low frequency power ultrasonic transducer with laser-interferometer

Based on the piezo-optic effect of medium, the refractive index of medium is the function of its density, and so it's also the function of acoustic pressure. Therefore, acoustic pressure in the optical path everywhere can be determined absolutely by laser-interferometric technique and relative distribution of pressure in the middle and far acoustic field, which can be obtained from theory or experiment respectively. Theory and experiment of measurement of pressure in acoustic field with laser-interferometer are introduced. Distribution of pressure radiated by a power ultrasonic transducer is determined by laser interferometric technique. The theoretical and experimental results are in good agreement. The receiving sensitivity of a PVDF (Polyvinylidene fluoride) transducer in free field is also calibrated absolutely due to above results and its sensitivity is -118.5 dB.

The study of complex focussing acoustic field of a convex phased array probe used in ultrasonic diagnostic B-scanner

This paper reports a study of complex focussing acoustic fields of a convex phased array probe widely used in ultrasonic diagnostic B-scanner. The time delay necessary for electronic focussing and for geometric focussing of complex focussing is given. By means of Helmholtz's integral formula, the expressions of acoustic fields were obtained for the electronic focussing and complex focussing.With Simpson's numerical integral, a great deal of computations was carried out with an 86 / 330 computer. By means of using different parameters, an optimum focal range and beam width of a 4 sequences electronic and complex focussing acoustic system was selected. With an EUB-40 ultrasound diagnostic B-scanner produced by the Hitachi company, the lateral focussing acoustic field and lateral resolution in an echoic tank were photographed by latticing method and the experimental result is consistent with the theory.

Dynamic solidification mechanism of ternary Ag-Cu-Ge eutectic alloy under ultrasonic condition

The dynamic solidification of ternary Ag38.5Cu33.4Ge28.1 eutectic alloy within a 35 kHz ultrasonic field is investigated and compared with both its equilibrium solidification by DSC method and its rapid solidification in drop tube. The volume fractions of the primary （Ge） phase and pseudobinary （Ag＋ε2） eutectic solidified within ultrasonic field are larger than those formed under equilibrium state, whereas that of ternary （Ag＋ε2＋Ge） eutectic exhibits the reverse trend. During rapid solidification, the liquid alloy droplet directly solidifies into ternary （Ag＋ε2＋Ge） eutectic if its diameter is smaller than 350 um. The ultrasound stimulates the nucleation of alloy melt and prevents the bulk undercooling. With the increase of sound intensity, the primary （Ge） phase transfers from faceted dendrites to nonfaceted blocks with blunt edges, and its grain size is remarkably reduced. Both pseudobinary （Ag＋ε2） and ternary （Ag＋ε2＋Ge） eutectics experience a morphological transition from regular to anomalous structures. This indicates that their cooperative growth mode is replaced by independent growth of eutectic phases under the combined effects of cavitation and acoustic streaming. The ultrasound also shows a prominent coarsening effect to the pseudobinary （Ag＋ε2） and ternary （Ag＋ε2＋Ge） eutectics.