Evolution of bonding interface in solid-liquid cast-rolling bonding of Cu/Al clad strip

Cu/Al clad strips are prepared using solid?liquid cast-rolling bonding(SLCRB)technique with a d160mm×150mm twin-roll experimental caster.The extent of interfacial reactions,composition of the reaction products,and their micro-morphology evolution in the SLCRB process are investigated with scanning electron microscope(SEM),energy dispersive spectrometer(EDS),and X-ray diffraction(XRD).In the casting pool,initial aluminized coating is first generated on the copper strip surface,with the diffusion layer mainly consisting ofα(Al)+CuAl2and growing at high temperatures,with the maximum thickness of10μm.After sequent rolling below the kiss point,the diffusion layer is broken by severe elongation,which leads to an additional crack bond process with a fresh interface of virgin base metal.The average thickness is reduced from10to5μm.The reaction products,CuAl2,CuAl,and Cu9Al4,are dispersed along the rolling direction.Peeling and bending test results indicate that the fracture occurs in the aluminum substrate,and the morphology is a dimple pattern.No crack or separation is found at the bonding interface after90°-180°bending.The presented method provides an economical way to fabricate Cu/Al clad strip directly.

Cast-rolling force model in solid-liquid cast-rolling bonding(SLCRB) process for fabricating bimetal clad strips

Based on twin-roll casting, a cast-rolling force model was proposed to predict the rolling force in the bimetal solid-liquid cast-rolling bonding(SLCRB) process. The solid-liquid bonding zone was assumed to be below the kiss point(KP). The deformation resistance of the liquid zone was ignored. Then, the calculation model was derived. A 2D thermal-flow coupled simulation was established to provide a basis for the parameters in the model, and then the rolling forces of the Cu/Al clad strip at different rolling speeds were calculated. Meanwhile, through measurement experiments, the accuracy of the model was verified. The influence of the rolling speed, the substrate strip thickness, and the material on the rolling force was obtained. The results indicate that the rolling force decreases with the increase of the rolling speed and increases with the increase of the thickness and thermal conductivity of the substrate strip. The rolling force is closely related to the KP height. Therefore, the formulation of reasonable process parameters to control the KP height is of great significance to the stability of cast-rolling forming.

Multi-scale Simulation on Bonding Mechanism of Solid-Liquid Cast-Rolling of Cu/Al Cladding Strip based on FEM and MD

To explore the complex thermal-mechanical-chemical behavior in the solid-liquid cast-roll bonding(SLCRB) of Cu/Al cladding strip, numerical simulations were conducted from both macro and micro scales. In macro-scale, with birth and death element method, a thermo-mechanical coupled finite element model(FEM) was set up to explore the temperature and contact pressure distribution at the Cu/Al bonding interface in the SLCRB process. Taking these macro-scale simulation results as boundary conditions, we simulated the atom diffusion law of the bonding interface by molecular dynamics(MD) in micro-scale. The results indicate that the temperature in Cu/Al bonding interface deceases from 700 to 320 ℃ from the entrance to the exit of caster, and the peak of contact pressure reaches up to 140 MPa. The interfacial diffusion thickness depends on temperature and rolling reduction, higher temperature results in larger thickness, and the rolling reduction below kiss point leads to significant elongation deformation of cladding strip which yields more newborn interface with fresh metal and make the diffusion layer thinner. The surface roughness of Cu strip was found to be benefit to atoms diffusion in the Cu/Al bonding interface. Meanwhile, combined with the SEM-EDS observation on the microstructure and composition in the bonding interface of the experimental samples acquired from the castrolling bite, it is revealed that the rolling reduction and severe elongation deformation in the solid-solid contact zone below kiss point guarantee the satisfactory metallurgical bonding with thin and smooth diffusion layer. The bonding mechanisms of reactive diffusion, mechanical interlocking and crack bonding are proved to coexist in the SLCRB process.

THE APPLICATION OF ARTIFICIAL NEURAL NETWORKS TO INVESTIGATION ON THE THICKNESS OF INTERMETALLIC LAYER UNDER SOLID-LIQUID PRESSURE BONDING OF STEEL AND ALUMINIUM

Artificial neural networks (ANN), being a sophisticated type of information processing system by imitating the neural system of human brain, can be used to investigate the effects of concentration of flux solution, temperature of liquid aluminium, temperture of tools and pressure on thickness of the intermetallic layer at the interface between steel and aluminium under solid-liquid pressure bonding of steel and aluminium perfectly. The optimum thickness has been determined according to the value of the optimum shearing strength.

Interfacial pressure distribution and bonding characteristics in twin-roll casting of Cu/Al clad strip

The mechanical properties and product thickness specifications of bimetallic clad strip prepared by twin-roll casting are tightly related to the mechanical behavior of bonding interface interaction.The thermal−flow coupled simulation and the interface pressure calculation models are established with the cast-rolling velocity as the variable.The results show that the interface temperature decreases,the interface pressure and the proportion of the thickness of the Al side increase with the decrease in cast-rolling velocity.The thinning of Cu strip mainly occurs in the backward slip zone.The higher pressure and longer solid/semi-solid contact time make the interface bonded fully,which provides favorable conditions for atomic diffusion.The inter-diffusion zone with a width of 4.9μm is attained at a cast-rolling velocity of 2.4 m/min,and the Cu side surface is nearly completely covered by aluminum.Therefore,the ductile fracture occurs on the Al side,which prevents the propagation of interface delamination cracks effectively.Meanwhile,shear effect becomes more significant at high interfacial pressure and large plastic strain,and the microstructure on Al side is composed of slender columnar crystals.Thus,the metallurgical bonding and refinement of grains on the Al side can result in higher bonding strength and tensile properties of the clad strip.

Cast-rolling force model of multi-roll solid–liquid cast-rolling bonding process for fabricating metal cladding materials

Based on twin-roll casting technology and multi-roll groove rolling technology,a Multi-Roll Solid-Liquid Cast-Rolling Bonding(MRSLCRB)process was proposed to fabricate Cu/steel cladding bars,which processes the advantages of short flow and high-efficiency.However,it is a typical 3-D thermal-fluid-mechanics coupled problem,and determining cast-rolling force is difficult during the equipment design.Therefore,the geometrical evolution of the cast-rolling area was studied,laying the foundation to establish contact boundary equations and analyze mechanical schematics and metal flow.Then,a 3-D steady-state thermal-fluid coupled simulation model,including casting roll,substrate bar,and cladding metal,was established.The Kissing Point(KP)height,average outlet temperature,and process window were predicted,and simulation results of the three-roll layout indicate that the KP distribution along the circumferential direction can be considered uniform.Hence,the engineering cast-rolling force model was derived based on the differential element method and plane deformation hypothesis.The accuracy was verified by the 3-D finite element model,and the influences of process layouts and technological parameters on the castrolling force were analyzed.Through the indirect multi-field coupled analysis method,the temperature–pressure evolution and reasonable process window can be predicted,which provides a significant basis for guiding equipment design and improving product quality.

Solid-Liquid State Bonding of Si3N4 Ceramics with Ceramic-Modified Brazing Alloy

Solid-liquid state bonding of Si3N4 ceramics with TiN-modified Ag-Cu-Ti brazing alloy was used'- to enhance joint strength. The effects of the TiN particles on the microstructures, interfacial reactions, and room-temperature properties of the joints were investigated. The results show that the TiN particles are gen- erally well dispersed in the Ag-Cu eutectic base and the interface between them is both clean and com-pact. Changes in the TiN volume fractions from 0 to 20% exert no noticeable effect on the interfacial reac-tion between Ag-Cu-Ti and the substrates. Other bonding parameters being constant, the TiN volume frac-tion in the filler material plays a key role in the joint properties. For TiN volume fractions below 20%, the joints are reinforced, especially joints with 5% and 20% TiN. The average shearing strength of joints with 5% TiN is 200.8 MPa, 30% higher than that of joints with no TiN (154.1 MPa). However, for TiN volumes frac- tions above 20%, the joint strengths decrease.

"Solid-Liquid" Vitrimers Based on Dynamic Boronic Ester Networks

The"solid-liquid"behavior of vitrimers have not been systematically investigated.Herein,a series of"solid-liquid"vitrimers bearing varying contents of dynamic boronic ester bonds were synthesized via thiol-ene click reactions.These vitrimers allow for flexibile modulation of their network structures and thus show a range of intriguing properties including high stretchability,flexible transition from elasticity to plasticity,strong strain rate dependence,and solid-liquid performance.The dynamic association rate of boronic ester bonds within these vitrimers could be apparently accelerated via increasing the content of boronic ester,which could be used to shape-program the flat vitrimer films into various complex 3D structures just with external force.Materials with such versatile dynamic behavior may open up a range of new applications.