Evolution of microstructure and impact-strength energy in thermally and thermomechanically aged 15-5 PH

Due to its outstanding mechanical resistance and resistance to corrosion, alloy 15-5 PH can be beneficially used for manufacturing aerospace structural parts. Following exposure to intermediate temperature, from300◦–400 ◦C, the alloy embrittles through the decomposition of the martensite into iron-rich and chromium-rich domains.Depending on the ageing time, these domains are either interconnected or unconnected with each other. The embrittlement results in a drastic drop of the impact strength-energy and an increase of the ductile-to-brittle transition temperature. The initial microstructure and mechanical properties can be recovered through a re-homogenization of the distribution of chromium and iron atoms in the material in the case where the decomposition of the matrix is not too pronounced. The application of a stress higher than 60 per cent of the yield strength further enhances the ageing kinetics in the case where the combined effect of temperature and time results in the spinodal decomposition of the martensite

State of the Art of Laser Hardening and Cladding

In this paper an overview is given about laser surface modification processes, which are developed especially with the aim of hardness improvement for an enhanced fatigue and wear behaviour. The processes can be divided into such with and without filler material and in solid-state and melting processes. Actual work on shock hardening, transformation hardening, remelting, alloying and cladding is reviewed, where the main focus was on scientific work from the 21st century

Macroscopic fe-simulation of residual stresses in thermo-mechanically processed steels considering phase transformation effects

Residual stresses are an important issue as they affect both the manufacturing processes as well as the performance of the final parts. Taking into account the whole process chain of hot forming, the integrated heat treatment provided by a defined temperature profile for cooling of the parts offers a great potential for the targeted adjustment of the desired residual stress state. However, in addition to elastic, plastic and linear thermal strain components, the complex material phenomena arising from phase transformation effects of the polymorphic steels have to be considered in order to predict the residual stresses. These transformation strains account for the plastic deformation at the phase boundary between the emerging and the parent phase. In addition, they are strongly related to the transformation induced plasticity (TRIP) phenomena which depend on the stress state. The aim of this study is the investigation of TRIP effects and their impact on residual stresses regarding the typical hot forming steels 1.7225 (DIN: 42CrMo4) and 1.3505 (DIN: 100Cr6) by means of an experimental-numerical approach. The TRIP behaviour of the materials under consideration is integrated into an FE simulation model in the commercial software Simufact.forming for the purpose of residual stress prediction. The experimental thermo-mechanical investigations are carried out using a quenching and forming dilatometer. These experiments are numerically modelled by means of FEM which allows TRIP coefficients to be determined phasespecifically by numerical identification. For validation of the improved FE-model, an experimental thermo-mechanical reference process is considered, in which cylindrical specimens with an eccentric hole are hot formed and subsequently cooled by different temperature routes. Finally, the numerical model is validated by means of a comparison between residual stress states determined with X-ray diffraction and predicted residual stresses from the simulation

Mechanisms of High Temperature Degradation of Thermal Barrier Coatings.

Thermal barrier coatings (TBCs) are crucial for increasing the turbine inlet temperature (and hence efficiency) of gas turbine engines. The thesis describes PhD research aimed at improving understanding of the thermal cycling failure mechanisms of electron beam physical vapour deposited (EB-PVD) yttria stabilised zirconia (YSZ) TBCs on single crystal superalloys. The research consisted of three different stages. The first stage involved designing a coupled one-dimensional thermodynamic-kinetic oxidation and diffusion model capable of predicting the concentration profiles of alloying elements in a single-phase γ nickel-rich Ni-Al-Cr ternary alloy by the finite difference method. The aim of this investigation was to improve the understanding of interactions between alloying species and developing oxide. The model demonstrated that in the early stages of oxidation, Al consumption by oxide scale growth is faster than Al replenishment by diffusion towards the scale, resulting in an initial Al depletion in the alloy near the scale. The second stage involved a systematic study of the life-time of TBC systems on different single crystal superalloys. The study aimed at demonstrating that the compatibility of modern nickel-based single crystal superalloys with TBC systems is influenced strongly by the content of alloying element additions in the superalloy substrate. The results can be explained by postulating that the fracture toughness parameters controlling decohesion are influenced strongly by small changes in composition arising from interdiffusion with the bond coat, which itself inherits elemental changes from the substrate. The final stage of study involved a detailed study of different bond coats (two β-structured Pt-Al types and a γ/γ’ Pt-diffusion type) in TBC systems based on an EB-PVD YSZ top coat and a substrate material of CMSX-4 superalloy. Generation of stress in the thermally grown oxide (TGO) on thermal cycling, and its relief by plastic deformation and fracture, were investigated experimentally in detail

Atomic-scale grain boundary engineering to overcome hot-cracking in additively-manufactured superalloys

There are still debates regarding the mechanisms that lead to hot cracking in parts build by additive manufacturing (AM) of non-weldable Ni-based superalloys. This lack of in-depth understanding of the root causes of hot cracking is an impediment to designing engineering parts for safety-critical applications. Here, we deploy a near-atomic-scale approach to investigate the details of the compositional decoration of grain boundaries in the coarse-grained, columnar microstructure in parts built from a non-weldable Ni-based superalloy by selective electron-beam melting. The progressive enrichment in Cr, Mo and B at grain boundaries over the course of the AM-typical successive solidification and remelting events, accompanied by solid-state diffusion, causes grain boundary segregation induced liquation. This observation is consistent with thermodynamic calculations. We demonstrate that by adjusting build parameters to obtain a fine-grained equiaxed or a columnar microstructure with grain width smaller than 100 $\mu$m enables to avoid cracking, despite strong grain boundary segregation. We find that the spread of critical solutes to a higher total interfacial area, combined with lower thermal stresses, helps to suppress interfacial liquation.Comment: Accepted version at Acta Materiali

Numerical thermo-elasto-plastic analysis of residual stresses on different scales during cooling of hot forming parts

In current research, more and more attention is paid to the understanding of residual stress states as well as the application of targeted residual stresses to extend e.g. life time or stiffness of a part. In course of that, the numerical simulation and analysis of the forming process of components, which goes along with the evolution of residual stresses, play an important role. In this contribution, we focus on the residual stresses arising from the austenite-to-martensite transformation at microscopic and mesoscopic level of a Cr-alloyed steel. A combination of a Multi-Phase-Field model and a two-scale Finite Element simulation is utilized for numerical analysis. A first microscopic simulation considers the lattice change, such that the results can be homogenized and applied on the mesoscale. Based on this result, a polycrystal consisting of a certain number of austenitic grains is built and the phase transformation from austenite to martensite is described with respect to the mesoscale. Afterwards, in a two-scale Finite Element simulation the plastic effects are considered and resulting residual stress states are computed

Preliminary analysing of experimental data for the development of high Cr Alloy Creep damage Constitutive Equations

This conference paper presents the current research of preliminary analysing of experimental data for the development of high Cr Alloy Creep damage Constitutive Equations (such as P91 alloy). Firstly, it briefly introduces the background of general creep deformation, rupture and continuum damage mechanics. Secondly, it illustrates the constitutive equations used for P91 alloy or its weldment, especially of the form and deficiencies of two kinds of most widely used typical creep damage constitutive equations Kachanov-Rabotnov-Hayhurst (KRH) and Xu’s formations. And then, the methodology for development of new set constitutive equation proposed by Xu (2004) has been followed in this research. Fourthly, there is a critically analysis of the specific experiment data for P91 alloy and its weldment. Afterwards, the specific requirements for developing a new set constitutive equation have been reported