Testing of Formed Gear Wheels at Quasi-Static and Elevated Strain Rates

Geared components can be manufactured from sheet metals by sheet-bulk metal forming. One relevant load case in service are overload events, which might induce elevated strain rates. To determine the characteristic hardening and fracture behavior, specimens manufactured from the deep-drawing steel DC04 were tested with strain rates ranging from 0.0001 to 5 s−1. The gear wheels manufactured by sheet-bulk metal forming are tested at crosshead velocities of 0.08 mm/s and 175 mm/s. The tests are analyzed by measuring deformed geometry and hardness. While the tensile tests results show obvious strain-rate dependency, the hardness measurements show no strain-rate depended effect. The analyses are complemented by finite-element-simulations, which assess the homogeneity of deformation and point out the mechanisms of failure. Both coupled and uncoupled ductile damage models are able to predict the critical areas for crack initiation. The coupled damage model has slight advantages regarding deformed shape prediction

Anomalous twinning in AZ 31 magnesium alloy during electrically assisted forming

The electro plastic effect (EPE) occurs in materials exposed to high electric currents, on the order of 102 to 104 A mm-2, during elastic or plastic deformation. Current pulses with durations of about 10-3 s are usually used to limit resistive heating of the sample. As a result, a reduction the macroscopic of flow stress and enhanced ductility is observed, The EPE may therefore be exploited to support the deformation of inherently brittle materials. The underlying microscopic mechanisms enabling the flow stress reduction and increase in ductility are still unresolved. Besides the obvious contribution of Joule heating, various mechanisms of electron -dislocation interactions, resulting in increased dislocation mobility or changed dislocation density, have been proposed. In the present study, the EPE was investigated using samples of extruded pure magnesium and AZ 31 Mg alloy, which were subjected to one or ten current pulses with a current density of 700 A mm-2 and 1 ms duration while subjected to constant compressive strain below the yield point. During the experiments the mechanical response of the sample to the current impulse, a drop of stress, the occurrence of residual plastic strain and hardening of the sample, was observed. The magnitude of the observed reduction in stress depends on the relative orientations of texture and current direction. In the case of multiple pulses, the first current pulse led to a significantly larger drop than the subsequent pulses. Reference experiments using hot air and inductive heating were conducted, in which samples were subjected to identical strains and similar temperature profiles. A similar softening could not be observed. The subsequent optical and EBSD microstructural observations, using appropriate metallographical preparation techniques, revealed unusual twinning in the samples subjected to current pulses. Please click Additional Files below to see the full abstract

Correlating Ultrasonic Velocity in DC04 with Microstructure for Quantification of Ductile Damage

The detection of ductile damage by image-based methods is time-consuming and typically probes only small areas. It is therefore of great interest for various cold forming processes, such as sheet-bulk metal forming, to develop new methods that can be used during the forming process and that enable an efficient detection of ductile damage. In the present study, ductile damage in DC04 was examined using ultrasonic testing. First, different grain sizes were set by heat treatment. Subsequently, the sheet metal was formed by cold rolling. A clear correlation between the average void diameter and the measured ultrasonic velocity could be shown. The ultrasonic velocity showed a clear decrease when the average void size increased because of the increasing forming degree. The ultrasonic measurements were finally employed to calculate a damage parameter D to determine the amount of ductile damage in the microstructure for different grain sizes after cold rolling

Coexistence of Intermetallic Complexions and Bulk Particles in Grain Boundaries in the ZEK100 Alloy

Magnesium-based alloys are highly sought after in the industry due to their lightweight and reliable strength. However, the hexagonal crystal structure of magnesium results in the mechanical properties’ anisotropy. This anisotropy is effectively addressed by alloying magnesium with elements like zirconium, zinc, and rare earth metals (REM). The addition of these elements promotes rapid seed formation, yielding small grains with a uniform orientation distribution, thereby reducing anisotropy. Despite these benefits, the formation of intermetallic phases (IP) containing Zn, Zr, and REM within the microstructure can be a concern. Some of these IP phases can be exceedingly hard and brittle, thus weakening the material by providing easy pathways for crack propagation along grain boundaries (GBs). This issue becomes particularly significant if intermetallic phases form continuous layers along the entire GB between two neighboring GB triple junctions, a phenomenon known as complete GB wetting. To mitigate the risks associated with complete GB wetting and prevent the weakening of the alloy’s structure, understanding the potential occurrence of a GB wetting phase transition and how to control continuous GB layers of IP phases becomes crucial. In the investigation of a commercial magnesium alloy, ZEK100, the GB wetting phase transition (i.e., between complete and partial GB wetting) was successfully studied and confirmed. Notably, complete GB wetting was observed at temperatures near the liquidus point of the alloy. However, at lower temperatures, a coexistence of a nano-scaled precipitate film and bulk particles with nonzero contact angles within the same GB was observed. This insight into the wetting transition characteristics holds potential to expand the range of applications for the present alloy in the industry. By understanding and controlling GB wetting phenomena, the alloy’s mechanical properties and structural integrity can be enhanced, paving the way for its wider utilization in various industrial applications

High Strain Rate and Stress-State-Dependent Martensite Transformation in AISI 304 at Low Temperatures

Deformation-induced martensitic transformation as the basis of a hardening process is dependent, among others, on the stress state. In applications such as cryogenic cutting, where a hardened martensitic subsurface can be produced in metastable austenitic steels, different stress states exist. Furthermore, cutting typically occurs at high strain rates greater than 103s−1. In order to gain a deeper insight into the behavior of a metastable austenitic steel (AISI 304) upon cryogenic cutting, the influence of high strain rates under different loading conditions was analyzed. It was observed that higher strain rates lead to a decrease in the α′-martensite content if exposed to tensile loads due to generated adiabatic heat. Furthermore, a lath-like α′-martensite was induced. Under shear stress, no suppression of α′-martensite formation by higher strain rates was found. A lath α′-martensite was formed, too. In the specimens that were subjected exclusively to compressive loading, almost no α′-martensite was present. The martensitic surface generated by cutting experiments showed deformation lines in which α′-martensite was formed in a wave-like shape. As for the shear specimens, more α′-martensite was formed with increasing strain rate, i.e., force. Additionally, magnetic etching proved to be an effective method to verify the transformation of ferromagnetic α′-martensite

Cu-Ni-Based Alloys from Nanopowders as Potent Thermoelectric Materials for High-Power Output Applications

A new approach for the development of thermoelectric materials, which focuses on a high-power factor instead of a large figure of merit zT, has drawn attention in recent years. In this context, the thermoelectric properties of Cu-Ni-based alloys with a very high electrical conductivity, a moderate Seebeck coefficient, and therefore a high power factor are presented as promising low-cost alternative materials for applications aiming to have a high electrical power output. The Cu-Ni-based alloys are prepared via an arc melting process of metallic nanopowders. The heavy elements tin and tungsten are chosen for alloying to further improve the power factor while simultaneously reducing the high thermal conductivity of the resulting metal alloy, which also has a positive effect on the zT value. Overall, the samples prepared with low amounts of Sn and W show an increase in the power factor and figure of merit zT compared to the pure Cu-Ni alloy. These results demonstrate the potential of these often overlooked metal alloys and the utilization of nanopowders for thermoelectric energy conversion

Investigations of ductile damage in DP600 and DC04 deep drawing steel sheets during punching

The paper presents numerical and microstructural investigations on a punching process of 2 mm thick steel sheets. The dual phase steel DP600 and the mild steel DC04 exhibit different damage and fracture characteristics. To distinguish the void development and crack initiation for both materials, interrupted tests at varied punch displacements are analyzed. The void volume fractions in the shearing zone are identified by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The Gurson model family, which is recently extended for shear fracture, is utilized to model the elastoplastic behavior with ductile damage. The effect of the shear governing void growth parameter, introduced by Nahshon and Hutchinson (2008), is discussed

Stress-induced transformation in a Ni-Mn-In alloy and the concomitant change of resistivity

In this work, the influence of mechanical stress on magnetic properties and electric resistance of a Ni-Mn- In alloy was studied. It is shown that compression of Ni-Mn-In polycrystalline specimens brings about a stressinduced martensitic transformation. Optical images recorded in-situ confirmed the formation of a martensitic structure during loading and back-transformation upon unloading. Unloading after deformation of specimens that had experienced compressive strains up to 6%resulted in full recovery of their resistivity and magnetic susceptibility. The sharp increase in the electric resistance caused by the stress-induced transformation opens up new possibilities for Ni- Mn-In alloys to be used as a material for sensors responding to mechanical stress

Hot forming of shape memory alloys in steel shells: formability, interface, bonding quality

Metal forming of shape memory alloys (SMA) can be challenging since these are very often brittle due to their intermetallic character. However, formability is often needed not only for realising the desired geometry but also for tailoring the microstructure and the functional properties. To investigate whether the encapsulation in a steel shell can improve the formability of shape memory alloys, Co49Ni21Ga30 and Ni49.5Fe14.5Mn4.0Ga26.0Co6.0 samples were subjected to tensile tests, upsetting, rolling and extrusion. A ferritic steel (1.0503) was used as the shell material. The shell was employed to curtail the formation of tensile stresses in the core, to maintain high temperatures during processing and to prevent oxidation. With this approach, not only forming of the SMA in the steel shell was possible but also an intensive metallurgical bond between the SMA and the steel shell can be achieved during hot rolling or extrusion

Microstructure formation in cast TiZrHfCoNiCu and CoNiCuAlGaIn high entropy shape memory alloys: A comparison

The present study is dedicated to the microstructure characterization of the as-cast high entropy intermetallics that undergo a martensitic transformation, which is associated with the shape memory effect. It is shown that the TiZrHfCoNiCu system exhibits strong dendritic liquation, which leads to the formation of martensite crystals inside the dendrites. In contrast, in the CoNiCuAlGaIn system the dendritic liquation allows the martensite crystals to form only in interdendritic regions. This phenomenon together with the peculiarities of chemical inhomogeneities formed upon crystallization of this novel multicomponent shape memory alloys systems will be analyzed and discussed