Optimization of casting process parameters for synthesis of Al-Nb-B master alloy

Al-Nb-B master alloys were synthesized using commercial pure aluminum, niobium, and KBF4 salts. Two different sources of Nb (pure Nb powder and Al-60%Nb powder) were used to prepare the master alloy. Casting process parameters such as reaction time and melt stir time interval were varied to enhance the formation of in situ intermetallic particles in the master alloys. The size, shape and distribution of intermetallic particles in these master alloys were studied using microscopy techniques. The results show that the Al-5Nb-1B master alloy prepared with Al-60%Nb powders has a uniform distribution of intermetallic particles as compared to the master alloy prepared with pure Nb powders. Increase in boron content from 1 wt.% to 2 wt.% in the master alloys resulted in a higher fraction of intermetallic particles. Among all the master alloys synthesized, Al-5Nb-2B was observed to have the highest number of well-distributed intermetallic particles which could act as potential grain refiners of aluminum alloys

Modification of Al-Si alloys by Ce or Ce with Sr

Al-Si alloys were modified by addition of cerium (Ce) or Ce plus strontium (Sr) to study the effect on the eutectic silicon (Si) morphology. The modified alloys were characterized using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), x-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis, and thermal analysis to understand the effect of Ce and Sr on their microstructure. The results showed that addition of 1% Ce resulted in only partial modification of the Si phase, whereas addition of Ce with 0.04% Sr resulted in complete modification of the alloy. Addition of 1% Ce decreased the eutectic arrest temperature by about 10°C, compared with a 5°C drop with Sr addition only. SEM energy-dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) and XRD results revealed formation of Al2Si2Ce intermetallic in the Ce-modified Al-Si alloys. Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) showed that the intermetallic formed just before the eutectic phase

3D atom probe tomography study on segregation of yttrium in modified Al-Si alloys

Yttrium segregation behavior in Al-Si alloys has been studied using the three-dimensional atom probe tomography technique. Al-Si alloys were prepared by casting method, and yttrium was added to modify the eutectic silicon morphology in these alloys. The results indicated that yttrium is preferentially located within the Si phase, with the highest concentration at the interface between eutectic Al and eutectic Si

A model and experimental validation to predict heating rates for overlap between ferrite recrystallization and austenite transformation in dual phase steel manufacture

A systematic theoretical and experimental study has been conducted to predict the heating rates required to obtain a pre-defined percentage of overlap between the ferrite recrystallization process and the austenite formation process in dual phase steel manufacture. Isothermal recrystallization kinetics for three different cold-reduced low-carbon micro-alloyed steels (50%, 60%, and 75%) with ferrite-pearlite-bainite initial microstructures was evaluated. Using various experimentally determined rate kinetic constants and critical temperatures, a continuous heating rate model which predicts the heating rate required for a predefined amount of overlap was successfully developed. The model predicted the heating rates required for a predefined 1%, 15%, 34%, 67%, 88% and 99% of overlap to be 0.2°C/s, 0.9°C/s, 1.8°C/s, 7°C/s, 50.5°C/s and 511°C/s, respectively. The experimentally determined recrystallization percentage values validated the predicted heating rates

Effect of Fe intermetallics on microstructure and properties of Al-7Si alloys

The present work deals with the effect of iron intermetallics on the microstructure and mechanical properties of Al-7% Si alloys. Two different iron additions were made, 0.6% Fe and 2% Fe, to study the effect of iron intermetallics on Al-Si alloys. Microstructure property correlations were carried out using SEM-EDS and tensile testing of alloys. Microstructure results show that the rise in iron content significantly increased the average size, thickness and number of intermetallic particles in the alloys. Nano-indentation study shows that the iron intermetallics are too brittle compared with the primary aluminium. Moreover, the hardness and Young’s modulus of iron intermetallics are higher than those of primary aluminium. Tensile test results show that there is no significant difference in strength levels between Al-7%Si and Al-7Si-0.6Fe alloys. However, an increase in iron from 0.6% to 2% resulted in a significant decrease in tensile strength and elongation of the alloys. Two-dimensional SEM studies suggest that the increased number of needle-shaped β-phase intermetallic particles formed because of increased amounts of Fe could be the reason for early failure of the alloy. To further understand the early failure of iron-containing alloys, the fractured tensile specimens were studied using the 3D x-ray tomography technique. XCT results show that the failure in tensile testing of 2% Fe alloy was not mainly due to breaking of brittle β-phase intermetallic particles, but due to the morphology and particle-matrix interface debonding. XCT shows that the needle-shaped particles are long, sharp-edged platelets in 3D, which act as stress raisers for crack initiation and propagation along the interphase

Microstructure and mechanical properties of electron beam welded dissimilar steel to Fe-Al alloy joints

Electron beam welding (EBW) technique was used to perform dissimilar joining of plain carbon steel to Fe-7%Al alloy under three different weld conditions such as with beam oscillation, without beam oscillation and at higher welding speed. The effect of weld parameters on the microstructure and mechanical properties of dissimilar joints was studied using optical microscopy, SEM, EBSD, hardness, tensile and erichsen cup tests. Microstructure results show that the application of beam oscillation resulted in uniform and homogeneous microstructure compared to without beam oscillations and higher welding speed. Further, it was observed that weld microstructure changes from equiaxed to columnar grains depending on the weld speed. High weld speed results in columnar grain structure in the weld joint. Erichsen cup test results show that the application of beam oscillation results in excellent formability as compared to high weld speed. Tensile test results show no significant difference in strength properties in all three weld conditions, but the ductility was found to be highest for joints obtained with the application of weld beam oscillation as compared to without beam oscillation and high weld speed. This study shows that the application of beam oscillations plays an important role in improving the weld quality and performance of EBW dissimilar steel to Fe-Al joints

Effect of superheat on microstructure and mechanical properties of Al-7Si-2Fe alloy

Recycling of aluminum (Al) alloys is critical to meet the demands of global net zero emission targets. The major challenge in the recycling of Al alloys is the presence of a higher content of iron as an impurity in Al alloy scraps, which deteriorates the mechanical properties of recycled alloys. In the present work, Al-7%Si alloys and Al-7%Si-2Fe alloys were cast at three different superheat temperatures to study the effect of superheat on the formation of iron intermetallic particles in these alloys. Microstructure–mechanical properties correlations were carried out using SEM-EDS and tensile testing of the alloys. 3D x-ray computed tomography (XCT) results show that the β-phase intermetallic particles were observed to be large and platelet-shaped in the Al-7Si-2Fe alloy cast at 700°C, while these particles appeared to be finer and uniformly distributed throughout the sample in the alloy cast at 900°C. XCT results show the presence of large shrinkage porosity in the Al-7Si-2Fe alloy cast at 700°C, due to the presence of large intermetallic particles which hinder the flow of molten metal during solidification of the alloys. Tensile test results show that the addition of 2% iron resulted in a significant reduction in the elongation of the alloy at all superheat temperatures

A computational study on the reduction behavior of iron ore carbon composite pellets in both single and multi-layer bed rotary hearth furnace

A phenomenological model for the reduction of iron ore/carbon composite pellets in a multi-layer bed rotary hearth furnace has been developed. A single pellet model has been scaled up to a multi-pellet layer version in a computationally efficient way. The multi-layer pellet bed has been conceived as single column of identical pellets in a rectangular enclosure, assuming symmetry of the pellet bed in horizontal direction. The column walls are considered opaque with respect to heat transfer but allow heat radiation to reach the pellet surface through multiple reflections from the wall. The time-temperature-transformation and time-temperature-chemical heat absorption contours are presented to provide a better understanding of the reduction process. Finally, the net heat flux and carbon monoxide generation, emerging from the multi-layer bed system has been generated, which may be used as source and sink terms for CFD simulations in the free board of the RHF

Effect of beam oscillation on porosity and intermetallics of electron beam welded DP600-steel to Al 5754-alloy

Formation of porosity and intermetallic compounds (IMCs) were studied in electron beam welded (EBW) DP-600 steel to Al-5754 dissimilar alloy joints at three different weld conditions such as without beam oscillation, with beam oscillation and with varying beam oscillation diameter. X-ray Diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), microhardness, three-dimensional X-ray computed tomography (XCT) were used to characterize porosity and IMCs distribution in these weld joints. Beam oscillation with optimum oscillation diameter (1 mm diameter) improved the weld quality by reducing the amount, maximum size and percentage of pores in weld zone significantly. For IMCs, average size increased little bit but maximum size, percentage of formation and amount reduced. By increasing oscillation diameter (2 mm diameter) beyond optimum value (1 mm diameter), quality of joints was found to deteriorate with accompanying higher pore density, average pore size, average IMCs size etc. Raman spectroscopy and Leco gas analyzer were also used to identify and quantify the entrapped gases in the weld joint

Effect of weld parameters on porosity formation in electron beam welded Zircaloy-4 joints : X-ray tomography study

Zircaloy-4 to Zircaloy-4 (Zr-4) similar butt joints were prepared using Electron Beam Welding (EBW) technique under different weld conditions such as with beam oscillation, without beam oscillation and at different welding speeds. Three-dimensional (3D) visualisation of porosity in weld joints was carried out using X-ray computed tomography (XCT) technique. Quantification of porosity such as the average size, number and shape of the pores were evaluated and compared among weld joints produced under different conditions. XCT results show that the porosity of the welds increased substantially with the increase in the weld speed. More interestingly, the results also show that there is a significant decrease in porosity of the joint produced with beam oscillation condition. An increase in weld speed from 700 mm/min to 1000 mm/min resulted in a significant increase in pore density (from 16 to 313 per mm3) and it was observed that the average size of the macro pores increased from 96.4 μm to 121.5 μm. The joints prepared with beam oscillation produced least number of pores with minimum percentage of macro pores and maximum percentage of spherical pores in it. Raman spectroscopy results confirmed the presence of hydrogen gas in pores of all the weld joints