The use of self-fluxing alloys as a source of alloying elements in producing powder products of construction purpose from low-alloyed iron

Abstract

Background. One of the problems in the production of powder structural materials based on iron alloyed with a small amount of alloying elements (0.5 - 5.0 wt.%) is obtaining a homogeneous alloy in the final material. The distribution uniformity of the alloying elements largely determines the final properties of the material. The use of a mixture of powders constituting the alloy to obtain such alloys, in manycases, does not solve the problem of obtaining homogeneous alloys. Promising in this respect is the use of alloy powders containing alloying elements as sources of alloying elements.Objective. The purpose of the paper is to study the formation regularities of the material’s structure and properties based on iron alloys obtained using self-fluxing alloys (SFA) as a source of alloying elements.Methods. To solve the problem posed in the work, the methods of mixing-grinding in planetary mills, the study of the processes of wetting with SFA iron melts and the interaction between them by the method of a lying drop, scanning microscopy for studying the structureof materials and the distribution of elements in them, measuring mechanical properties (hardness) were used.Results. The principles of determining the optimal conditions for obtaining materials - grinding-mixing time (4 min.), compacting pressure of the original workpieces (600 MPa), sintering temperature (1200 °C), sintering time (more than 80 min.) were established.Their use contributes to the production of products with almost one hundred percent material density and a high degree of homogeneity.Conclusions. As a result of the work carried out, it was found that the use of SFA as alloying elements sources and the preparation of the initial mixture by grinding-mixing methods in a planetary mill promotes the production of materials with a high degree of homogeneity due to the intensification of homogenization and sintering processes and, as a consequence, an increase in their mechanical characteristics.