Ductile-brittle Transition Temperature Research Articles

Studies of the formation and distribution of cracks and various defects on the heated tungsten plate surface during pulsed plasma flux impact

In this work, cracking of the surface of a tungsten plate was studied using a PW-7 pulsed plasma accelerator. The surface of the tungsten plate was exposed at an energy density and plasma flux duration of 1.1 MJ/m2 and 200 μs, respectively. Before each shot, the base of the tungsten plate was heated to a temperature of 823 K. Heating of the base of the tungsten plate above the ductile–brittle transition temperature made it possible to control the temperature gradient on its surface under pulsed plasma exposure. In other words, the temperature gradient of the tungsten plate before and after exposure to the plasma flux decreased. Compared to the data at room temperature, the results of heating of the tungsten plate to the tungsten ductile–brittle transition temperature of 823 K showed a reduction in crack width to several hundred nanometers under the influence of plasma. It should be noted that heating of the plate did not completely eliminate cracking of the surface of the tungsten plate. However, this significantly minimizes the emission of dust from the surface of the tungsten plate under the influence of the plasma flux (barely no dust was observed).

A novel methodology to characterise the ductile-to-brittle transition behaviour of pipeline steels using the dynamic tensile tear test

Brittle fracture control strategies for high-pressure pipelines are essential to prevent catastrophic failures resulting in significant economic losses and environmental damage. Typically, this is achieved by operating the pipeline well above the ductile-to-brittle transition temperature (DBTT). In general, a series of lab-scale fracture tests, such as the Charpy V-Notch (CVN) or Drop Weight Tear Test (DWTT), are performed at different temperatures to construct the ductile-to-brittle transition curve and determine the DBTT. However, when applied to high-grade steels, correction factors or additional criteria are often necessary to obtain satisfactory results. As an alternative lab-scale testing methodology to characterise high-grade steels, the Dynamic Tensile Tear Test (DT3) has been introduced. Recently, an experimental campaign was conducted with the implementation of a liquid nitrogen spray cooling system to characterise the ductile-to-brittle transition behaviour of X70 grade steel using the DT3 system. In this work, tests were performed at temperatures ranging from −80 °C to 25 °C. The transition behaviour was analysed using measured data, and fractography was performed using Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM). The DBTT for the considered X70 grade steel was determined, and the performance of the DT3 methodology was compared to CVN and DWTT testing methods. Additionally, numerical models were created using Finite Element (FE) modelling and results were compared to the obtained experimental data. By implementing a stress-strain cleavage criterion in combination with the MBW material model, the models considered both ductile damage and failure, as well as brittle failure and mixed ductile-brittle failure. It can be concluded that the DT3-based transition curve provided a satisfactory DBTT prediction. Furthermore, numerical results showed a good correlation with experimental observations and demonstrated a similar transition behaviour.

Simultaneously enhancing strength and ductility of high-Nb-containing TiAl alloy via extrusion-assisted microstructure tailoring

In most metallic materials, the strength-ductility trade-off serves as an inevitable scenario. Therefore, improving the room/high-temperature strength/ductility of high Nb-TiAl alloys based on a lamellar microstructure is important for practical applications. In this work, a novel microstructure with fine lamellar colonies and a certain number of residual γ grains was developed through hot extrusion in the near α phase region. The results indicated that the lamellar colony size and spacing of the as-cast alloy were significantly refined by hot extrusion. The as-extruded Ti-45Al-8Nb-(W, B, Y) alloy demonstrated a good combination of high strength and ductility. The tensile strength and ductility were 1129 MPa and 2.04% at room temperature (RT), respectively, and 744 MPa and 51.20%, respectively, at 850 °C. A simultaneous improvement in strength and ductility below ductile-brittle transition temperature (DBTT) could be attributed to the abundant deformation twins and their intersections, as well as prominent strain working caused by high-density dislocations in the γ phase. Due to dynamic recrystallization, the ductility was significantly enhanced when stretched over DBTT. This extrusion-assisted microstructure tailoring strategy could be extended to other TiAl systems and may serve as a useful solution for addressing the significant engineering constraints posed by the low RT ductility and poor hot-working capabilities of high Nb-TiAl alloys.

Lowering the ductile-to-brittle transition temperature to -36 °C via fine-grained structures in chromium

The inherent ductile-to-brittle transition (DBT) behavior of body-centered cubic (BCC) metals severely limits their applications, and leads to low-temperature brittleness. To enhance the low temperature toughness of BCC metals, we take chromium as an example and design a fine-grained structure with average grain size of 5 μm, which shows a substantial decrease of DBT temperature to -36 °C. Compared with other samples with larger average grain sizes (45–135 μm), the fine-grained chromium still exhibits excellent toughness at -20 °C, and has the highest fracture energy and the yielding load. Our results reveal that numerous grain boundaries act as dislocation sources to emit easy glide edge dislocations at low temperature and also effectively slow down crack propagation, all together toughen ambient brittle chromium.

High-temperature compression deformation behavior of the high Nb-containing TiAl alloys doped with Sn

In this work, the high-temperature compression behavior of high Nb-containing TiAl–Sn alloys was investigated at deformed temperatures of 700 °C–1000 °C and strain rates of 0.002 s−1–0.2 s−1. The true stress-strain curves, microstructures, and constitutive equations of TiAl-xSn (x = 0, 0.5, 1, 1.5) alloys under different deformation conditions were systematically compared. Sn addition can increase the flow stress of TiAl alloys at the same deformation temperature, which is caused by the solid solution strengthening effect. At 800 °C/0.002 s−1, the peak flow stress of TiAl–1Sn alloy increases by 180 MPa compared with TiAl–0Sn alloy of 600 MPa. Below the peak stress, the flow stress increases with the increase of strain. Above the peak stress, the flow stress first decreases and then gradually trends to a steady state as the increase of deformation. Furthermore, the Sn addition decreases the brittle-ductile transition temperature of TiAl alloys. The TiAl-xSn (x = 0.5, 1, 1.5) alloys displays obvious flow softening behavior at 700 °C while TiAl–0Sn alloy fractures before reaching the target deformation. The relationship between of the flow stress, strain rate, and deformation temperature for TiAl–0Sn and TiAl–1Sn alloys is suitable for the hyperbolic sinusoidal equation. The dominant softening mechanism of hot deformation for TiAl-xSn (x = 0, 1) alloys is dynamic recrystallization (DRX). The activation energies Q of hot deformation for TiAl–0Sn and TiAl–1Sn alloys are 311 kJ mol−1 and 429 kJ mol−1 at condition of 700–1000 °C/0.002–0.2 s−1, indicating that the TiAl–1Sn alloy exhibits a better stability under the same application condition.

Effect of grain size and grain boundary on ductile to brittle transition behavior of Fe-6.5wt.%Si alloy under miniaturized three-point bending tests

This research investigates the influence of grain size and grain boundary on the ductile to brittle transition (DBT) behavior using three-point bending tests. With increasing grain size from 91 μm to 255 μm, the ductile to brittle transition temperature (DBTT) increases by approximately 80 °C, accompanied by a corresponding 0.196 eV increase in DBT activation energy. An evident linear reciprocal relationship exists between DBTT and grain boundary ratio. The Hall-Petch equation is employed to determine the quantitative relationship between the DBTT and grain size, offering novel guidance for determining the rolling temperature of Fe-6.5wt.%Si alloy.

A 3D rheological model for the Aegean Region: Mechanical layering and seismotectonic implications

We implemented a 3D thermo-rheological model for the broader Aegean Region, with special focus on determining the depth of the brittle-ductile transition (BDT) and the thickness of the brittle, potentially-seismogenic layers. In order to gain a more precise and comprehensive view on the thermo-physical characteristic of the main rheological transition, the model provides strength and temperature distribution along depth, as well as the relative values at the BDT depth. In particular, the reconstruction of a 3D model, allows to identify major trends and peculiarities, and to characterize the BDT depth, temperature and strength variations within this sector of the Mediterranean realm. The results indicate that a shallow transition (10–15 km) is common in the internal Aegean Region and most of continental Greece, while the external regions geodynamically associated to the Hellenic subduction show much deeper BDTs (around 30–35 and 40–45 km in continental and oceanic lithosphere sectors, respectively). The numerical modelling factors appearing to exert the greatest control on the BDT depth, and more in general on the spatial distribution of the rheological properties, at the scale of the whole study area, are the surface heat flow (as a proxy for the geothermal gradient) and the nature of the considered crust (continental vs oceanic). As a direct application of the results, the reconstructed 3D model of the shallower BDT is then exploited within the Aegean Region for defining the thickness of the seismogenic layer and its lateral variations. This in turn allows to independently constrain the maximum width of GreDaSS seismogenic sources and, by applying empirical relationships, to better quantify the maximum magnitudes expected on these sources.

Preparation of spherical tungsten powder with uniform distribution of lanthania by plasma spheroidization

The high ductile-brittle transition temperature of tungsten (W) makes it prone to crack during additive manufacturing. Incorporating lanthania (La2O3) to tungsten had been proven to be an efficient way to solve the cracking problem. However, the current incorporation methods are often accompanied by problems such as uneven dispersion of lanthania. In this study, W-La2O3 spherical powder with uniform distribution of lanthania was successfully prepared by spray granulation, heat treatment, and plasma spheroidization. The morphology, particle size distribution, flowability, apparent density, and element distribution of W-La2O3 powder at different stages were studied. The results show that the final obtained W-La2O3 powder has smooth surface and narrow particle size distribution, which also has excellent flowability (8.2 s/50 g) and apparent density (10.7 g/cm3). Moreover, it was observed that the plasma spheroidization resulted in the decrease of lanthania content in the powder, and the law of variation of lanthania content was obtained by the linear fitting method. The spheroidization mechanism of W-La2O3 composite powders was also proposed by studying the microstructure of incompletely spheroidized powders and the change of lanthania content.

Effects of thermal aging at 873 K on the impact properties of an ODS ferritic steel

This investigation presents the effects of long-term thermal aging on the impact properties of an ODS reduced activation ferritic steel. The ODS ferritic steel, with composition Fe–14Cr–2W–0.4Ti–0.3Y2O3 (wt. %), was manufactured by mechanical alloying, compacted by hot isostatic pressing and hot cross rolled. A 1273 K annealing treatment was applied, followed by thermal aging at 873 K for 2000 h in Ar, to evaluate the thermal stability of the alloy. Charpy impact testing was performed from 77 to 473 K to investigate the mechanical response of the material under dynamic loads. The ductile-to-brittle transition temperature (DBTT) showed a slight increase with values of 255 ± 12 K before aging, and 270 ± 20 K after aging. The aging treatment softened the steep character of the Charpy impact curves inducing a wider transition regime with mixed brittle and ductile fracture mechanisms. This behavior was confirmed by the analysis of Force vs. Displacement Charpy curves and fractographic observations. Hot cross rolling induced a crack divider geometry and secondary cracks formation by delamination. Ductile fracture was less evident after aging due to the redistribution and transformation of Cr-W-rich precipitates along grain boundaries. Electron Backscattered Diffraction highlighted the features of transgranular brittle cracks at temperatures below the DBTT and showed misoriented and deformed regions near the fracture surface at temperatures above the DBTT.

Identifying intrinsic factors for ductile-to-brittle transition temperatures in Fe–Al intermetallics via machine learning

The determination of ductile-to-brittle transition temperatures (DBTT) in intermetallic compounds is crucial for assessing their practical applications. In this study, we investigate the intrinsic factors influencing the DBTT of Fe–Al intermetallic compounds through feature engineering. We developed and evaluated two machine learning strategies for this task. Comparing the strategy that incorporates all features, including alloy compositions and atomic features, with the strategy utilizing selected features, it is found that the latter demonstrates superior computational efficiency and reduces overfitting. Specifically, surrogate models based on two selected features, namely cohesive energy and ionization energy, enable accurate prediction of the DBTT of Fe–Al intermetallics, achieving an accuracy of 95%. Additionally, through symbolic regression, we derived a functional expression that captures the relationship between variations in the DBTT and the selected features of intermetallic compounds. These findings have the potential to serve as a valuable guide for optimizing intermetallic compounds.

Solute-induced grain refinement and defect suppression in boron-modified molybdenum manufactured via laser powder-bed fusion

Molybdenum manufactured with laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) has an undesirable coarse-grained, columnar microstructure interspersed with intergranular cracks, high porosity, and poor mechanical strength. These defects result from a combination of the harsh LPBF process conditions and the disadvantageous properties of molybdenum, such as its high brittle-ductile transition temperature and low tolerance for oxygen impurities. In order to suppress these defect-forming mechanisms and improve the suitability for LPBF, alloy-side material adjustments with simultaneous process optimization are necessary. In this work, the effect of adjusting Mo by adding 3.5 at.% B is investigated experimentally.Mo-3.5 at.% B specimens can be produced entirely free of cracks, with a density of 99.8%. The specimens have a microstructure of fine, equiaxed grains with an average grain size of 31 μm and an aspect ratio of 1.3, thus achieving substantial refinement of the otherwise typically coarse-grained columnar, anisotropic microstructure of pure Mo in LPBF. Furthermore, the grains possess a honeycomb-like cellular subgrain structure. This structure is formed through the solute rejection effect of B during the solidification and consists of initially solidified pure α-Mo cells with a cell size <1 μm and a honeycomb-like network of an ∼100 nm thick intercellular Mo2B phase completely covering the α-Mo cells. In addition, the formation of boron oxide inclusions, presumably B2O3, with a size of <50 nm within the Mo2B phase, provides an effective mechanism for scavenging oxygen impurities, thus ensuring segregation-free grain boundaries in Mo-3.5 at.% B.The microstructural modifications substantially improve the mechanical properties. Under appropriate process conditions, with the substrate plate preheating temperature playing a crucial role, a bending strength of 1120 ± 172 MPa and a hardness of 379 ± 24 HV10 at room temperature can be achieved. At a test temperature of 600 °C, an increase in the bending strength to 2265 MPa is observed, and the bending angle simultaneously increases from 2° at room temperature to 35° at 600 °C. These findings indicate that the strength of Mo-3.5 at.% B is limited by the brittle behavior of the material at lower temperatures, at which residual defects are likely to initiate fracture.

Microstructure evolution and mechanical properties of directionally solidified Al0.5CoCr1.3FeNi1.3(Ti, Si, B, C)0.3 multiphase complex concentrated alloy

Microstructure evolution and mechanical properties of Al0.5CoCr1.3FeNi1.3(Ti, Si, B, C)0.3 multiphase complex concentrated alloy (CCA) prepared by directional solidification combined with quenching during solidification (QDS) technique were studied. The directionally solidified (DS) samples were prepared at constant growth rates V ranging from 2.78 × 10−6 to 5.56 × 10−5 m/s, the constant temperature gradient in liquid at the solid-liquid interface of GL = 16.5 × 103 °C/m and then quenched at a cooling rate of about 50 °C/s. The solidification of the studied CCA begins with the growth of columnar FCC(A1) dendrites and is finalised by the formation of a multiphase microstructure in the interdendritic region. The DS samples subjected to isothermal annealing at 900 °C for 25 h show a strong brittle-ductile transition (BDT) behaviour characterised by brittle-ductile transition temperature (BDTT) between 650 and 700 °C at a strain rate of 1 × 10−4 s−1. The tensile deformation curves show only a strain hardening stage at test temperatures up to 650 °C. At temperatures ranging from 750 to 900 °C, the alloy shows anomalous strain hardening behaviour characterised by one strain hardening stage and three well-distinguished strain softening stages.

Microstructure evolution of a forged TiAl-Nb alloy during high-temperature tensile testing

A forged TiAl-Nb alloy was investigated by means of measurements of properties related to performance at high temperatures, and the microstructure was observed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) with electron backscattering diffraction (EBSD) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The brittle-ductile transition temperature of the alloy was between 800 °C and 820 °C. The alloy had high strength in the brittle stage, and the main deformation mechanisms of the alloy were dislocation movement and dynamic recovery (DRV) in the γ phase. In the ductile stage, the alloy had good deformation ability and the main deformation mechanism of the alloy was continuous dynamic recrystallization (CDRX) in γ phase and α2 phase, the integrity of the lamellar colonies was destroyed. At the same time, the phase transformation occurred.

Embrittlement of WCLL blanket and its fracture mechanical assessment

In the European fusion programme, the Water Cooled Lithium Lead breeding blanket (WCLL BB) uses EUROFER as a structural material cooled with water at temperatures between 295 °C–328 °C and a pressure of 155 bar. The WCLL BB will be significantly irradiated (>2 dpa), while some parts will not receive significant heat loads, e.g. the sidewalls or the back-supporting structures. The irradiation, together with the irradiation temperature of EUROFER below 350 °C, produces a shift of the ductile-to-brittle-transition temperature (DBTT) to levels above room temperature at neutron doses, causing material damage as low as 2–3 dpa. Even though the DBTT does not reach the operating temperature level, brittle/non-ductile fracture is a concern during in-vessel maintenance when the BB temperature is below the DBTT. Two loading scenarios were identified as severe in this respect: (i) re-pressurization of the WCLL BB cooling loop after in-vessel maintenance, and (ii) dead weight loads during lifting of the BB segment. The embrittlement of the WCLL BB was investigated by quantifying the local DBTT shift in its parts based on current knowledge of the embrittlement behaviour of EUROFER under neutron irradiation. Therefore, a suitable, not overly conservative procedure was derived considering dpa damage and transmuted helium effects. The results demonstrate the ability to identify the 3D spread of the severely embrittled zones in the structure whose impact on the structural integrity was assessed considering the risk of brittle/non-ductile fracture. Thereby, the fracture mechanics approach established in nuclear codes was applied assuming its applicability to EUROFER. The embrittled zones in the first wall (FW) and its sidewalls pass the criteria when assessing the relatively low stresses resulting from the coolant pressure. The assessment was then continued considering stresses appearing in the FW during maintenance, in particular, when lifting the BB segment and transporting it out of the vacuum vessel. In this context, the maximum tolerable flaw sizes were determined in a parameter study considering designs of the FW with different cooling channel wall thicknesses.

Influence of calcium consumption and content on the quality of 10KhSND steel made from continuously cast slabs

The effect of calcium consumption during out-of-furnace processing and its content in the finished metal on the quality of sheet steel grade 10KhSND, obtained from continuously cast slabs, has been studied. The research is based on the results of evaluating the macrostructure of slabs obtained from a continuously cast billet, as well as after testing the finished metal to determine impact strength, contamination with non-metallic inclusions, and ductile-brittle transition temperature. The paper analyzes the effect of consumption and calcium content in the metal.

Unforeseen influence of the prior austenite grain size on the mechanical properties of a carbide-free bainitic steel

The reasons behind the limited impact toughness of medium manganese, medium carbon carbide-free bainitic steels has been discussed in this manuscript. Various hot-rolling schedules have been employed to obtain microstructures with three different prior austenite grain sizes (PAGSs): coarse (CG = 45 ± 5 μm), medium (MG = 18 ± 4 μm) and fine (FG = 8 ± 2 μm) grain sizes. Although the coarse and middle grain size microstructures present similar levels of strength (tensile strength ∼1000 MPa) and ductility (36% and 41%, respectively), the impact toughness measured at room temperature improves significantly from 17 J to 83 J in the middle grain size one because of the lower ductile-to-brittle transition temperature (DBTT) temperature. Compared to the other microstructures, the fine grain size one contains higher contents of blocky unstable retained austenite, which are responsible for the enhanced strain hardening behavior under tensile testing but can be harmful for the toughness. Besides, during the first stages of straining these blocky austenite islands transform effortlessly, deteriorating the ductility (30%) and toughness (58 J) in spite of keeping a similar DBTT as the microstructure with the medium grain size.

Synergistic effect of different testing environments on the hydrogen-induced mechanical degradation to establish the role of microstructural features on the failure of X70 pipeline steel

Hydrogen-induced mechanical degradation was evaluated in different environmental conditions on two X70 pipeline steels having the same composition but different thermomechanical processing parameters, and a further correlation between microstructural features and hydrogen embrittlement (HE) susceptibility was established. HE susceptibility was determined by performing the Slow Strain Rate Tensile Test (SSRT) in air, ex-situ hydrogen-charged, in corrosive media, in-situ hydrogen-charged and Charpy impact tests before and after hydrogen charging in a wide range of temperatures.The SSRT results indicated that the synergistic action of stress and hydrogen in in-situ charged sample leads to maximum HE susceptibility in both X70 steels. Charpy results demonstrated that ductile-to-brittle transition temperature (DBTT) increases after hydrogen charging. The texture analysis revealed that X70-2 with a higher volume fraction ratio of Ƴ-fiber/{100}<011> demonstrated improved HE resistance, whereas X70-1 with higher fractions of {113}<110> and {100} || ND demonstrated a higher DBTT than before and after hydrogen charged X70-2.

Effect of B and N Content and Austenitization Temperature on the Tensile and Impact Properties of Modified 9Cr-1Mo Steels

The present study investigates the relative effect of B and N concentrations and the austenitization temperature on the microstructure and mechanical properties (tensile and Charpy impact) of modified 9Cr-1Mo (P91) steels. Initially, a B-free P91 steel (with 500 ppm N) and four different B-containing steels (25–100 ppm) with varying N concentrations (20–108 ppm) were hot-rolled, normalized from different austenitization temperatures (1000–1100 °C/1 h) and finally tempered at 760 °C for 1 h. A Charpy impact test shows that the ductile–brittle transition temperature (DBTT) of all the B-added steels decreases with an increase in the austenitization temperature, where the 100 ppm B steel offers the lowest DBTT (−85 °C). Similarly, the strength increases with the increase in the austenitization temperature (1100 °C), with a slight drop in ductility. The influence of precipitates on the microstructure and mechanical properties is explained considering the B enrichment at the precipitates and the thermodynamic stability of the precipitates. The 100 ppm B steel (containing the maximum B and minimum N), normalized from 1100 °C austenitization, shows the best combination of tensile and Charpy impact properties, owing to the effective dissolution of coarse M23C6 and MX precipitates during the normalization treatment and the formation of fine B-rich (Fe,Cr)23(B,C)6 precipitates during the subsequent tempering.

Effect of V, Nb, and Ti microalloying on low–temperature impact fracture behavior of non–quenched and tempered forged steel

In this study, three kinds of non-quenched and tempered forged steels with V, V–Nb and V–Nb–Ti microalloying elements were designed. The microstructure and low–temperature impact fracture behavior of the three steels were comprehensively compared and analyzed. The results showed that the addition of Nb and Ti elements can significantly refine the grains and form precipitated particles to improve the strength of the steel. The fracture behavior of the three steels types at a low temperature of −28 °C was dominated by brittle cleavage fractures. V–Nb–Ti steel exhibited the worst low–temperature impact toughness. The SEM analysis result showed that coarse (V, Nb, Ti) (C, N) particles present in the steel acted as local cleavage initiation sites. No cleavage fracture caused by (V, Nb) (C, N) particles occurred in the V–Nb steel. The results showed that the high impact energy (70.4 J) at room temperature and low ductile–brittle transition temperature (DBTT, −20 °C) of the V–Nb steel were mainly attributable to the grain refinement of Nb. The micron–sized coarse (V, Nb, Ti) (C, N) particles were the main factor responsible for the low impact energy (35.5 J) at room temperature and high DBTT (−7 °C) of V–Nb–Ti steel and can act as the local cleavage initiation sites to dominate the cleavage fracture at low temperature and decrease the impact toughness.

Temperature-dependent deformation and fracture properties of low-carbon martensitic steel in different stress states

The temperature-dependent ductile-brittle transition (DBT) in low-carbon martensitic steel is investigated in different stress states. To capture the effects of the stress state, tensile tests have been performed with flat specimens and three-point bending tests have been conducted with Charpy specimens at dynamic (impact) and quasi-static loading rates, covering a broad temperature range of 77 K–423 K. The results reveal that ductile-brittle transition temperature (DBTT) is significantly affected by stress triaxiality, wherein the transition temperature in uniaxial tension is ∼142 K lower than that in plane strain condition of Charpy specimens. The energy absorption capacity in the ductile resistance domain during three-point bending tests is sensitive to the loading rate. Moreover, dynamic strain aging poses a decrease in ductile resistance upon quasi-static loading when the temperature exceeds 323 K and thus without a specific upper shelf plateau. Tensile strength and ductility tend to increase with decreasing temperature, and the associated failure mode changes from shear-dominated to nearly pure tension due to the specific discrepancy of temperature influence on the critical normal and shear strengths, wherein the formation of shear bands that dominate the tensile deformation could be strictly inhibited by the formation of nanoscale dislocation cells based on dislocation analysis. The failure mechanisms in tensile tests correlate with the tensile specimens' macroscopic fracture angle. In the end, a new local parameter is proposed for temperature-dependent toughness estimation in tensile tests.