Heat-treated Surfaces Research Articles

High-temperature oxidation behavior of a novel γ′-strengthened superalloy manufactured by laser-beam powder bed fusion: Effect of post-heat treatment

This study systematically researched the high-temperature oxidation behavior of a γ′-strengthened alloy based on Haynes 230 prepared by laser-beam powder bed fusion (PBF-LB). The results indicate that the experimental alloy showed a higher oxidation resistance than Haynes 230 at 1000 °C. The oxidation products mainly consisted of the outmost MnCr2O4-TiO2 layer, intermediate Cr2O3 layer and inner TiO2 layer. Branched Al2O3 oxides were formed in the interior oxidation zone. Post-heat treatment can increase oxidation resistance by reducing the oxidation rates from 0.0152 mg2cm−4h−1 to 0.0126 mg2cm−4h−1. The decrease in dislocation density and the precipitation of ordered γ' phases can slow down the short-circuit diffusion and lattice diffusion rate of oxygen, and are the main reasons for this improvement. Furthermore, the γ' phase precipitation and dislocation density reduction can provide more sites for Cr2O3 nucleation and reduce the Cr supply required for grain growth. As a result, the Cr2O3 grains on the heat-treated sample surface were smaller.

Synergistic integration of laser shock peening and heat treatment for refined microstructure and enhanced mechanical properties in additively manufactured 17–4PH stainless steel

This study explores the combined effects of laser shock peening (LSP) and heat treatment (HT) on the microstructure, residual stress, and mechanical behaviour of selective laser-melted 17–4 precipitation-hardened (PH) stainless steel. Subsequently, laser shock peening (LSP) was performed on both as-printed (AP) and heat-treated (HT) sample surfaces, and their microstructure, residual stress, and mechanical behaviour were evaluated. The severe plastic deformation (SPD) resulted in significant compressive residual stresses (CRS) in the surface layer of the AP+LSP (-879 MPa) and AP+HT+LSP (-850 MPa) samples. Laser peening caused dislocation accumulation and micro-level grain refinement in the sample's deformed layers, improving its mechanical properties. The AP+HT+LSP sample shows significant improvements over the as-printed (AP) sample. The fraction of high-angle grain boundaries (HAGBs) and high misorientation angles were higher in the AP+HT+LSP sample, and its effect is revealed in the microhardness data. The collective contribution of precipitation strengthening, Hall-Petch, CRS, dislocation strengthening, and increased fraction of HAGBs is observed in mechanical and microstructural aspects of laser shock peened specimens.

HEAT RESISTANCE OF CORROSION-RESISTANT STAINLESS STEEL CRNI65MWU AFTER VARIOUS TYPES OF FULL ANNEALING

The article discusses the influence of additional heat treatment of corrosion-resistant steel CrNi65MWU on increasing its heat resistance, as well as on changing the chemical composition of the protective oxide layer formed on the surface. The relationships between heat treatment modes and changes in the corrosion rate of selected steel under operating conditions in glass-forming production are shown. Research has also been carried out on the direct interaction of the melt of various types of glass with a heat-treated steel surface.

Intenzitet toplinske modifikacije topolovine. Dio 1

Wood heat treatment is an environmentally friendly method, and the heat-treated wood properties are closely related to thermal modification intensity. This study focuses on the 0-3 mm surface layer (SL) of poplar wood heat treated at 160~220 °C. The modification intensity, including surface color, hardness, chemical component and morphological changes of the SL, was evaluated. The findings of this research showed that the color difference of the poplar wood before and after heat treatment (ΔE*1) increased; the color difference between up-surface and down-surface of the SL (ΔE*2) also increased with the treatment temperature. Consequently, the surface hardness (HR) decreased with the increase of treatment intensity. When the treatment temperature was higher than 160 °C, the up-surface and down-surface of the SL were statistically different in color. Chemical component analysis revealed that the heat treatment degrades wood components, especially the hemicellulose, and correlation analysis showed a significant correlation between the change rate of hemicellulose and the ΔE*1 or HR value; the prediction functions have been established at a high confidence level of 0.99. Overall, the thermal modification intensity of the heat-treated surface layer (SL) of poplar wood varies, and the HR and ΔE*1 value could be used to characterize and predict the modification intensity and degree of thermal degradation of the surface layer of heat-treated poplar wood.

Fabrication of Electron Beam Melted Titanium Aluminide: The Effects of Machining Parameters and Heat Treatment on Surface Roughness and Hardness

Titanium aluminide alloys have gained attention for their lightweight and high-performance properties, particularly in aerospace and automotive applications. Traditional manufacturing methods such as casting and forging have limitations on part size and complexity, but additive manufacturing (AM), specifically electron beam melting (EBM), has overcome these challenges. However, the surface quality of AM parts is not ideal for sensitive applications, so post-processing techniques such as machining are used to improve it. The combination of AM and machining is seen as a promising solution. However, research on optimizing machining parameters and their impact on surface quality characteristics is lacking. Limited studies exist on additively manufactured TiAl alloys, necessitating further investigation into surface roughness during EBM TiAl machining and its relationship to cutting speed. As-built and heat-treated TiAl samples undergo machining at different feed rates and surface speeds. Profilometer analysis reveals worsened surface roughness in both heat-treated and non-heat-treated specimens at certain machining conditions, with higher speeds exacerbating edge cracks and material pull-outs. The hardness of the machined surfaces remains consistent within the range of 32–33.1 HRC at condition 3C (45 SFM and 0.1 mm/tooth). As-built hardness remains unchanged with increasing spindle and cutting head speeds. Conversely, heat-treated condition 3C surfaces demonstrate greater hardness than condition 1A (15 SFM, and 0.04 mm/tooth), indicating increased hardness with varying feed and surface speeds. This suggests crack formation in the as-built condition is considered to be influenced by factors beyond hardness, such as deformation-related grain refinement/strain hardening, while hardness and the existence of the α2 phase play a more significant role in heat-treated surfaces.

Triple heat treatment effects of Inconel X-750 superalloy on its microstructure, hardness, and high-temperature fretting wear characteristics

Inconel X-750 alloy specimens were undergone the triple heat treatment process: solution annealing (1149 °C/2h), equalization treatment (843 °C/24h), and precipitation treatment (704 °C/20h). Then microstructure characterization and hardness tests were performed prior to the self-mated pin-on-disk fretting wear tests in the range of 25 °C-650 °C temperature conditions. This type of alloys is widely used in bump-type gas foil bearing applications where complex fretting phenomenon occurs between foils under harsh operating conditions. Conducted investigations revealed that the heat-treated sample developed more precipitated phases in the matrix and along the grain boundaries with higher bulk hardness. Fretting wear surface morphologies indicate that the formation of glaze layer composed of NiO, Cr2O3, and mixed Ni(Fe,Cr)2O4 oxides prevail on the wear scar during the elevated temperatures, harnessing significantly lower friction coefficient and wear loss. Severe material transfers and galling were the dominant wear mechanism in the non-heat-treated alloy interface which caused the stick-slip frictional behavior. On the contrary, the heat-treated alloy surfaces demonstrated the stable coefficient of friction and 3–10 times lower wear rates at high temperatures due to the additional Cr-rich carbides. It is believed that these hard and lubricious Cr2O3 internal oxide precipitates form healing glaze barrier in the interface by protecting against severe material transfer/build-up.

Zinc (Zn) Doping by Hydrothermal and Alkaline Heat-Treatment Methods on Titania Nanotube Arrays for Enhanced Antibacterial Activity.

Titanium (Ti) is a popular biomaterial for orthopedic implant applications due to its superior mechanical properties such as corrosion resistance and low modulus of elasticity. However, around 10% of these implants fail annually due to bacterial infection and poor osseointegration, resulting in severe pain and suffering for the patients. To improve their performance, nanoscale surface modification approaches and doping of trace elements on the surfaces can be utilized which may help in improving cell adhesion for better osseointegration while reducing bacterial infection. In this work, at first, titania (TiO2) nanotube arrays (NT) were fabricated on commercially available pure Ti surfaces via anodization. Then zinc (Zn) doping was conducted following two distinct methods: hydrothermal and alkaline heat treatment. Scanning electron microscopic (SEM) images of the prepared surfaces revealed unique surface morphologies, while energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) revealed Zn distribution on the surfaces. Contact angle measurements indicated that NT surfaces were superhydrophilic. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) provided the relative amount of Zn on the surfaces and indicated that hydrothermally treated surfaces had more Zn compared to the alkaline heat-treated surfaces. X-ray crystallography (XRD) and nanoindentation techniques provided the crystal structure and mechanical properties of the surfaces. While testing with adipose-derived stem cells (ADSC), the surfaces showed no apparent cytotoxicity to the cells. Finally, bacteria adhesion and morphology were evaluated on the surfaces after 6 h and 24 h of incubation. From the results, it was confirmed that NT surfaces doped with Zn drastically reduced bacteria adhesion compared to the Ti control. Zn-doped NT surfaces thus offer a potential platform for orthopedic implant application.

A Novel Nanostructured Surface on Titanium Implants Increases Osseointegration in a Sheep Model.

A nanostructured titanium surface that promotes antimicrobial activity and osseointegration would provide the opportunity to create medical implants that can prevent orthopaedic infection and improve bone integration. Although nanostructured surfaces can exhibit antimicrobial activity, it is not known whether these surfaces are safe and conducive to osseointegration. Using a sheep animal model, we sought to determine whether the bony integration of medical-grade, titanium, porous-coated implants with a unique nanostructured surface modification (alkaline heat treatment [AHT]) previously shown to kill bacteria was better than that for a clinically accepted control surface of porous-coated titanium covered with hydroxyapatite (PCHA) after 12 weeks in vivo. The null hypothesis was that there would be no difference between implants with respect to the primary outcomes: interfacial shear strength and percent intersection surface (the percentage of implant surface with bone contact, as defined by a micro-CT protocol), and the secondary outcomes: stiffness, peak load, energy to failure, and micro-CT (bone volume/total volume [BV/TV], trabecular thickness [Tb.Th], and trabecular number [Tb.N]) and histomorphometric (bone-implant contact [BIC]) parameters. Implants of each material (alkaline heat-treated and hydroxyapatite-coated titanium) were surgically inserted into femoral and tibial metaphyseal cancellous bone (16 per implant type; interference fit) and in tibial cortices at three diaphyseal locations (24 per implant type; line-to-line fit) in eight skeletally mature sheep. At 12 weeks postoperatively, bones were excised to assess osseointegration of AHT and PCHA implants via biomechanical push-through tests, micro-CT, and histomorphometry. Bone composition and remodeling patterns in adult sheep are similar to that of humans, and this model enables comparison of implants with ex vivo outcomes that are not permissible with humans. Comparisons of primary and secondary outcomes were undertaken with linear mixed-effects models that were developed for the cortical and cancellous groups separately and that included a random effect of animals, covariates to adjust for preoperative bodyweight, and implant location (left/right limb, femoral/tibial cancellous, cortical diaphyseal region, and medial/lateral cortex) as appropriate. Significance was set at an alpha of 0.05. The estimated marginal mean interfacial shear strength for cancellous bone, adjusted for covariates, was 1.6 MPa greater for AHT implants (9.3 MPa) than for PCHA implants (7.7 MPa) (95% CI 0.5 to 2.8; p = 0.006). Similarly, the estimated marginal mean interfacial shear strength for cortical bone, adjusted for covariates, was 6.6 MPa greater for AHT implants (25.5 MPa) than for PCHA implants (18.9 MPa) (95% CI 5.0 to 8.1; p < 0.001). No difference in the implant-bone percent intersection surface was detected for cancellous sites (cancellous AHT 55.1% and PCHA 58.7%; adjusted difference of estimated marginal mean -3.6% [95% CI -8.1% to 0.9%]; p = 0.11). In cortical bone, the estimated marginal mean percent intersection surface at the medial site, adjusted for covariates, was 11.8% higher for AHT implants (58.1%) than for PCHA (46.2% [95% CI 7.1% to 16.6%]; p < 0.001) and was not different at the lateral site (AHT 75.8% and PCHA 74.9%; adjusted difference of estimated marginal mean 0.9% [95% CI -3.8% to 5.7%]; p = 0.70). These data suggest there is stronger integration of bone on the AHT surface than on the PCHA surface at 12 weeks postimplantation in this sheep model. Given that the AHT implants formed a more robust interface with cortical and cancellous bone than the PCHA implants, a clinical noninferiority study using hip stems with identical geometries can now be performed to compare the same surfaces used in this study. The results of this preclinical study provide an ethical baseline to proceed with such a clinical study given the potential of the alkaline heat-treated surface to reduce periprosthetic joint infection and enhance implant osseointegration.

Ultrafast and Eco-Friendly Fabrication Process for Robust, Repairable Superhydrophobic Metallic Surfaces with Tunable Water Adhesion.

Superhydrophobic metallic surfaces with a water contact angle greater than 150° have attracted considerable attention in both fundamental research and industrial applications due to their special properties such as antibiofouling, drag reduction, self-cleaning, anti-icing, anticorrosion, and oil-water separation. Until now, the development of superhydrophobic practical applications is mainly limited by the process complexity, long fabrication time, coating with toxic materials, and easily damaged surface structure. To reduce the fabrication time, and simplify the process for industrial applications, an eco-friendly postprocess has been developed in this research. The superhydrophobic surfaces on the laser-textured titanium, aluminum, copper, stainless steel, and nickel substrates were fabricated extremely rapidly by a simple surface modification of only a 10 min heat treatment with nontoxic silicone oil. Hydrophobic organic group absorption has been accelerated on the silicone oil heat-treated surface and has created a low-energy surface. In addition, we demonstrated the potential of using the laser areal fluence parameter, which could be an alternative to single-laser process parameters such as scanning speed, power, and step size, to fine-tune the water adhesion behavior. Therefore, a surface that integrates different water adhesion behaviors can be easily fabricated for more complex practical applications such as controlled microdroplet transportation, microfluidic systems, and certain biomedical processes. Moreover, the robustness of superhydrophobic surfaces was confirmed by abrasion tests, knife-scratch tests, chemical durability tests, and aging tests, and their repairability was evaluated for product applications in practice.

Friction and wear properties of short time heat-treated and laser surface re-melted NiCr-WC composite coatings at various dry sliding conditions

In the present study, the effect of various weight percentages (0, 20, 30, and 40 wt.%) of Tungsten Carbide (WC) reinforcement in the Nickel-Chromium (Ni-Cr) alloy was investigated. The coatings were deposited on a 316L stainless steel substrate using Plasma Transferred Arc Welding (PTAW) process. Additionally, the As Welded (AW) NiCr-WC coatings were subjected to Short Time Heat-Treatment (STHT) and Laser Re-Melting (LRM) processes and a comparative study has been carried out with that of AW coatings. X-ray Diffraction (XRD), Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM), Vickers hardness and Pin on disc wear testing facilities were employed to characterize the phase structures, microstructure, dilution, crystallization, hardness and wear properties of the deposits. Wear mechanisms were studied using the 3D surface analyzer and SEM images. The STHT and LRM coatings showed an increased hardness and more crystalline phases than the As-Welded (AW) coatings. The correlation between the intermetallic phases, residual stress, microstructural evolution and friction-wear behaviour among the AW, STHT and LRM NiCr and NiCr-WC coatings were discussed in detail.

Wettability Transition of the Picosecond Laser-Ablated 304 Stainless-Steel Surface via Low-Vacuum Heat Treatment.

Inspired by natural creatures, superhydrophobic surfaces with various adhesion behaviors have attracted significant scientific interest. In this study, by controlling the laser fluence, the scanning times, and the subsequent cleaning method, microcolumn arrays with different morphologies were fabricated on 304 stainless-steel surfaces using picosecond laser direct writing. To achieve wettability transition, the laser-processed samples were then subjected to heat treatments (120 °C) in air and in a low vacuum environment (6 kPa). The results show that after heat treatment in different environments and with various time lengths, the laser-processed surfaces become hydrophobic surfaces with different adhesion properties. It is worth noting that while surfaces heat-treated in air exhibit weak wettability transition potential and high adhesion, the surfaces heat-treated in a low vacuum environment present superhydrophobic and low adhesion properties with a minimum sliding angle of about 3.14°. Moreover, the low-vacuum heat-treated surfaces retain good superhydrophobic properties after 1 month of observation as well as an abrasion test. These transitions in hydrophobic behavior and adhesion properties may be mainly attributed to the heat treatment-induced (in the air or in a low vacuum environment) redistribution of surface compounds and the microstructure-induced alternation of the solid-liquid contact state. By controlling the laser processing parameters and the heat treatment time and environment, stable wettability transition and flexible adhesion control of stainless steel can be easily achieved.

Impact of ex-PAN carbon fibers thermal treatment on the mechanical behavior of C/SiC composites and on the fiber/matrix coupling

Ceramic matrix composites reinforced by external polymerization of acrylonitrile (ex-PAN) carbon fibers with pyrocarbon (PyC) interphase are attractive materials for thermomechanical applications. Nevertheless, C/SiC composites suffer from a low damage tolerance. A 1600°C thermal pretreatment of the carbon fibers led to an improvement of the mechanical properties of the composites. Even if this heat treatment was seen to modify the fiber microstructure and texture, the changes were not sufficient to explain the observed improvements. The consequences of the thermal treatment on carbon fibers were studied by high resolution transmission electron microscopy and physicochemical analyses. The fiber/matrix debonding was also apprehended by analyzing the interfacial regions of C/SiC composites. The key role of the fiber surface structure on the fiber/matrix (F/M) coupling was highlighted. The microstructural reorganization of the heat-treated fibers surfaces induces a high F/M bonding strength and leads to better damage tolerance for the C/SiC composites.

Analytical Modeling of Cutting Forces and Technological Parameters Interrelation when Grinding Shafts' Ends by a Grinding Wheel End on Circular Grinding Machines

Abrasive processing remains one of most demanded for hardened steels parts. Grinding of end surfaces of machines parts has become widespread due to the fact that it allows processing heat-treated surfaces more efficiently than turning and also correcting the surface geometry. This processing type is used almost mainly for finish processing operations of shafts ends, bearing rings, gears, etc. However, there is still no mathematical model for this processing type, which would satisfy most of the main technological parameters. In this article a mathematical model of the cutting force when grinding the shaft end by the grinding wheel end on circular grinding machines is obtained. Processing schemes for this grinding type are given and the calculated graph of the cutting force according to the obtained mathematical model is shown.

Effects of Heat Treatment of Selective Laser Melting Printed Ti-6Al-4V Specimens on Surface Texture Parameters and Cell Attachment

Selective laser melting (SLM) is extensively used for fabricating metallic biomedical products. After 3D printing, it is almost always advisable to apply a heat treatment to release the internal tensions or optimize the mechanical properties of the printed parts. The aim of this paper is to investigate the effects of heat treatment of SLM printed Ti-6Al-4V (Ti64) circular specimens on the areal surface texture parameters and cell attachment. Areal surface texture parameters, including the arithmetic mean height (Sa), root-mean-square height (Sq), skewness (Ssk), and kurtosis (Sku) were characterized. In addition, wavelet-based multi-resolution analysis was applied to investigate the characteristic length scales of untreated and heat-treated Ti64 specimens. In this study, the vertical distance between the highest and lowest position of cell attachment for each sampling area was defined as ΔH. Results showed that an increase in the periodic characteristic length scale was primarily due to the formation of large-scale aggregations of Ti64 metal powder particles on the heat-treated surface. In addition, MG-63 cells preferred lying in concave hollows; in heat-treated specimens, values of ΔH statistically significantly decreased from 31.6 ± 4.2 to 8.8 ± 2.8 μm, while Sku decreased from 3.3 ± 1.4 to 2.6 ± 0.6, indicating a strong influence of Sku on cell attachment.

Microplastics generated under simulated fire scenarios: Characteristics, antimony leaching, and toxicity.

Intentional or incidental thermal changes inevitably occur during the lifecycle of plastics. High temperatures accelerate the aging of plastics and promote their fragmentation to microplastics (MPs). However, there is little information available on the release of MPs after fires. In this study, an atomic force microscope combined with nanoscale infrared analysis was used to demonstrate the physicochemical properties of polypropylene (PP) plastics under simulated fire scenarios. Results showed that the chemical composition and relative stiffness of heat-treated plastic surfaces changed, significantly enhancing the generation of MPs under external forces; over (2.1±0.2)×105 items/kg abundance of MPs released from PP which were burned at 250°C in air and trampled by a person. The leaching of antimony (Sb) from MPs in different solutions first increased and then decreased with increasing temperature, reaching a maximum at 250°C. Higher concentrations of humic acid (10 vs 1mg/L) caused a greater release of Sb. Furthermore, the tap water leachates of PP burned at 250°C had the greatest effect on the growth and photosynthetic activity of Microcystis aeruginosa. Our results suggest fires as a potential source of MPs and calls for increased focus on burning plastics in future research.

Near infrared spectroscopy to evaluate change in color and chemical composition in heat-treated bamboo

This study investigated the feasibility of using near infrared spectroscopy technology to predict color and chemical composition in the heat-treated bamboo processing industry. The quantitative presentations of the changes in the chemical components were discussed using the difference spectra method of the 2nd derivative NIR spectra of the heat-treated bamboo samples. Then, the relationships between the color changes of the heat-treated bamboo and its near infrared spectra were constructed using the changes in the chemical components of the bamboo samples during the heating process. The prediction of color and chemical composition of both the outer and inner sides of the heat-treated bamboo surface were constructed using partial least squares regression method combined with a leave-one-out cross-validation process. Then, the results were validated by independent sample sets. The proposed prediction models were found to produce high r2P (above 0.93), RPD (above 3.13), and low RMSEP for both the outer and inner sides of the heat-treated bamboo samples. These studies’ results confirmed that the proposed models, especially outer side models, were perfectly suitable for the in-process inspections of the color and chemical content changes of heat-treated bamboo.

Turned AISI 4340 Heat-Treated Steel Surface Quality Investigations in Dry and MQL Cooling Conditions

Heat treatment of machine components such as Annealing, normalizing, hardening, case hardening and other surface treatments have given better endurance to static and dynamic loads and stresses for many service applications. Most of the components are heat treated after machining once major dimensional controls are met. However, after heat treatment, it was observed the dimensional inaccuracies such as actual dimensions values, surface quality deterioration due to scale formation and material combinations with surrounding media at elevated temperatures attempts to recheck the errors and dimensional variations in the components. Machining after heat treatment also is necessary and is practiced and there arises problems of different chemistry and physical behavior of tool and material machining conditions. In order to know the effects of the heat treatment on machining, an attempt is made to study the variations in the process using design of experiment (DOE) approach taking surface roughness parameter as response.

Heat-treated carbon coatings on poly (l-lactide) foils for tissue engineering

Carbon-based materials have emerged as promising candidates for a wide variety of biomedical applications, including tissue engineering. We have developed a simple but unique technique for patterning carbon-based substrates in order to control cell adhesion, growth and phenotypic maturation. Carbon films were deposited on PLLA foils from distances of 3 to 7 cm. Subsequent heat-treatment (60 °C, 1 h) created lamellar structures with dimensions decreasing from micro- to nanoscale with increasing deposition distance. All carbon films improved the spreading and proliferation of human osteoblast-like MG 63 cells, and promoted the alignment of these cells along the lamellar structures. Similar alignment was observed in human osteoblast-like Saos-2 cells and in human dermal fibroblasts. Type I collagen fibers produced by Saos-2 cells and fibroblasts were also oriented along the lamellar structures. These structures increased the activity of alkaline phosphatase in Saos-2 cells. Carbon coatings also supported adhesion and growth of vascular endothelial and smooth muscle cells, particularly flatter non-heated carbon films. On these films, the continuity of the endothelial cell layer was better than on heat-treated lamellar surfaces. Heat-treated carbon-coated PLLA is therefore more suitable for bone and skin tissue engineering, while carbon-coated PLLA without heating is more appropriate for vascular tissue engineering.

Enhanced bonding strength of heat-treated wood using a cold atmospheric-pressure nitrogen plasma jet

In this work, the bonding strength enhancement of heat-treated wood using a cold atmospheric-pressure nitrogen plasma jet for several lengths of treatment time was investigated. The enhancement of bonding strength was assessed by measurement of the contact angle of aqueous adhesive and water borne finish along with determination of compressive shear strength of wood samples bonded with an aqueous adhesive and pull-off strength of a water borne finish coating on wood samples. Additionally, the elemental composition and crystallinity index of the heat-treated wood surface were characterized using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction. As expected, the measurements demonstrated that contact angle decreased after atmospheric-pressure nitrogen plasma jet treatment, and the optimal treatment time was 100 s. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy shows that hydrophilic groups such as C=O, OH, and COOH appeared on the surface of the HW. The atmospheric-pressure nitrogen plasma jet treatment had a positive effect on the crystallinity of heat-treated wood because of a slight degradation of hemicelluloses. Increasing the bonding strength of heat-treated wood is beneficial for broadening the fields of its applications.

The direct observation of surface martensite formation upon cooling to temperatures close to ambient in a heat treated AISI 301 stainless steel

Martensitic transformation, either athermal or strain-induced, in metastable AISI 301 austenitic steel is of high technical interest as this facilitates manipulation of mechanical properties. This work is part of a project aimed at identifying the influence of variables that determine the athermal α′-martensitic transformation in this steel in order to ensure consistent martensite formation and optimized mechanical properties. The influences of initial austenitic grain size and surface concentrations of interstitial elements (C, N) on martensite start temperature were investigated. The surface concentrations of both carbon and nitrogen were decreased through decarburisation and the formation of martensite upon cooling from ambient temperatures was directly observed using a cryogenic Scanning Electron Microscope (cryo-SEM). It was found that martensite formed on the heat-treated surfaces at much higher temperatures than that expected for AISI 301 steel. The observations were confirmed using electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD). Other analytical techniques including glow-discharge optical emission spectroscopy (GDOES), and Neutron Diffraction were carried out to explain the observations.