High Carbon Steel Wire Research Articles

Influence of high-carbon wire drawing method on its production efficiency

The issue of improving the production efficiency and competitiveness of high-carbon steel wire, determined by a rational ratio of quality and costs of its production, is an urgent task. The main way to solve it is the development and implementation of an effective technical process, the main elements of which are the technological process and equipment for its realization. Since the middle of the last century, domestic steel wire production has been operating on imported equipment, which significantly hampers the use of modern technological processes. This unfavorable situation has been aggravated at present by the imposition of severe economic sanctions by “unfriendly states”. The way out of this situation in the current production is the improvement of existing and introduction of new methods of wire drawing. According to the original methodology the analysis of the existing at one of the domestic enterprises route of drawing of high-carbon wire rope wire with a diameter of 1.70 mm from wire rod of 5.50 mm with the use of standard single monolithic fibers, twin monolithic fibers, roller fibers, as well as modules including roller and monolithic fibers (combined drawing) was carried out. The obtained results have shown that when using standard fibers, the drawing route should be designed with the minimum possible multiplicity, which will provide on the existing equipment to improve the quality of wire and reduce the cost of its production. The greatest efficiency is provided by the application of combined drawing: twofold reduction of drawing multiplicity, energy saving up to 30%, improvement of wire quality by creating a favorable stress-strain state when deforming the wire first in roller and then in monolithic drawing. In addition, in comparison with the roller fibers, the equipment is simplified and the costs of its purchase and operation are reduced. Recommendations on the directions of increasing the efficiency of production in the conditions of existing production, purchase of new imported and designing of domestic drawing equipment are given

The significant impact of the crystallization of cementite in high carbon steel wire on its torsional performance

This article investigates the mechanism behind the significant differences in torsional properties of high carbon steel wire rods under two different drawing conditions when subjected to the same hot-dip galvanizing treatment. In our experiment, two types of drawn wires were annealed at 200–500 °C. X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy were used to comprehensively analyze the changes in ferrite lattice parameters, the dissolution of cementite, and the crystallization process under the two drawing conditions. The finite element method is used to simulate the strain in different drawing processes. The experimental results indicate that the wire subjected to less equivalent plastic strain shows good torsion ability during wire drawing, which is due to the slow crystallization process of cementite dissolved in ferrite during hot dip galvanization.

Research on analyzing and valuing residual stress for micro wire busbar

The electroplated diamond wire saw made from high-carbon steel wire busbar (busbar), which directly affects the quality of cutting monocrystalline silicon, polysilicon, sapphire and SiC. When the wire diameter is on the micro-scale, there is no equipment to precisely measure the distribution of residual stress at present. The free circle diameter (FC-diameter) is used as the quality index to measure the distribution of axial residual stress of the busbar post-drawing. The existing finite element simulation of residual stress of steel wire post-drawing is mainly aimed at steel wire diameter of millimeter, and most of it is two-dimensional finite element simulation. The effect of actual factors on residual stress of the busbar is not considered in the simulation. In this paper, finite element simulation is carried out for steel wire with diameter in micron scale. The influences of die deflection, die friction coefficient, die sizing band ellipse and steel wire ellipse on axial residual stress is considered. The relationship between residual stress distribution and FC-diameter is established, and the correctness of simulation results is verified by experiments.

Features of Texture Formation of High-Carbon Steel Wire after Combined Deformation Treatment

Features of Texture Formation of High-Carbon Steel Wire after Combined Deformation Treatment

Effect of cooling rate on microstructure and crystallographic characters for Fe3O4 seam-free on J82B steel from 650 ​°C

Surface quality and tensile strength are required for the deep processing yield of high-carbon steel wires, particularly those with a cumulative reduction rate above 60 ​%. A systematic investigation was conducted to discern the influence mechanism of cooling rate on microstructure and crystallographic characteristics for the matrix from 650 ​°C. The results show that the microstructure of the sample cooled at 1.5 ​°C/s consists of a single pearlite, and the grain orientation is mainly the easy sliding crystal plane {101}. The retained austenite/martensite microstructure appears and grows with the cooling rate increasing to 4.5 and 7.5 ​°C/s. The grain orientation shifts from an easy slip {101} plane orientation to hard slip {001} and {111} plane orientations. The number of high-angle grain boundaries that inhibit crack expansion decreased. In addition, the number of twin boundaries in the austenite/martensite grains increased. An increase in the cooling rate increased the material hardness and decreased the plastic toughness. Therefore, the cooling rate of 1.5 ​°C/s from 650 ​°C might concurrently yield the optimal surface quality and the microstructure of the matrix during steel production.

Effect of microstructure and microtexture evolution of oxide layer over J82B steel on mechanical descaling properties

The oxide layer covering a high-carbon steel wire rod must be efficiently removed to form ‘a well-adhered yet easy-to-remove oxide scale’ during the mechanical descaling process. In this study, the relationship between the microstructural characteristics of the oxides and the efficiency of mechanical descaling was investigated. An electron backscatter diffraction analysis was conducted prior to bending and microscratch testing to clarify the microstructural discrepancies, namely, the phase distribution and texture orientation of the oxide constituents within the oxide scale system over the steel wire rod. The oxide scale system exhibits a double-scale layered structure, primarily consisting of FeO and Fe3O4. The low-angle and low-Σ coincident site lattice (CSL) boundaries in the Fe3O4 grains inhibit crack propagation without diffusion interactions, supporting oxide spallation in the large flake state during descaling. However, if the Fe3O4 grains were distributed along the boundary between the oxide scale and the iron substrate and had a high orientation consistency with the α-Fe grains, the grown oxide scale spalled into fine fragments, and a considerable amount of oxide scale residue firmly adhered to the descaled steel specimen. Stress relief and ion vacancy diffusion mechanisms govern the growth of Fe3O4 grains near the surface and at the interface of the matrix. These results provide guidelines for adjusting the oxide scale heterogeneity of high-carbon steels to improve their descaling performance.

Automatic Detection of Sorbite Content in High Carbon Steel Wire Rod

This paper presents a method for the automatic detection of sorbite content in high-carbon steel wire rods. A semantic segmentation model of sorbite based on DeepLabv3+ is established. The sorbite structure is segmented, and the prediction results are analyzed and counted based on the metallographic images of high-carbon steel wire rods marked manually. For the problem of sample imbalance, the loss function of Dice loss + focal loss is used, and the perturbation processing of training data is added. The results show that this method can realize the automatic statistics of sorbite content. The average pixel prediction accuracy is as high as 94.28%, and the average absolute error is only 4.17%. The composite application of the loss function and the enhancement of the data perturbation significantly improve the prediction accuracy and robust performance of the model. In this method, the detection of sorbite content in a single image only takes 10 s, which is 99% faster than that of 10 min using the manual cut-off method. On the premise of ensuring detection accuracy, the detection efficiency is significantly improved and the labor intensity is reduced.

Research Status of Manufacturing Technology of Tungsten Alloy Wire.

In light of the fact that tungsten wire is gradually replacing high-carbon steel wire as a diamond cutting line, it is particularly important to study tungsten alloy wire with better strength and performance. According to this paper, in addition to various technological factors (powder preparation, press forming, sintering, rolling, rotary forging, annealing, wire drawing, etc.), the main factors affecting the properties of the tungsten alloy wire are the composition of the tungsten alloy, the shape and size of the powder, etc. Combined with the research results in recent years, this paper summarizes the effects of changing the composition of tungsten materials and improving the processing technology on the microstructure and mechanical properties of tungsten and its alloys and points out the development direction and trend of tungsten and its alloy wires in the future.

Plasma Hydrogenation of High-Carbon Structural Steel Wires under Different Prestressing Levels

High-carbon structural steel wires were prestressed to various levels in a plasma hydrogenation environment and then pulled in a slow strain rate test (SSRT). The effect of plasma hydrogenation under different prestressing levels on the material's tensile response and hydrogen embrittlement was noted. It was found that the ultimate tensile strength (UTS), yield strength, and ductility of the steel wire samples are decreased by plasma hydrogenation and prestressing levels. The more drastic decrease in the UTS, yield strength, and ductility is found in the plasma hydrogenated prestressing steel to a higher prestressing level. Moreover, the hydrogen embrittlement index of the steel wire samples is significantly increased by plasma hydrogenation and prestressing level. The highly plasma hydrogenated prestressing steel wire samples exhibit complete brittle fracture. A mixed mode of fracture, i.e., ductile and brittle, was observed at the surface of the plasma hydrogenated prestressing steel wire samples at lower levels. The hydrogen embrittlement areas at the fracture surfaces of steel wire samples are observed to increase with plasma hydrogenation and prestressing levels. More severe hydrogen cracking and blistering resulted in the fracture surfaces of plasma-hydrogenated prestressing steel wire samples with higher levels.

Pitting corrosion induced on high-strength high carbon steel wire in high alkaline deaerated chloride electrolyte

Abstract Electrochemical response causing pitting corrosion of high-strength high carbon steel wire in deaerated electrolyte at pH 13.4 due to different chloride ion (Cl−) concentrations was investigated using open circuit potential, cyclic potentiodynamic polarization, and anodic potentiostatic application (APA) within the passive zone. Results showed that the higher the Cl− concentration, the more negative the corrosion potential becomes. In the high alkaline pH 13.4 without the presence of free oxygen gas the Cl− concentration could reach up to 1 M not showing pitting potential. An inverse relationship between anodic potentials (APs) and Cl− concentrations was found and the rate of corrosion within passive period was almost a constant, not influenced by the Cl− concentrations. Faraday´s law failed to predict the mass loss when active pitting corrosion occurred. Green rust and hydrogen gas were observed during active pitting corrosion under APA. Pitting corrosion mechanism in the deaerated high alkaline electrolyte was then proposed. This work deduces that in the deaerated electrolyte at pH 13.4 with the presence of Cl−, it is essential to apply the APs within the safety margin on the high-strength high carbon steel wire to avoid active pitting corrosion and hydrogen embrittlement.

Influence of Preheating and Postweld Heat Treatment on the Structure and Strength of the Wire Frame Welded Joint Made of Spring Steel C62D

This article investigates the automatic welding of Ø4.5 mm high carbon steel wire frame. Using spring steel wire frame in car seat fabrication reduces its weight and helps to maintain rigidity. The thermal effect during the welding process can unacceptably deteriorate the mechanical properties of the material. It is proposed to use preheating and heat treatment to obtain a joint with required mechanical properties. To reduce of effect on entire product rigidity the thermal treatment was carried out locally in the zone of joining. Heating was carried out using a gas flame. Metallographic and microhardness measurements were used for the structural study. Mechanical properties were evaluated by static tension and free bending test. The recording of thermal cycles during the welding and heat treatment was carried out using chromel-alumel and tungsten-rhenium thermocouples.

Microstructure and strength in ultrastrong cold-drawn medium carbon steel

Via traditional wire drawing, the medium carbon ferrite-pearlite (MCFP) steel wires can achieve the ultrahigh strength beyond 4 GPa normally for high-carbon pearlitic steel wires, but have a 30–60% lower production cost. The microstructural evolution and mechanical properties of medium carbon ferrite-pearlite steel wires have been investigated by means of scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy and tensile testing. The tensile strength of medium carbon ferrite-pearlite steel wires increases from 750 MPa up to 4120 MPa when the drawing strain increases up to ε = 6.4, which represents the highest strength reported so far – to our knowledge for a carbon steel with such low carbon content. At low and medium strains (ε ≤ 1.95), the proeutectoid ferrite forms dense dislocation walls (DDWs) via dislocation activities, including sliding, accumulation, interaction, and tangling. With the drawing strain increase, the reorientation of DDWs to the drawing direction forms the coarse proeutectoid ferrite lamellae. Finally, the proeutectoid ferrite deformed to high strains is characterized by a lamellar morphology and the average lamellar spacing of proeutectoid ferrite is about 55 nm at ε = 6.4. The interlamellar spacing of pearlite and thickness of cementite decreases with the drawing strain increases. The dislocation density in ferrite lamellae increases with the drawing strain increases, and the dislocation density in ferrite lamellae is 7.8 × 1015 m−2 at ε = 4.19. A higher dislocation density of 3.1 × 1016 m−2 can be obtained at ε = 6.4 by means of extrapolation and TEM investigations. The stress contributions of proeutectoid ferrite and pearlite to the flow stress are estimated based on quantified structural parameters. Based on the assumption that the stress contributions from different strengthening mechanisms are linearly additive and the general rule of mixtures, a good agreement between the measured and estimated flow stresses has been found in a large range of flow stress. The good application of the general rule of mixture to the medium carbon ferrite-pearlite steel wires indicates the importance of quantitative characterization of microstructural evolution and parameters with the strain.

Laser Metal Deposition welding with high carbon steel wire material 100Cr6

The bearing steel 100Cr6 is of great interest for cladding applications that are subject to tribological stresses, since it has high hardness of up to 62 HRC. However, the material is considered not weldable due to its high carbon content. In this study, a process for laser metal deposition welding with the wire material 100Cr6 is developed. For the welding experiments a coaxial deposition welding head is used and the cladding is applied on flat steel of the material S235. Suitable parameter sets for the production of single-layer claddings are determined. The transferability of the results to multilayer claddings is examined. The claddings are analyzed with respect to hardness, microstructure, dilution and the occurrence of welding defects such as pores and cracks. The investigations indicate that an adjustment of the welding parameters is necessary for the deposition of the second layer of the cladding

Magnetic characterisation of strain ageing in near eutectoid drawn pearlitic wire using an electromagnetic (EM) sensor

High carbon steel wires are susceptible to a detrimental ageing process, known as strain ageing. Strain ageing is responsible for the redistribution of carbon atoms within a wire microstructure. The redistribution of carbon atoms results in changes to the mechanical properties of a wire in service, which can lead to premature failure. Current methods of monitoring strain ageing are destructive, making in service monitoring challenging. Therefore, it is desirable to detect these subtle changes in a non-destructive manner. This paper reports trials of an electromagnetic (EM) sensor designed for monitoring wire samples. It is known that EM sensors are sensitive to microstructural changes in steels, and sensors are being used to monitor phase transformations during hot steel processing and strip properties in cold mills. This is the first reported use of an EM sensor for monitoring strain ageing in high carbon steel wire. Wires were tested using current standard methods (mechanical testing) alongside EM sensor measurements. An initial increase in tensile strength was observed via mechanical testing, whilst the EM sensors measured a corresponding change in real inductance. In more severe ageing conditions, mechanical properties levelled off somewhat, which was also measured in the corresponding EM sensor measurements. EM sensors are capable of detecting the subtle changes caused by strain ageing in a non-destructive manner. Therefore, the development of inline EM sensors have the potential to monitor strain ageing in a level of detail which has not been reasonably achievable with currently available testing methods.

Study on Static Strain Aging Kinetics of High-Carbon Steel Wires and Its Impact on High-Strength Steel Cords

Under quasi-static loading, an irregular failure mode of high-strength thin carbon steel cords were observed after low-temperature thermal aging. Character and kinetics of damage in such wire ropes highly depend on the plastic elongation of the steel wires, which is significantly modified by the strain aging effect. In this paper, the static strain aging effect on heavily drawn high-carbon steel wires and their cords is experimentally studied in the 80–200 °C temperature range. The kinetics of the aging process is studied in detail. Experimental data are fit by the Johnson–Mehl–Avrami–Kolmogorov (JMAK) kinetic model. The temperature dependence of the static strain aging process is given by means of the Arrhenius equation. The associated JMAK exponents, the apparent activation energy and the pre-exponential constant are determined. Quantitative analysis of the affected strength and strain parameters is given, and based on this, the macroscopic failure mechanism is fundamentally explained.

Automobile Tires’ High-Carbon Steel Wire

It is a well-known fact that to manufacture an automobile tire more than 200 different materials are used, including high-carbon steel wire. In order to withstand the affecting forces, the tire tread is reinforced with steel wire or other products such as ropes or strands. These ropes are called steel cord. Steel cord can be of different constructions. To ensure a good adhesive bond between the rubber of the tire and the steel cord, the cord is either brass-plated or bronzed. The reason brass or bronze is used is because copper, which is a part of these alloys, makes a high-strength chemical composition with sulfur in rubber. For steel cord, the high carbon steel is usually used at 0.70–0.95% C. This amount of carbon ensures the high strength of the steel cord. This kind of high-quality, unalloyed steel has a pearlitic structure which is designed for multi-pass drawing. To ensure the specified technical characteristics, modern metal reinforcing materials for automobile tires, metal cord and bead wire, must withstand, first of all, a high breaking load with a minimum running meter weight. At present, reinforcing materials of the strength range 2800–3200 MPa are increasingly used, the manufacture of which requires high-strength wire. The production of such wire requires the use of a workpiece with high carbon content, changing the drawing regimes, patenting, and other operations. At the same time, it is necessary to achieve a reduction in the cost of wire manufacturing. In this context, the development and implementation of competitive processes for the manufacture of high-quality, high-strength wire as a reinforcing material for automobile tires is an urgent task.

Effect of Die Angle and Frictional Conditions on Fine Grain Layer Generation in Multipass Drawing of High Carbon Steel Wire

Fine grain layers that generate near frictional interfaces in metal forming processes affect the quality of products. The present paper aims to contribute to the continuum-mechanics-based phenomenological approach for predicting such layers’ properties. In particular, it studies the generation of fine grain layers in the process of multipass drawing of thin high carbon steel wires experimentally. The wires are drawn in three passes under different friction conditions. All three dies in each multipass process have the same semiangle. In total, two die semiangles are used, 4° and 5°. The effects of such processing conditions as the die semiangle, the number of passes, and the friction conditions on the thickness of fine grain layers are observed and discussed. The criterion for determining this thickness is based on the coefficient of anisotropy. Under soft friction conditions, the fine grain layer’s thickness decrease occurs during the consequential passes independently of the die semiangle. On the other hand, in the case of hard friction conditions, the thickness may or may not be a monotonic function of the number of passes, and its general qualitative behavior depends on the die semiangle.

Analysis on Key Production Control of High Carbon Wire Rod for Automotive Bead Wire

SWRH72A high carbon steel wire rod is an important raw material for producing automotive bead wire, hose steel wire and steel wire-rope. Based on design of chemical composition, reasonable adjustment and optimization of smelting and continuous casting process, reheating process, rolling process and cooling process etc., Anyang Iron And Steel StockCo., Ltd. produced successfullyΦ 5.5 mm and Φ 6.5 mm high carbon steel wire rod grade SWRH72A by its 100t Converter-High Speed Wire Rod Mill. The results showed that the chemical composition control was narrowrange, centerline segregation was low, production process of trial steel was reasonable. The wire rod was in good mechanical performance with the range of tensile strength deviation of less than 50 MPa for same heat, same nominal diameter and same rolling system, the sorbitic metallographic structure of wire rod reached more than 90%. The performance indexes met the requirements of the bead wire users.

Relationship between mesoscale structure and ductility of drawn high carbon steel wire

This study describes the evolution of a mesoscale structure that was characterized using fiber textures and mechanical properties versus drawing strain up to the drawing limit: the wire was drawn without causing rupturing, for the drawn high carbon steel wires (initial diameters: 0.276, 0.444 and 0.936 mm). Crystal orientation analysis using an electron backscatter diffraction pattern showed that the evolution of the mesoscale structure followed four steps with increasing drawing strain, regardless of the initial wire diameter. First, the wire consisted of only a primary fiber texture {100}<110>−{111}<110>. Second, the wire had primary and secondary {110}<110>−{111}<110> fiber textures in the outer and inner sides, respectively. Third, the wire had subprimary {100}<110>−{111}<110> and secondary fiber textures in its outer and inner sides, respectively. Fourth, the wire only consisted of a subprimary fiber texture. Results obtained through tensile testing showed that uniform elongation increased but the reduction of area decreased as the initial diameter increased over the entire drawing strain range, when there were no differences in lamellar spacing and tensile strength for the patented wires. Furthermore, uniform elongation decreased but the reduction of area increased when the ratio of thickness of secondary fiber texture to the wire radius increased. This study suggested that maintaining the thickness of secondary fiber texture in a large drawing strain region contributes to the improvement of drawability.

Method for Evaluating Potential Maximum Shear Strain for a Fine Metal Wire in Torsion Testing

The torsion number of drawn fine high carbon steel wires was measured through torsion testing. The angles between the scratches on the tested wire surface and its longitudinal axis were measured. The shear strain calculated from torsion number γt, shear strain at fractured point γf, and plastic shear strain γpc were evaluated. The following results were obtained. First, the shear strain distribution homogenized; further, torsion number per unit length N, γt, and γpc increased when decreasing the difference between γf and γpc where γpc subtracted from γf (=Δγfpc) > 0. Second, the external factors caused non-uniform shear strain distribution and reduction from the potential maximum shear strain, even for the wire that was hardly affected by the internal factors. The difference of shear strain non-uniformity caused a variation in reduction from the potential maximum shear strain. The internal factors included non-uniform microstructure and existence of inclusions and voids. The external factors were caused by the testing machine and setting of the sample. The potential maximum shear strain was obtained when the effects of internal and external factors were inhibited. Finally, two evaluation methods of the potential maximum shear strain were suggested. One method identifies a sample with a small Δγfpc, and a large γpc where Δγfpc > 0. This sample can be regarded as having the closest strain to the potential maximum shear strain. The other method determines γpc when Δγfpc is closest to 0. This value can be interpreted as plastic strain of the potential maximum shear strain.