Carbon Low Alloy Research Articles

Corrosion behavior of experimental nickel-bearing carbon steels evaluated using field and electrochemical tests

Abstract The aim of this study was to evaluate the corrosion resistance of Ni-bearing carbon steels used in outdoor structures from short-term experimental techniques and compare with the long-term field test data. The carbon steels studied were two experimental steels, produced in a pilot plant, and alloyed with nickel, copper, silicon and molybdenum (Ni-Cu-Si and Ni-Cu-Mo-Si steels), one carbon steel and one commercial Cr-Cu-Si alloyed steel. The atmospheric corrosion resistance of low alloyed carbon steels was evaluated by using field tests for eight years in a marine station, and their electrochemical behavior was studied in laboratory using the electrochemical impedance spectroscopy in aqueous electrolytes containing chlorides. The Ni-Cu-Si and Ni-Cu-Mo-Si steels showed the lowest corrosion rates which decreased as the time increased after eight years of exposure in marine atmosphere. The classification of the low alloyed steels considering the corrosion resistance using electrochemical tests in 10% m/v NaCl solution was similar to rating using field tests in a marine station.

Effects of alloying and processing modifications on precipitation behavior and elevated temperature strength in 9% Cr ferritic/martensitic steels

Two low-carbon 9-Cr ferritic-martensitic steels were designed with the aim of decreasing M23C6 and maintaining or increasing MX phase fraction. A low-carbon (LC) alloy and a low-carbon, zero-niobium (0Nb) alloy were fabricated, their designs based upon the P92 alloy system. Solutionizing temperatures to maximize V and Nb in solution while avoiding δ-ferrite were determined to be 1170 °C for the P92 alloy and 1050 °C for LC and 0Nb, significantly lower than predicted using ThermoCalc® modeling. As was intended, the M23C6 phase fraction was reduced for LC and 0Nb alloys after both heat treating and aging relative to the base P92 alloy, as determined by wide angle x-ray scattering (WAXS) analysis. Dislocation density measurements from x-ray line broadening in P92 and LC suggest these alloys had more stable dislocation substructures than 0Nb at lower temperature and shorter time aging conditions. While LC exhibited lower microhardness than P92 at room temperature, the tensile properties were comparable at 650 °C, suggesting that elevated temperature strength can be achieved with lower carbon contents. Aging studies showed that P92 had a more stable microstructure for higher temperature and longer time aging conditions. The P92 alloy also had a longer stress rupture life, implying that the M23C6 precipitate contribution to thermal stability is important. Evidence of Z-phase was discovered for the LC alloy aged 10,000 h at 650 °C, corresponding to decreased strength and increased ductility. Overall, the stress rupture lives of the modified heat-treatment variations of P92 and LC compare favorably to literature values for 9% Cr steels with conventional heat treatments.

Carbide precipitation and hydrogen embrittlement susceptibility of a 960 MPa grade ultra-high strength steel

ABSTRACTCarbide precipitation and hydrogen embrittlement susceptibility of a 960 MPa grade ultra-high strength low carbon low alloy steel processed by quenching and tempering (Q-T) via different reheating routes (conventional air furnace and high frequency induction) were investigated. After tempering at 600°C via both methods, carbides precipitated along the prior austenite grain boundaries and within the matrix lath. It was observed that dispersed carbides in induction tempered (Q&IT) sample were finer and more spheroidized than those in conventional tempered (Q&CT) sample, resulting in superior mechanical properties of strength, ductility and hydrogen embrittlement susceptibility resistance of Q&IT sample. Moreover, slow strain rate tests (SSRT) revealed that RFS (reduction of the fracture stress) was decreased from 0.16 for CT sample to 0.07 for IT sample. Fractography after SSRT indicated that CT sample exhibited a fracture surface with a few small dimples, whereas, IT sample presented a fracture surface with many large dimples.

Thermal Stability of Retained Austenite and Properties of A Multi-Phase Low Alloy Steel

In this work, we elucidate the effects of tempering on the microstructure and properties in a low carbon low alloy steel, with particular emphasis on the thermal stability of retained austenite during high-temperature tempering at 500–700 °C for 1 h. Volume fraction of ~14% of retained austenite was obtained in the studied steel by two-step intercritical heat treatment. Results from transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) indicated that retained austenite had high thermal stability when tempering at 500 and 600 °C for 1 h. The volume fraction was ~11–12%, the length and width remained ~0.77 and 0.21 μm, and concentration of Mn and Ni in retained austenite remained ~6.2–6.6 and ~1.6 wt %, respectively. However, when tempering at 700 °C for 1 h, the volume fraction of retained austenite was decreased largely to ~8%. The underlying reason could be attributed to the growth of austenite during high-temperature holding, leading to a depletion of alloy contents and a decrease in stability. Moreover, for samples tempered at 700 °C for 1 h, retained austenite rapidly transformed into martensite at a strain of 2–10%, and a dramatic increase in work hardening was observed. This indicated that the mechanical stability of retained austenite decreased.

Multiscale Measurements of Residual Stress in a Low-Alloy Carbon Steel Weld Clad with IN625 Superalloy

Abstract Fatigue fracture is one of the major degradation mechanisms in the low-alloy 4330 carbon steel pumps that are utilized in the hydraulic fracturing process operating under cyclic loading conditions. A weld cladding technology has been developed to improve the ability of these components to resist fatigue crack initiation by cladding them with a secondary material. This process introduces a residual stress profile into the component that can be potentially detrimental for fatigue performance. The cladding technology under examination is a low-alloy 4330 carbon steel substrate weld that is clad with the nickel-chromium–based superalloy IN625 and is investigated herein using several experimental residual stress measurement techniques. Understanding the magnitude and distribution of residual stress in weld clad components is of the utmost importance to accurately assess the performance of the component in service. This study summarizes the results of residual stress measurements that were determined using X-ray diffraction, i.e., hole drilling based on electronic speckle pattern interferometry, deep-hole drilling, and the contour method, to obtain the residual stress distributions from the surface of the weld clad, through the clad layer, and into the substrate material. The results of deep-hole drilling and the contour method show large-scale tensile residual stress in the clad layer and compressive residual stress in the majority of the substrate. However, the X-ray diffraction and hole drilling methods indicate the presence of short-scale compressive residual stress on the surface and near the surface of the clad layer. It was shown that these measurement techniques are complementary in assessing the residual stress profile throughout the entire component.

Investigation on new type of fracture in Cr-Mo-V steel slab

Abstract The causes of through-thickness cracking in a continuous casting steel slab with low carbon and high alloys were investigated by observation of the fractured surface and microstructures of a fractured slab, and analysis of phase transformation through a continuous cooling transformation (CCT) diagram. Intergranular brittle fracture and ductile fracture were observed on the surface of the slab and inside the slab, respectively. A bainite and martensite microstructure was transformed in the vicinity of the slab surface where intergranular fracture occurred due to excessive water-cooling during continuous casting, and ferrite and pearlite were transformed inside the slab due to a slow cooling rate and relatively high temperature. Immediately after continuous casting, the temperature and the cooling rate for the surface of the slab were 300–450 °C and about 0.1 °C/s, respectively, and thus bainite and martensite on the surface of the slab were tempered simultaneously during transfer to the slab yard. As a result, the tempered bainite and martensite on the surface of the slab and the mixed microstructure of ferrite and pearlite inside the slab were transformed. However, segregation of P and S at grain boundaries was observed in the tempered bainite and martensite at the surface of the slab. The segregation of P and S at grain boundaries could occur by tempering at the temperature between 300–450 °C and the cooling rate as slow as 0.1 °C/s at the surface of the slab, and is a critical cause on ‘temper embrittlement’. Therefore, it is believed that the intergranular fracture at the surface of the slab was due to the temper embrittlement, and ductile fracture occurred inside the slab having a mixed microstructure of ferrite and pearlite, which is ductile.

A closed-form analytical solution for the ratcheting response of steel tubes with wall-thinning under inelastic symmetric constant amplitude cyclic bending

Metallic tubes experiences a progressive accumulation of ovalisation, or ratchet, under cyclic inelastic bending. During their life time, the tubes may also suffer from different types of mechanically and/or chemically originated defects. The current paper discusses a closed-form solution for the response analysis of defective circular steel tubes under monotonic and cyclic inelastic bending. The defect in the tube is idealised as a uniform patch type wall thinning.The material model considers the cyclic hardening/softening features based on a combined non-linear hardening law. To account for the non-fading memory characteristics of the steel material, the hardening modulus in each half-cycle is introduced as a state variable. A modified version of the Bailey–Norton law is used for the cyclic growth (cyclic creep) in the ovalisation of the cross-section. In overall, the solution considers the geometrical non-linearity due to the ovalisation as well as the hysteresis effects.The study also includes monotonic and cyclic inelastic bending experiments on small-scale, thick-walled, high strength, low alloy carbon steel defective tubes. The analytical solutions for the inelastic monotonic and cyclic bending of the tubes are validated against these experimental data and reasonable agreements are noticed and reported.

Characterisation of precipitation and carbide coarsening in low carbon low alloy Q&T steels during the early stages of tempering

In order to ensure that appropriate tempering conditions are used to obtain desired strength and toughness for low carbon low alloy quench and tempered (Q&T) steel plates in a range of thickness, it is desirable to be able to predict the effect of composition and tempering conditions (time and temperature) on the microstructure and hence the hardness evolution for these steels. In this paper, carbide precipitation and coarsening behaviour in three low carbon low alloy Q&T steels have been investigated during tempering at 600 °C up to 16 h to determine the role of alloying additions of Mo, V, Cr and Si. It has been found that auto-tempering occurs during water quenching with ε’-carbide and cementite being present within the martensite laths for all three steels. In the Base steel, cementite becomes the stable second phase after 2 h tempering and has an elliptical (sometimes spherical) shape, which coarsens with time during tempering from 2 h to 16 h. However, in the Base-Mo-V and Base-Cr-Mo-V-Si steels, elliptical and needle-shaped cementite (shown to contain Mn, Mo and Cr) both exist during tempering; furthermore, finer elliptical secondary Mo-V-rich carbides are observed after tempering for 4 h. The coarsening of cementite contributing to the softening process in the three steels has been quantified with, most significantly, the inter- and intra-lath carbides coarsening independently. Although fine secondary alloy carbides are observed after 4 h tempering, they do not result in any noticeable secondary hardening peak in the Base-Mo-V and Base-Cr-Mo-V-Si steels.

Effect of quenching and partitioning on the microstructure and mechanical properties of a medium carbon low alloy low silicon (0.3C–1.0Mn–0.4Si–0.6Cr–0.46Ni–0.26Mo) steel

The importance of advanced high strength steel having high strength with balanced ductility has led to immense researches all over the world for increasing the strength to weight ratio in different structural applications. The results of quenching and partitioning (QP) heat treatment process on a hot rolled advanced medium carbon steel (0.3C–1.0Mn–0.4Si–0.6Cr–0.46Ni–0.26Mo) have been analyzed in the present investigation. Hardness, tensile and yield strength of the steel show considerable improvement after the heat treatment process. Microstructural analyses by Optical, Scanning and Transmission Electron Microscopes show the creation of smaller units and sub-units of multiple phases containing martensite, retained austenite and bainite in the QP steel than those of as-received steel. Microstructure evolution was assessed by conducting the heat treatment with different isothermal partitioning times followed by x-ray Diffraction phase analyses. Austenite content has been found to increase with the duration of partition. Mechanical properties were related with the microstructures obtained at different stages of partitioning. Formation of thin retained austenite films in the periphery of individual bainite and martensite strips, blocks of austenite and the presence of overall small microstructural features have been proposed to be the reason for the improvement in hardness, tensile and yield strength and ductility of the as received hot rolled steel after the designed quench and partitioning treatment.

A novel multi-step intercritical heat treatment induces multi-phase microstructure with ultra-low yield ratio and high ductility in advanced high-strength steel

A significant volume fraction of 26% retained austenite was obtained via a two-step intercritical treatment in a low carbon low alloy steel with ultra-high tensile strength of ~1200 MPa, ultra-low yield ratio of 0.32, excellent uniform elongation of ~16.4% and total elongation of ~23%. The ultra-low yield ratio and excellent uniform elongation implied high work hardening and excellent formability. The high work hardening and ultra-high tensile strength are attributed to deformation-induced twin-martensite.

STRUCTURE AND MAGNETIC PROPERTIES OF WC–50%Cо MODEL ALLOYS CONTAINING TaC ADDITIVES

The structure and magnetic properties of model high-cobalt WC–50%Co alloys with different carbon content and 1,6–5,6 wt.% TaC additives are studied. Model alloys are obtained by liquid-phase sintering of powder mixtures at 1420 °C, and their composition is described by the formula: 50%Co + 50%WC + xTaC + yC, where x = 0; 1,6; 2,6; 3,6; 4,6; 5,6 wt.%, y = 0; 0,2; 0,5 wt.%. It is shown that (Ta,W)C phase precipitates are present in all the investigated alloys, whereby at up to 3,6 wt.% TaC concentration the (Ta,W)C grains have a needle shape, and at ³3,6 wt.% TaC concentration the shape of the (Ta,W)C grains becomes spherical. (Ta,W)C phase precipitates are located both in the Co-binder and along the WC grain boundaries. The (Ta,W)C phase lattice parameter in low-carbon alloys lies in the range from 0,4438 nm for the 1,6 % TaC alloy up to 0,4451 nm for the 4,6 % TaC alloy. According to EDX analysis, the concentration of dissolved tungsten in the cobalt phase is independent of the TaC content and strongly depends on the total carbon content, and for alloys with high, elevated and low carbon content it is 7, 12 and 17 wt.%, respectively. TaC addition in alloys with a low and elevated carbon content leads to an increase in coercive force by 875 A/m and a decrease in magnetic saturation by 5–10 Gs·m3/g. The experimental results allowed putting forward a hypothesis about the possibility of forming dispersed tantalumcontaining precipitates in the binder phase.

Simultaneous enhancement of strength and plasticity by nano B2 clusters and nano-γ phase in a low carbon low alloy steel

Nano B2 FeCu ordered clusters and multiphase microstructure consisting of intercritical ferrite, tempered martensite and nano-γ phase (reverted austenite) were obtained by two-step heat treatment involving intercritical annealing and intercritical tempering. The experimental steel with nano Cu precipitates and nano-γ phase exhibited high strength and high ductility combination. The yield strength and total elongation of the experimental steel increased from 758 MPa and 16.8% to 984 MPa and 29.5% after the second step intercritical tempering for 5 min. High resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) and three-dimensional atom probe (3DAP) studies provided evidence to support that high density of nano B2 FeCu ordered clusters contributed to high strength. First principle calculations suggested that the feasibility of B2 FeCu nano-ordered clusters, and the stability of B2 structure is related to the coherent stress field at the interface between clusters and the BCC-Fe matrix. The average size of B2 FeCu nano-ordered clusters was 4 nm with a lattice constant of 0.2893 nm and an orientation relationship of (1 1 0)B2//(1 1 0)α and [0 0 1]B2//[0 0 1]α. 9R Cu without twinned structure was discovered at different tempering times. The proportion of Cu in Cu precipitates varied from 24.4 at% to 61.2 at% with change in crystal structure and increase in the size of precipitates. The significant increase in yield strength is discussed in terms of ordered domain strengthening, modulus strengthening and lattice misfit strengthening mechanisms. Bright field TEM image and selected area electron diffraction (SAED) pattern discovered and proved that spindle nano-γ phase was present at phase boundary between tempered martensite and intercritical ferrite. The size of them were among 242–375 nm in length and 52–80 nm in width. The two needle tip ends of nano-γ phase were just at phase boundaries, indicating the preferred growth direction. (1 −1 1)γ plane of nano-γ phase was parallel to (1 −1 0)α plane of the adjacent tempered martensite. The effect of nano-γ phase on enhancing the plasticity was revealed by instantaneous work hardening index curve.

Effect of the As-Forged and Heat-Treated Microstructure on the Room Temperature Anisotropic Ductile Fracture of Inconel 718

The purpose of the present work was to investigate the effect of primary carbides and the δ-phase on the anisotropic ductile fracture of Inconel 718 in the forging process. Inconel 718 alloys were prepared by VIM + VAR processes with various carbon contents (0.009 and 0.027 wt.%). Then, the alloys were forged and annealed at temperatures of 980 and 1030 °C. The room temperature mechanical anisotropy of the alloys was evaluated at the longitudinal direction (LD) and transverse direction (TD). Tensile and impact tests were used to characterize the mechanical properties of the specimens. The microstructural characterization and the fractography of the alloys were carried out by FE-SEM. The obtained results showed that the fracture strain and the impact energy in the TD were 30-50% lower than the LD. The fracture was accelerated by the δ-phase, leading to the reduction of impact energy in the longitudinal and the lateral directions up to 50%. The low-carbon alloy indicated similar characteristics in both the LD and the TD. Aligned carbides changed the fracture path from a zigzag path in the LD to a fibrous path in the TD, while the δ-phase created a flat fracture path. The shear lip area ratio in the tensile fracture cross section was decreased by reducing ductility.

Quantitative Identification Modeling of Drilling Pipe Damage Levels Based on Metal Magnetic Memory Characteristic Parameters

In order to quantitatively identify drill pipe defect levels by using Metal Magnetic Memory (MMM) technology, an optimized multi-classification FSVM model is first proposed. The material of drill pipes is S355 low carbon alloy steel. The MMM signal characteristics of different damage levels are obtained through a lot of field testing. Considering the dispersion and small samples of MMM data in practical engineering, SVM is introduced to solve the bottleneck of small samples and dispersion. The fussy membership degree function and the parameter combinatorial optimization are adopted to improve the robustness of SVM. By extracting four dimension characteristic parameters, the quantitative MMM identification model is proposed based on optimized multi-classification FSVM algorithm. The test results show that the model precision is 90.17%, which provides a new method for the quantitative MMM evaluation on drilling tool damage levels.

Wear-resistance Performance of Spray-welding Coating by Plasma Weld-surfacing

Alloy powders including Ni60, WC, Cr3C2, and TiC with different mass ratios were deposited on medium carbon low alloy steel by plasma welding. Through the experiments, the optimal alloy powder reinforcing cutter tool surface properties were discovered. The wear resistance properties were investigated on the impact abrasive wear tester. The experimental results show that in terms of microstructure, there exists the shape of herringbone, spider mesh, broken flower structures in coatings. In addition, fusion area of four specimens surfacing welding layer displays a large number of acicular martensite with a small amount of austenite. The coating mainly consists of Ni-Cr-Fe austenitic phase and the other precipitates. TiC density is smaller, its content is less in alloy powder, in the process of surfacing welding, TiC is melted fully, which is mainly distributed in surface layer and middle layer of hard facing layer. The content of TiC gradually reduces from surface layer of hard facing layer to the fusion area. Compared to TiC, the density of tungsten carbide and chromium carbide is larger, there exist tungsten carbide and chromium carbide particles, which are not completely melted near the fusion area. The micro-hardness presents gradient change from the fusion area to the surface layer of hard facing layer, and the hardness of the middle layer is slightly lower than that of the fusion area, and the hardness increases near the surface layer.

The Effect of Low-Quantity Cr Addition on the Corrosion Behaviour of Dual-Phase High Carbon Steel

Industrial application of high carbon low alloy steel with the dual-phase structure of martensite and austenite has increased drastically in recent years. Due to its excellent compression strength and its high abrasion resistance, this grade of steel has used as a high performance cutting tool and in press machinery applications. By increasing the usage of more corrosive media in industrial practice and increasing the demand for reducing the production cost, it is crucial to understand the effect of the small addition of Cr on the corrosion behaviour of this grade of steel. In this study, this effect was investigated using Secondary Electron Microscopy (SEM) and in-situ Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) in the sodium chloride solution. Also, the corrosion rate was measured using the Tafel polarisation curve. It has been found that the small addition of Cr increased the stability of retained austenite, thus improving its corrosion resistance and reducing its corrosion rate. This effect has been acquired through in-situ high resolution topography images in which the samples were submerged in a corrosive solution. It has been demonstrated that the corrosion rate was reduced when the stability of austenite enhanced.

Ultrasonic additive manufacturing of steel: Method, post-processing treatments and properties

Ultrasonic additive manufacturing (UAM) was applied to fabricate laminated carbon steel structures. The feasibility of UAM to manufacture low-alloy carbon steel samples was proven. Interface investigation of the UAM parts was conducted by SEM, EBSD and TEM analysis. Multiple defects at the interfaces of the as-printed parts were observed. In order to improve the structural homogeneity and mechanical properties of the parts, spark plasma sintering (SPS) and hot isostatic pressing (HIP) post-treatments were applied. As a result, after both treatments, interface defects were healed and the shear strength of the welding interfaces was significantly improved. Treatment by SPS apparatus showed higher shear strength improvements as compared to the HIP-treated specimens.

Inclusion behaviour in aluminium-killed steel during continuous casting

ABSTRACTThe inclusion behaviour during continuous casting were investigated in ultra low carbon (ULC) and high strength low alloy (HSLA) steels. From tundish to cast slabs, the total oxygen (T.O) content decreased from 19 to 12 ppm, 12 to 11 ppm in ULC steel and HSLA steel, respectively. The number density of inclusions in ULC decreased by about 40%, while it kept almost constant in HSLA steel during casting. A simple calculation on the T.O removal agreed well with the measured value, which showed that T.O removal was much larger through mould flux absorption than nozzle attachment. The T.O removal in ULC steel is substantially higher than that of HSLA steel due to the fact that alumina particles in ULC steel tend to agglomerate easier than calcium aluminates in HSLA steel, which facilitates inclusion removal to the mould powder.

Study on Spheroidization and Related Heat Treatments of Medium Carbon Alloy Steels

The importance of medium carbon steels as engineering materials is reflected by the fact that out of the vast majority of engineering grade ferrous alloys available and used in the market today, a large proportion of them are from the family of medium carbon steels. Typically medium carbon steels have a carbon range of 0.25 to 0.65% by weight, and a manganese content ranging from 0.060 to 1.65% by weight. Medium carbon steels are more resistive to cutting, welding and forming as compared to low carbon steels. From the last two decades a number of research scholars reported the use of verity of heat treatments to tailor the properties of medium carbon steels. Spheroidizing is the novel industrial heat treatment employed to improve formability and machinability of medium/high carbon low alloy steels. This exclusive study covers procedure, the effects and possible outcomes of various heat treatments on medium carbon steels. In the present work, other related heat treatments like annealing and special treatments for property alterations which serve as pretreatments for spheroidizing are also reviewed. Medium carbon steels with property alterations by various heat treatment processes are finding increased responsiveness in transportation, aerospace, space, underwater along with other variegated fields. Improved tribological and mechanical properties consisting of impact resistance, stiffness, abrasion and strength are the main reasons for the increased attention of these steels in various industries. In the present scenario for the consolidation of important aspects of various heat treatments and effects on mechanical properties of medium carbons steel, a review of different research papers has been attempted. This review may be used as a guide to provide practical data for heat treatment industry, especially as a tool to enhance workability and tool life.

Comparative Studies on Machinability of MCLA Steels EN19 and EN24 Using Taguchi Optimization Techniques

Medium carbon low Alloy steels are commonly used for manufacturing of automotive components such as gears, spindle, shafts and aerospace components etc. In order to improve the mechanical properties of steel, forging and annealing operations are carried out. Machinability and surface roughness test was carried in order to find the optimum parameters of the EN Steels. Machinability is the ability of material, with ease of removal. Machining of material effects on the Tool Forces, power consumption and Surface Roughness. The present work focuses on Comparative Studies on Machinability of Forged and annealed EN19 and EN24 MCLA Steels, using Taguchi Optimization Technique. For machinability test, the Design the experiments is carried according to Taguchi L9 orthogonal array. Machinability Test is performed on the centre lathe, and the parameters studied are the cutting Speed, Feed and Depth of Cut. Also, the surface roughness is carried for the machinability samples to optimize the parameters for surface roughness using Taguchi’s experiment.