Low Temperature Mechanical Properties Research Articles

Effects of TiC nanoparticle addition on microstructures and mechanical properties of Sn-58Bi solder joints

The Sn58Bi solder has gained significant attention in the electronic packaging industry owing to its low melting temperature and excellent mechanical properties. However, the brittleness of Sn58Bi solder presents challenges in practical applications. This study investigates the effect of adding titanium carbide (TiC) nanoparticles on the mechanical properties of Sn58Bi solder joints. The study examines the melting behavior, spreadability, microstructure, and mechanical properties of Sn58Bi-xTiC (x = 0, 0.05, 0.1, 0.2 wt%) composite solders. The results indicate that adding TiC nanoparticles has merely a minor effect on the melting point of the Sn58Bi solder. However, the presence of TiC nanoparticles refined the solder’s microstructure, reduced the thickness of the intermetallic compounds, and enhanced the spreadability and mechanical properties. The Sn58Bi-0.1TiC composite solder exhibits the most favorable properties, including a 28.6 % increase in fracture energy compared with that of Sn58Bi solder. Consequently, incorporating TiC nanoparticles enhances the performance of the Sn58Bi solder by improving its spreadability and reducing its brittleness. These results hold great potential for advancing the development of lead-free solders with improved reliability and performance in electronic applications. The findings of this study could pave the way for the practical and widespread use of Sn58Bi-xTiC composite solders, offering a viable alternative to lead-containing solders while maintaining excellent mechanical characteristics.

Study on preparation and properties of polyurethane modified epoxy resin lotion cementing slurry

To solve the problems of poor cementing quality and weak consolidation performance of deep-water shallow cementing cement, a low-temperature curable polyurethane-modified epoxy resin lotion (WER) was prepared with epoxy resin and polyurethane as raw materials, and its hydrophilic groups (carboxyl and ether bonds) were self emulsified. The results show that the modified WER lotion cement slurry has good fluidity and stability. Its thickening transition time is less than 16 min, which can effectively prevent gas channeling. In addition, its low-temperature mechanical properties have been significantly improved, and its compressive strength has increased by 42.4% and 44.5% compared to net slurry cement within 3 and 7 days, while its elastic modulus has decreased by 34.1% and 42.4%, respectively.

A nacre-inspired polymheric multilayer film with high efficiency of low-temperature toughening

Polypropylene (PP) films have been widely used in medical, electronics, and construction fields due to their low cost and excellent comprehensive properties. However, the poor low-temperature toughness of PP films restricts its further applications in extreme cold environments. Here, the nacre-inspired 8-, 32-, 128-, and 512-layer PP/SEBS-based films were constructed via our multilayer blown systems. Compared to the conventional blended films, 128-layer films showed significant improvement under the low-temperature conditions, i.e., 160 %, 150 %, and 136 % in impact toughness, tear toughness, and elongation at break, respectively. The high toughening efficiency of the multilayer films is because of the nacre-inspired multilayer structures, which can develop the multi-stage propagation of the damage behavior such as craze and plastic deformation to dissipate much energy when mechanically broken. Since nacre-inspired PP/SEBS-based multilayer films show high efficiency in low-temperature toughening, this work may provide a possible solution to improving the low-temperature mechanical properties of PP films or even other types of polymeric films.

Effect of Process Parameters on Welding Residual Stress of 316L Stainless Steel Pipe.

316L stainless steel pipes are widely used in the storage and transportation of low-temperature media due to their excellent low-temperature mechanical properties and corrosion resistance. However, due to their low thermal conductivity and large coefficient of linear expansion, they often lead to significant welding residual tensile stress and thermal cracks in the weld seam. This also poses many challenges for their secure and reliable applications. In order to effectively control the crack defects caused by stress concentration near the heat-affected zone of the weld, this paper establishes a thermal elastoplastic three-dimensional finite element (FE) model, constructs a welding heat source, and simulates and studies the influence of process parameters on the residual stress around the pipeline circumference and axial direction in the heat-affected zone. Comparison and verification were conducted using simulation and experimental methods, respectively, proving the rationality of the finite element model establishment. The axial and circumferential residual stress distribution obtained by the simulation method did not have an average deviation of more than 30 MPa from the numerical values obtained by the experimental method. This study also considers the effects of welding energy, welding speed, and welding start position on the pipe's circumferential and axial residual stress laws. The results indicate that changes in welding energy and welding speed have almost no effect on the longitudinal residual stress but have a more significant effect on the transverse residual stress. The maximum transverse residual stress is reached at a welding energy of 1007.4~859.3 J/mm and a welding speed of 6.6 mm/s. Various interlayer arc-striking deflection angles can impact the cyclic phase angle of the transverse residual stress distribution in the seam center, but they do not alter its cyclic pattern. They do influence the amplitude and distribution of the longitudinal residual stress along the circumference. The residual stress distribution on the surface of the pipe fitting is homogenized and improved at 120°.

Superconductivity with a high upper critical field in an equiatomic high-entropy alloy Sc–V–Ti–Hf–Nb

High-entropy alloy (HEA) superconductors have attracted significant attention due to their exceptional low-temperature mechanical and superconducting properties. We report the synthesis and thorough characterization of an equiatomic HEA superconductor with the composition Sc0.20V0.20Ti0.20Hf0.20Nb0.20, crystallizing in a body-centered cubic crystal structure (Im3m¯). Our investigation, using magnetization, transport, and heat capacity measurements, reveals the presence of weakly coupled, fully gapped superconductivity with a transition temperature of 4.17(3) K and the upper critical field exceeding the Pauli paramagnetic limit. The metallic nature, combined with a high upper critical field, positions it as a promising candidate for applications in superconducting devices.

Experimental and thermodynamic assessment of the Cu–In system

Owing to the low melting temperature and excellent mechanical properties, In is considered a potential low-temperature solder. However, the interfacial reaction between In and Cu substrates is still unclear, specifically regarding the stability of CuIn2. Although CuIn2 was often observed at the Cu–In thin film after long-term aging below 100 °C, it is considered as a metastable phase and has not been added into the Cu–In phase diagram yet. In this study, the stability of CuIn2 and the peritectoid reaction Cu11In9 + In → CuIn2 were established using the Cu/In diffusion couple, Cu–In alloy phase equilibria, and decomposition investigation of CuIn2. The peritectoid temperature was determined to be in the range of 110–105 °C. Finally, thermodynamic assessment was conducted based on the experimental data and the revised Cu–In phase diagram.

Microscopic insights of the extraordinary work-hardening due to phase transformation

Commercial 316 L stainless steel is known for its appreciable strength and ductility, as well as strong resistance against corrosion and radiation damage. Remarkably, upon cooling, 316 L maintains high ductility while the strength increases significantly, making the alloy an excellent choice for applications at low temperatures. Despite these attractive properties, the physical mechanisms underlying the outstanding low-temperature mechanical properties have not been established. Here, we report an in situ neutron diffraction study of 316 L that reveals an extraordinary work-hardening rate (WHR) of ∼7 GPa at 15 K. Detailed analyses show that the major contribution to the excellent strength and ductility comes from the transformation-induced plasticity (TRIP) effect, introduced by the austenite-to-martensite (γ-to-α′) phase transition. A dramatic increase in the WHR is observed along with the transformation; the WHR declined when the austenite phase is exhausted. During plastic deformation, the volume-fraction weighted phase stress and stress contribution from the α′-martensite increase significantly. The neutron diffraction data further suggest that the γ-to-α′ phase transformation was mediated by the ε-martensite, as evidenced by the concurrent decline of the ε phase with the γ phase. This study sheds light on the extraordinary work-hardening effect due to phase transformation, which will provide guidance in the design of complex alloys.

Tungsten heavy alloy: Nano-crystallinity and alloying induced low temperature sintering, microstructure and mechanical properties

In this study, a tungsten heavy alloy with a composition of 90 W-4.9Ni-2.1Fe-3.0Cu was processed using powder metallurgy. Pure elements were ball-milled to develop a mechanically alloyed nano-grained solid solution to reduce the required sintering temperature. The alloy was then liquid-phase sintered in a hydrogenated argon atmosphere at 1250 °C. Microstructural characterization revealed that the high-energy ball milling process successfully developed a tungsten solid solution with a reduced tungsten grain size to a level of 15 nm, facilitating effective low-temperature (i.e., 1250 °C) liquid-phase sintering with 88% relative density. The tungsten grains grew mostly in a polygonal shape, coalesced to a large size, and had strong interfacial integrity with the nickel‑iron‑copper matrix. Mechanical properties characterization revealed a significantly high microhardness level of 380 HV, compressive yield strength of 910 MPa, and ultimate compressive strength of 1326 MPa. The applied compressive stress induced intergranular crack propagation leading to the fracture of the sample with a failure strain of 25.6%.

Evaluations of low-temperature mechanical properties and full-range constitutive models of AA 5083-H112/6061-T6

The low-temperature mechanical properties of aluminium alloys (AAs) are important for the analysis and design of infrastructures in cold regions and LNG storage tanks made of AAs. This paper investigated the stress-strain behaviours of AA 5083-H112/6061-T6 materials through conducting tensile tests on 32 AA coupons at 20 ℃ ∼ −165 ℃. All the tested AA coupons exhibited ductile failure modes. Their results showed that the stress-strain curves of AA 5083-H112 exhibited the Portevin-Le Chatelier effects that gradually weakened with the decreasing temperature. Reducing the temperature from 20 ℃ to −165 ℃ increased the elastic modulus, yield and ultimate strengths of AA 5083-H112 (or 6061-T6) by 5.1% (6.5%), 8.7% (12.0%) and 7.8% (13.1%), but reduced the fracture strain by 16.4% (12.4%). The fracture surfaces of all AA 5083-H112 and 6061-T6 coupons displayed localised cross-sectional area reductions and substantial plastic deformation. Meanwhile, precipitation-hardened AA 6061-T6 exhibits a more pronounced enhancement compared to strain-hardened AA 5083-H112. Furthermore, regression analyses were performed to establish prediction equations for the low-temperature mechanical indexes of AAs. Subsequently, a full-range constitutive model was proposed to estimate the stress-strain behaviours of AA 5083-H112 and 6061-T6. Validations against reported experimental observations demonstrated that the developed model reasonably described the stress-strain responses of AA 5083-H112 and 6061-T6 from 20 ℃ to −165 ℃.

From Its Nature to Its Function: Marine-Collagen-Based-Biomaterials for Hard Tissue Applications.

Impact statement This review discusses the research done using marine collagens (MCs) on biomaterials for bone, cartilage, and osteochondral tissue regenerative applications with the underlying technologies that enable their development, and explains the methodologies used to characterize MCs highlighting their importance, namely regarding the performance of derived biomaterials, and the inherent properties of such collagens. In the second part, the applicability of MCs as biomaterials for hard tissue applications was studied, focusing on the mostly applied fabrication techniques. In conclusion, this review describes the major challenges to be overcome and the forecast for the upcoming years concerning the use of MCs.

Dynamic constitutive relationship of TiZrHfCu0.5 high entropy alloy based on Johnson-Cook model

High entropy alloy has attracted much attention in the field of national defense due to their excellent low-temperature dynamic mechanical properties. Taking TiZrHfCu0.5 high entropy alloy as the research object, the compressive properties of the specimens under quasi-static and dynamic (strain rate range 600s−1-2600s−1 and temperature range −60 °C–20 °C) conditions are systematically tested. Based on the static/dynamic stress-strain experimental results, the parameters of the original Johnson-Cook constitutive model are determined by fitting. On this basis, a modified Johnson-Cook constitutive model considering the coupling effects of strain, strain rate and temperature is proposed and its parameters are determined. The dynamic compression process of the specimens under different strain rates and temperatures is numerically simulated by ABAQUS finite element software, and the accuracy of the modified Johnson-Cook constitutive model to predict the dynamic compression behavior of TiZrHfCu0.5 high entropy alloy is verified. The experimental and numerical simulation results show that the TiZrHfCu0.5 high entropy alloy exhibits significant strain rate hardening effect and excellent low-temperature mechanical properties during dynamic compression. The ultimate stress can reach 1.79 GPa at −20 °C and strain rate of 2600 s−1. The predicted curves of the modified Johnson-cook constitutive model are in good agreement with the experimental results at low temperature and high strain rate. The modified Johnson-Cook constitutive model is embedded in the finite element software, which effectively improves the reliability of the numerical simulation of the compression performance of TiZrHfCu0.5 high entropy alloy at high strain rate and low temperature. The relative error between the predicted results of the modified Johnson-Cook constitutive model and the experimental results is greatly reduced.

Achieving High Plasticity and High Toughness of Low-Carbon Low-Alloy Steel through Intercritical Heat Treatment

Medium manganese steel has excellent comprehensive properties due to the TRIP effect of retained austenite, but its welding performance is unsatisfactory for its high alloy content. This study obtained retained austenite in low-carbon low-alloy steel with low contents of silicon and manganese elements through intercritical heat treatment. The influence of intercritical quenching temperature on the content and characteristics of the retained austenite, as well as the functional mechanism of the retained austenite during low-temperature impact, was studied. The results showed that the content of the retained austenite increased from 12% to 17%, and its distribution extended from grain boundaries to martensite lath boundaries, with increasing intercritical quenching temperature. The retained austenite on the grain boundaries was in blocks, and that on the martensitic lath boundaries formed slender domains. The stability of the retained austenite was achieved through the enrichment of C and Mn during intercritical heat treatment. The contribution of retained austenite to low-temperature mechanical properties was closely related to its stability. The retained austenite with poor stability underwent martensite transformation at low temperatures, and the high-carbon martensite was a brittle phase that became the nucleation site of cracks or the path of crack growth during impact. Stable retained austenite passivated crack tips and hindered crack propagation during impacts, which improved the impact performance of the steel.

Long-Term Aging Study on the Solid State Interfacial Reactions of In on Cu Substrate.

Indium is considered a candidate low-temperature solder because of its low melting temperature and excellent mechanical properties. However, the solid-state microstructure evolution of In with different substrates has rarely been studied due to the softness of In. To overcome this difficulty, cryogenic broad Ar+ beam ion polishing was used to produce an artifact-free Cu/In interface for observation. In this study, we accomplished phase identification and microstructure investigation at the Cu/In interface after long-term thermal aging. CuIn2 was observed to grow at the Cu/In interface and proved to be a stable phase in the Cu-In binary system. The peritectoid temperature of the Cu11In9 + In → CuIn2 reaction was confirmed to be between 100 and 120 °C. In addition, the growth rate of CuIn2 was discovered to be dominated by the curvature of the reactant Cu11In9/In phase and the temperature difference with the peritectoid temperature. Finally, a comprehensive microstructural evolution mechanism of the Cu/In solid-state interfacial reaction was proposed.

Superior low temperature mechanical properties and microstructure of (NiCoCr)95V5 medium entropy alloy

NiCoCr, as a model medium entropy alloy has been investigated extensively in the past decades. To further improve the mechanical properties of NiCoCr, there are mainly two methods. One is thermal-mechanical treatment. The other is to add some proper alloying elements to introduce second phase to fabricate the precipitate strengthening medium entropy alloys. Inspired by this, a superior medium entropy alloy (NiCoCr)95V5 was successfully fabricated by cold rolling and subsequent two-step annealing in this study. The strength and plasticity product exceeds 86 GPa·% that is comparable to the currently reported high-performance medium and high entropy alloys. The microstructure characterizations indicate that the dislocation slip and interacting with high density nanoscale precipitates, the initiation of primary and secondary deformation twinning which further segmenting the grains are the main reasons for such high properties. This work enriches the design and development of medium and high entropy alloys with high-strength and high plasticity.

Study on milling flatness control method for TC4 titanium alloy thin-walled parts under ice fixation

Thin-walled parts are characterized by weak rigidity and are very prone to deformation during machining, which directly affects the machining accuracy and performance of the parts, so controlling the machining deformation of thin-walled parts is an urgent process problem to be solved. To address such problems, this paper proposes a flatness control machining method based on ice holding of workpieces. The method uses frozen suction cups to solidify liquid water to achieve stress-free clamping of workpieces. We conducted a low-temperature tensile test to investigate the low-temperature mechanical properties of the material. Comparative tests of ice-free and low-temperature ice-fixed milling were conducted to compare and analyze the changes of flatness and milling force in the two working conditions, to investigate the influence of machining parameters on the flatness of thin-walled parts, and to reveal the mechanism of low-temperature milling of ice-fixed workpieces. In addition, the low-temperature milling performance of titanium/aluminum alloy based on ice-fixation was compared. The results show that TC4 has good plasticity, high flexural strength ratio and strong resistance to deformation at low temperatures. Compared with no ice-holding, ice-holding machining effectively improves the flatness of the workpiece, and the order of the machining parameters affecting flatness is: feed rate > milling depth > spindle speed. The milling forces under ice-holding conditions were all greater than those without ice holding. The stiffness and hardness, resistance to damage and deformation of titanium alloy at low temperature are greater than those of aluminum alloy. This method provides a new method for high-precision machining of thin-walled parts.

Compression behaviours of CFSTs using stainless-steel tubes at low temperatures

This paper made pilot studies on behaviours of concrete-filled stub square stainless-steel tubes (CFSSSTs) subjected to low-temperature compression. Firstly, 16 CFSSSTs were tested under low-temperature axial compression. This testing program studied the effects of testing temperature (T) and SS-tube wall thickness (t). The tests showed that local buckling, corner-region splitting fracture, and concrete crushing occurred to CFSSSTs. The compressive load-shortening curves behaved a four-stage manner, which behaved differently from those hollow stainless-steel tubes (HSSTs). Compared with the common concrete-filled steel tube columns, the CFSSSTs exhibit a higher ductility. Studies showed that reducing T improved the compression capacity (Pu) but compromised the ductility of CFSSSTs; increasing the t of HSSTs improved the compression behaviour of CFSSSTs; filling concrete to the HSSSTs significantly improved the compression behaviour of CFSSSTs. This study also developed 3D finite element models (FEM) for the CFSSSTs using the low-temperature mechanical properties of both HSSTs and concrete, which accurately predicted compression behaviours of CFSSSTs at low temperatures. Moreover, the prediction equations in different codes were also adopted to predict the low-temperature Pu of CFSSSTs. Validations showed that these code equations provided about 15% underestimations on Pu, and they were recommended to predict Pu of CFSSSTs at low temperatures.

Effect of process induction on densification behavior, microstructure evolution and mechanical properties of Ti-5Al-2.5Sn ELI fabricated by laser powder bed melting

In this paper, Ti-5Al-2.5Sn ELI α titanium alloy was prepared by laser powder bed fusion. The effects of heat treatment and HIP process on the densification behavior, microstructure evolution, low-temperature mechanical properties, and fracture behavior of Ti-5Al-2.5Sn ELI titanium alloy were analyzed. The experimental results show that the density of Ti-5Al-2.5Sn ELI titanium alloy is improved after HIP treatment. Complete recrystallization occurred in the deposited microstructure, and the recrystallized α grains coarsened with the increase in holding time. After heat treatment, the tensile strength decreases gradually, while the elongation increases with the increase of holding time. Compared with 300 K, the ultimate tensile strength and yield strength of the sample at 77 K were improved, but the elongation decreased. Ti-5Al-2.5Sn ELI titanium alloy annealed at 850 °C/4 h exhibits mixed ductile-brittle fracture morphology at 77 K and obtains ultrahigh strength and ductility. At the same time, Ti-5Al-2.5Sn ELI titanium alloy exhibits unit slip deformation behavior at 300 K, while at 77 K, it mainly exhibits the coupling of dislocation slip and twin deformation behavior. These findings lay a foundation for the rapid preparation of high-strength α-titanium alloy products with good ductility.

Study on rheological and micro-structural properties of different modified asphalt by using organic and inorganic modifier

In order to evaluate the high and low temperature rheological properties of different modified asphalt, this paper prepared different types of modifiers and short-term aging modified asphalt (RTFOT), using dynamic shear rheometer (DSR) and bending beam rheological test (BBR) to compare and analyze the deformation resistance and stress sensitivity of different types (organic and inorganic) modified asphalt, determine its PG classification, and evaluate its fitting parameters with the help of Burgers model. The low-temperature mechanical properties of the fitting parameters were evaluated by the Burgers model; the chemical composition of different modified asphalts was analyzed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and the microscopic state of the modified asphalts was observed by fluorescence microscopy. The results show that: with the increase of temperature, the high temperature deformation resistance of organic modified asphalt is better than that of inorganic modified asphalt, and PE modified asphalt is the best, and the low temperature performance of inorganic modified asphalt is poor, and the addition of SBS It will improve the low temperature crack resistance of asphalt. The road performance of different modified asphalts from strong to weak are PE modified asphalt, SBS modified asphalt, diatomite modified asphalt, montmorillonite modified asphalt. The research results have certain reference value for further research on different types (organic and inorganic) of modified asphalt.

Effect of Normalizing on Impact and Corrosion Resistance of Low-temperature Service Seamless Steel Pipe

The seamless line pipe, which has fine low temperature impact properties for Low-temperature Service and good H2S corrosion resistance, was investigated through chemical composition designing, optimizing smelting-rolling processes, and heat treatment processes following ASTM A333 standard. The influence of normalizing on the impact property and corrosion resistance was studied by optical microscope, scanning electron microscope, transmission electron microscope, mechanical test and corrosion test. It is demonstrated that the low temperature mechanical properties and anti-H2S corrosion properties of hot-rolled trial-pipe and normalized trial-pipe meet ASTM A333 standard. The microstructure of hot-rolled trial-pipe is pearlite and ferrite, and the grain distribution is uniform and grain size is fine. The dominated precipitates phase are TiN particles in hot-rolled trial-pipe. Ductile to brittle transition temperature is determined at -60 °C. The grain refinement is achieved after normalized and the main precipitates are TiN particles together with a few VN particles. Ductile tobrittle transition temperature was further lowered, at - 80 °C. The corrosion behavior of the material was examined by hydrogen induced cracking (HIC) corrosion test, sulfide stress corrosion (SSC) test and polarization test at various polarization scanning rates. It is observed that the anti-HIC corrosion performance and SSC corrosion resistance are similar for both hot-rolled and normalized pipes, but the performance of electrochemical corrosion of normalized pipe is better than hot-rolled pipe, which indicates that the normalized pipe is more suitable for demanding corrosive environments.

Study of Energetic Materials of Double Base Propellant for Small Caliber Ammunition

Double Base Propellants (DBP) has been frequently utilized in the fields of rocket propellant and gun propellant. DBP has various advantages over conventional propellants, including easy formulation, high energy, and smokelessness. The research conducted in literature studies was applied by referring to the various energetic materials for DBP. The composition of a DBP consists of energetic raw material of Nitrocellulose (NC) and Nitroglycerin (NG). According to data analysis, NC can be manufactured from the raw material Nata de Coco, which has a nitrogen content of more than 12,5% in NC, which is in line with the levels of conventional military and propellant raw materials. Meanwhile, SMX (1,4-dinitrate-2,3-dinitro-2,3bis (nitratomethylene) butane) or GAP (Glycidyl Azide Polymer) on double-base propellants is suggested as potential alternative energy sources that can be utilized to substitute NG. The choice of new energetic material is influenced by the fact that Nata de Coco is abundant in Indonesia, while SMX and GAP in terms of manufacturing and handling are safety. The several parameters to characterize double-base propellants include thermal analysis, microstructure, surface area, burning rate value, and gaseous product. The results of thermal properties by DSC analysis on a DBP based on NC+NG+TiO2-trifluoroacrylate showed a change in exothermic decomposition at a temperature of 199.2oC. Meanwhile, TGA analysis of a DBP based on NC+NG+GAP showed mass decomposition at temperature 199,3oC. Furthermore, it was found that thermoplastic elastomers GAP have a significant effect on increasing the low-temperature mechanical properties of double-base propellants. As a result, the literature studies approach, which includes consideration of alternative energetic raw materials and characterization for double-base propellants, is the recommendation for obtaining superior performance double-base propellants with energetic materials.