Stainless Steel Foil Research Articles

Enhanced Interfaces for High-Temperature Purposes—Practical Methodology and Characterization

The current study is focused on devising treated diatomite interfaces with the robustness and boiling water resistance necessary for high-temperature purposes. This work describes the synthesis methodology of the diatomite-based coatings, which followed the production of a composite formulation composed by treated diatomite powder dispersed in an epoxy resin matrix. After its preparation, the suspension was applied via the dip-coating technique over AISI-304 stainless-steel foils, which, after being air dried, underwent a post-curing treatment. Also, the interfaces were characterized by diverse techniques such as scanning electron microscopy and optical tensiometry. Apart from this, their thermophysical properties like thermal conductivity were also determined. Further, the physical and chemical durability of the interfaces was also evaluated via the elaboration of robustness tests including abrasion resistance, adhesion strength, solid impact resistance, and solvent resistance. The results showed satisfactory resistant interfaces, and with a wettability characterized by contact angles superior to 150°. Also, the interfaces confirmed improved durability when immersed in boiling water at 1 atm, since their wetting characteristics and durability remained nearly unaltered after 762 h of testing. Additionally, the synthesized interfaces possessed self-cleaning ability and chemical and thermal shock aging resistance. Generally, the fundamental outcomes of this work point out the suitability of the produced diatomite-based interfaces to be explored in high-temperature applications like flow boiling, pool boiling, and condensation. In terms of practicality, the method of preparation of the interfaces was a relatively easy and rapid approach to obtaining enhanced wettability and resilient interfaces, and with the required adaptations like the ratios between the raw materials, its suitability for large-scale applications makes this an appealing option.

Acoustic process monitoring during the laser beam welding of stainless-steel foils using an adjustable ring mode laser beam source

Electrification of the mobility sector is vital to meet the targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Besides battery-based mobility solutions, polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) are a promising technology for electrifying drive trains, especially in heavy-duty applications, such as maritime or logistics. Bipolar plates, a key component of PEMFCs, can consist of two stainless-steel foils that must be welded to be gas-tight. In order to join the two metal foils, laser beam welding is the state-of-the-art technology. Current challenges include process instabilities at higher welding speeds, such as the humping effect, which can cause weld seam imperfections. Therefore, applying sensors for laser beam welding is a promising approach to monitor the welding process. AISI 316L foils were welded within the scope of this work with various process parameters using an adjustable ring mode laser beam source. Additionally, an optical microphone was used as a process monitoring system. By applying different parameter settings and due to the introduction of artificial faults, weld seam defects, such as a burn-through or a gap, were induced. After utilizing a noise reduction algorithm for the acoustic signals, numerous features in the time and frequency domains were extracted, with which multiple machine learning algorithms were trained and compared concerning their performance. A light gradient boosting machine was identified as a suitable machine learning model for weld seam classification. Finally, hyperparameter tuning was conducted, which resulted in a cross-validation accuracy of 94.78%, depending on the quality categories considered.

Prediction of micro/meso scale forming limit for metal foils using a simple criterion

Accurately forecasting the forming limit of metal foils is essential in their micro-forming due to the appearance of necking failure easily. In order to accurately and easily forecast the forming limit of metal foils influenced by size effect, an idea for failure modeling of metal foils using the mechanism that different fracture modes of metal foils are related to shear bands is presented in this work. Based on the idea, a simple ductile failure criterion that considers the maximum shear stress and grain size effect but excludes the stress triaxiality is proposed, motivated by the demand to decrease the complexity of parameter calculation tests in micro-forming failure prediction. The proposed criterion and another criterion called as the μ-DF2022 model are applied to capture the forming limit curves of various thick copper and 304 stainless steel foils with different grain sizes to verify its advantage and performance, and the corresponding mechanisms of their prediction capabilities are also elucidated. Furthermore, the proposed and μ-DF2022 models are applied to forecast the limit drawing ratio of a 304 stainless steel foil to further show its performance and advantage in real micro-forming. The applications show that the proposed failure criterion effectively forecasts the forming limit of metal foils between equi-biaxial tension and uniaxial tension influenced by size effect. Moreover, the prediction accuracies using the proposed model and the μ-DF2022 model are comparable, whereas the proposed model does not require complex micro equi-biaxial tension tests, which are typically unavailable to many engineers and researchers, to calibrate its material parameters. Therefore, it is recommended to utilize the proposed criterion to capture the forming limit of metal foils in micro-forming. This work advances the forming limit modeling method of metal foils and provides insight into the application of uncoupled ductile failure criteria in the micro-forming of metal foils, which contributes to the development of their optimal micro-forming processes.

Development and experimental investigation of a new direct urea fuel cell

This study concerns the development and experimental investigation of Direct Urea-Hydrogen Peroxide Fuel Cells (DUHPFC), with a particular emphasis on electrode preparation using nickel zinc iron oxide coated on stainless steel foil via the electrochemical deposition method, and the performance evaluation of single cells under varying operational conditions is also performed. This electrochemical deposition helps achieve a uniform and stable anode coating, which exhibits the high catalytic activity and stability, resulted in significantly enhanced urea oxidation reaction. The research further identifies an optimal performance for a single cell at 25 °C with 9 M KOH and 0.5 M urea, achieving a peak power density of 46.38 mW/cm2. The single cell demonstrates an open circuit voltage (OCV) of 0.72 V. Both energy and exergy efficiencies are further investigated for the cell performance and found to be 58% and 24%, respectively, at 5 M KOH. The electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) results reveal a significant reduction in impedance, from 30-Ωcm2 at 25 °C to 15-Ωcm2 at 65 °C, indicating an enhanced ionic conductivity and a reduced resistance. The present study results suggest that optimizing the electrode composition and operational parameters significantly improves the DUHPFC's performance, offering valuable insights for future fuel cell development.

Ultrarelativistic Fe plasma with GJ/cm3 energy density created by femtosecond laser pulses

The generation of a plasma with an ultrahigh energy density of 1.2 GJ/cm3 (which corresponds to about 12 Gbar pressure) is investigated by irradiating thin stainless-steel foils with high-contrast femtosecond laser pulses with relativistic intensities of up to 1022 W/cm2. The plasma parameters are determined by X-ray spectroscopy. The results show that most of the laser energy is absorbed by the plasma at solid density, indicating that no pre-plasma is generated in the current experimental setup.

Feasibility study on the micro-forming of novel metal foil arrays based on submerged cavitating water-jet impingement

With the increasing demand for metal foil parts with micro-array structures in micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS), it is urgent to explore a novel array micro-forming technology with high efficiency, low cost, and high flexibility. The cavitation water jet uses the high-energy shock wave generated by the collapse of the cavitation bubble group as the loading force. It has the characteristics of large range of action, uniform pressure distribution, and can realize large-area array micro-forming processing. To verify the feasibility of cavitating water jet array micro-forming, this paper performs cavitating water jet array micro-forming on 304 stainless steel foil with a thickness of 80 μm, and analyzes the variation of cavitation bubbles collapse impact zone with target distance. The effects of target distance and impact time on the forming quality of metal foil array micro-holes were studied from the aspects of forming depth, surface roughness, and thickness thinning rate. The results show that the forming depth and uniformity of the array micro-holes located in the cavitation collapse area increase with time. However, with the increase of target distance, the forming depth increases first and then decreases. When the target distance is L = 120 mm, the forming depth reaches the maximum. The surface roughness ( Ra) of the array micro hole is Ra = 1.54 μm. The thickness thinning rate of the micro-forming parts is between 2% and 10%, and the maximum thickness thinning rate in the die fillet area is 13.5%. This paper provides a novel processing method for manufacturing metal foil parts with micro array structure.

Multifunctional polymeric coating on stainless steel current collectors in aqueous energy storage devices

Herein, low cost stainless steel foils are employed as current collectors in aqueous Na-ion supercapacitors, while the foils are coated with following conducting polymers, namely, polyimide (PI), Schiff base polymer (SBP), polyanthraquinone sulfide (PAQS) and polyaniline (PANI). The foremost purpose of these polymeric coatings is the prevention of corrosion, and the resultant improvements in device performances. Notwithstanding, these polymeric coatings provide few additional benefits in device characteristics, and these are following: (i) enhancement of electrolyte stability window, (ii) contributing charge storage capacitance, (iii) conversion of 2D pristine substrate to 3D porous current collector. The four coating polymers are electrochemically characterized, and PI is selected for fabricating Na-ion supercapacitor cells. The PI-coating reduces the stainless steel’s corrosion rate ∼ 68 times, expands the electrolyte stability window ∼ 1.2 times, and delivers ∼ 2 times higher capacitance with respect to pristine current collector, whereas no appreciable interfacial resistances are observed. The supercapacitor cell with PI-functionality demonstrates ∼ 6.6 times improved capacitance than that of pristine cell at 25 mA/g current density, while > 95 and ∼ 90 % Faradaic efficiencies are noted for former and latter, respectively. The distinct enhancement of cell performances clearly demonstrates the effectiveness of multifunctional polymeric coating on corrosion-prone metallic current collectors.

Effect of rolling schedules on ridging resistance of ultra-thin ferritic stainless steel foil

Effect of rolling schedules on ridging resistance of ultra-thin ferritic stainless steel foil

Study on fracture toughness of ultra-thin stainless steel foils

Abstract Ultra-thin stainless steel foils have garnered significant attention due to their exceptional mechanical properties, including light weight, high strength, toughness, corrosion resistance, oxidation resistance, high temperature resistance, and superior shielding properties. In this study, we conducted experimental tests to evaluate the mechanical properties of ultra-thin stainless steel foils, focusing on the determination of Young’s modulus and yield stress for two distinct thicknesses of steel foils. Furthermore, employing both experimental and numerical simulation methodologies, we investigated the impact of wrinkles on the fracture toughness of steel foils containing central cracks subjected to tensile loading. The findings presented in this paper not only contribute to a comprehensive understanding of the mechanical behavior of ultra-thin stainless steel foils but also serve as a fundamental basis for subsequent numerical simulations and fracture toughness estimations. This research lays the groundwork for advancing the development and utilization of ultra-thin stainless steel foils across various industrial applications.

Effects of current collectors on the self-discharge rates of supercapacitors with aqueous electrolyte

Current collectors play an important role in supercapacitors, impacting not only their electrochemical properties such as rate performance and cycling stability but also their self-discharge processes. In this study, we investigate the self-discharge behaviors of activated carbon supercapacitors with various current collectors, including titanium (Ti) foil, nickel (Ni) foil, 316 stainless steel (SS) foil, and graphite paper (GP), in an aqueous electrolyte. Our findings reveal that at a relatively low charging voltage of 0.8 V, supercapacitors with different current collectors exhibit similar decays in open circuit voltages (OCVs) after 12 h, indicating comparable self-discharge rates. However, at higher charging voltages, SS-based supercapacitors exhibit significantly faster self-discharge compared to Ti, Ni, and GP. Particularly at 1.6 V, the 12-h voltage retention rates decrease from over 60 % for Ti, Ni, and GP supercapacitors, to 46 % for SS supercapacitors. Analysis of the self-discharge mechanism suggests that increased side Faradaic reactions occurring at higher charging voltages in SS-based supercapacitors contribute to the accelerated self-discharge process compared to Ti, Ni, and GP supercapacitors.

Numerical investigation of the bearing performance of Thin- and Thick-Ply hybrid laminates

This publication presents a numerical investigation of Thin-Ply Hybrid CFRP bolted joints. In addition to Thin- and Thick-Ply specimens, hybrid specimens are investigated by substituting a part of the 90° CFRP layers with stainless steel foils. The numerical investigations are based on preliminary experimental work, which showed that fibre kinking led to final failure. A modelling strategy that includes 3D stress states and fibre kinking is chosen. The influence of micro-damages such as matrix cracks decreases with decreasing layer thickness. Therefore, and to avoid high computational power, primarily micro-damages such as matrix cracks are not included. The results of the simulations of the Thin-Ply and the hybrid samples show a good agreement with the experimental results. By hybridisation, the bearing performance can be significantly increased. It is shown that the modelling approach of not including micro-damage is well applicable for thinner plies but reaches its limits for thicker plies.

Eu-doped ZnO coatings prepared by spray pyrolysis for photocatalytic applications

The ZnO-Eu2O3 coatings immobilized on stainless steel foil were synthesized by a spray pyrolysis method using an inorganic salt, Zn(CH3COO)2·2H2O, and Eu2O3 nanopowder with different Zn/Eu ratios. The coatings were investigated by SEM, XRD, XPS, DRS, and photoluminescence analysis, and their photoactivity was studied in the degradation of two pollutants, lindane and methyl orange. The ZnO-Eu2O3 coatings were more photoactive than coatings containing only ZnO. Among the ZnO-Eu2O3 coatings, the photocatalyst with 2 wt% Eu2O3 showed the highest photoactivity for both pollutants. The incorporation of Eu3+ ions into the ZnO crystal lattice causes the appearance of oxygen vacancy defects and better charge separation in the ZnO-Eu2O3 coating. When the Eu2O3 concentration exceeds 2 wt%, the photoactivity decreases as additional centers for electron-hole pair recombination are created. It is shown that the main factor influencing the photoactivity of Eu-doped ZnO composite coatings is the amount of Eu3+ incorporated into the ZnO lattice.

Structure and performance of N-doped amorphous carbon films (a-C: N) on stainless steel surfaces for bipolar plates in proton exchange membrane fuel cells

Stainless steel bipolar plates (BPPs) are anticipated to supersede traditional graphite BPPs in proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) owing to their superior machinability, enhanced mechanical strength, and cost-effectiveness. Nevertheless, stainless steel BPPs are susceptible to corrosion and dissolution in acidic environments over extended periods, leading to the formation of a passivation film that diminishes conductivity. In this study, amorphous carbon (a-C) films with varying N doping contents were deposited onto 304L stainless steel foil using the cathodic arc ion plating technique. This was achieved by manipulating the N2 flow rate. The research investigated the impact of N doping on the microstructure, corrosion resistance, interfacial contact resistance (ICR), and hydrophobicity of the a-C films on stainless steel surfaces. The findings reveal that the various a-C films significantly enhance the performance of 304L stainless steel under simulated PEMFCs operating conditions. While N-doped a-C (a-C: N) films are advantageous for reducing ICR, incorporating N results in a decrease in C-sp3 content and density, ultimately leading to a decrease in the corrosion resistance of films. Additionally, the hydrophobicity of the a-C films diminishes with increasing N content. Consequently, N doping is not conducive to improving the overall performance of a-C films on the surface of 304L stainless steel bipolar plates under simulated PEMFCs operating conditions.

Experimental study of convective heat transfer distribution of non-interacting wall and perpendicular air jet impingement cooling on flat surface

An experimental study evaluated heat transfer with perpendicular and wall-impinging air jets on stainless steel foil, for Reynolds numbers Re = 3000, 5000, 8000, and 10000, where the perpendicular jet targets the bottom and the wall jet the top, creating a unique, non-interacting effect. Distances to nozzle diameter ratios for wall jets (S/d = 4, 6, 8, 10) and perpendicular jets (Z/d = 2, 4, 6, 8) were varied. Significant heat transfer increases were noted, with the Nusselt number rising by up to 49.20 % for a Z/d = 6 and S/d = 8 combination at Re = 5000. Improvements ranged from 10.03 % to 49.20 %, peaking when the jets' high heat transfer regions overlapped. Optimal performance for Re = 3000 was at S/d = 10, aligning the wall jet's maximum with the perpendicular jet's stagnation area. For Re = 5000 to 10000, optimal S/d values were 8 and 4 for Z/d = 6, 8 and Z/d = 2, 4, respectively. The Nusselt number increase ranged from 29.21 % to 46.57 % at S/d = 10 for Re = 3000, the highest among all tested values. Wall jet heat transfer downstream increased by 90–105 % over perpendicular jets in corresponding regions. Increasing the wall to perpendicular jet distance improved heat transfer near the stagnation point, suggesting this cooling method for high-density electronics like CPUs and GPUs.

Investigation on the limp properties of formed foils for hydrogen applications

The mass production of bipolar plates for electrolyzers and fuel cells is a central step towards the realization of efficient and cost-effective energy systems of the future. However, current production processes are reaching their limits and can hardly realize the quantities that will soon be demanded, nor can they scale up to the required volumes. Particularly for the handling of half-plates and bipolar plates, major challenges are to be expected, especially with regard to production rates. Existing handling systems have restricted scalability and precision. Therefore, new stacking technologies are necessary, which have to be adaptable to the mechanical properties of the components and maintain tight tolerances during stacking to ensure hydrogen sealing for safety and efficiency. An important property in the handling of the plates is their limpness, which is distinguished by instability of the components as well as plastic deformation at low forces and moments. Therefore, the limp behavior of the components must be analyzed. To investigate the limpness of foil components, a flowfield is first formed using a 1.4404 stainless steel foil with a sheet thickness of 0.075 mm. Subsequently, the workpieces are analyzed in terms of their limp properties by means of a 3-point bending test.

Study on static load performance of FMLs based on ultra-thin stainless-steel foils and cross-ply thin CFRP

The ultra-thin stainless steel/CFRP laminates overcome the limitations in application due to the weight drawbacks of conventional thick cold-rolled stainless steel. By laminating these two high-performance materials, it allows enhanced design flexibility and exceptional formability, rendering them highly promising in various industries such as automotive structures, shipbuilding, and electronics. The existing research on steel/CFRP laminates primarily revolves around locally reinforcing CFRP with cold-rolled plates of typical thickness (≥1 mm). Nonetheless, there remains a dearth of investigations examining the mechanical properties of laminates with varying metal thicknesses under the same volume fraction, particularly for ultra-thin stainless steel below 0.1 mm in thickness. In this study, to investigate the influence of micron-scale thickness ultra-thin stainless-steel foils on the performance of fiber metal laminates (FMLs), the laminates were manufactured and characterized using stainless-steel foils with thicknesses of either 0.05 mm or 0.025 mm. The tension and bearing properties of cross-ply thin CFRP (30 g/m2) laminates were examined both with and without the incorporation of ultra-thin stainless-steel foils. The findings confirmed that a substantial improvement in tensile strength of up to 35 % when ultra-thin stainless-steel foils were incorporated, accompanied by a remarkable increase in modulus by 65 %. Furthermore, the addition of stainless-steel foils to CFRP composites shifted their failure mode from brittle failure to progressive damage during three-point bending tests. Notably, utilizing 0.025 mm thick stainless-steel foils not only enhanced the strength and modulus but also mitigated post-yield stiffness loss compared to FMLs incorporating 0.05 mm thick stainless-steel foils for cross-ply thin CFRP laminates. Further researches revealed that ultra-thin stainless-steel foils with a thickness of 0.025 mm exhibited improved compatibility for deformation with cross-ply thin CFRP as evidenced by both tensile and bending damage behavior.

Seeding the growth of femtosecond laser produced microstructures on copper with multi-layered materials

Femtosecond lasers can be used to create self-organized micro/nanostructures on the surface of most materials. However, on copper, these structures require significantly higher laser fluence when compared to other metals. We report a method to create self-organized structures on copper by clamping a foil of stainless steel on the copper surface prior to laser processing. All samples reported are processed using a peak fluence of 2.71 J/cm2, which is below the fluence threshold for self-organized micro/nanostructure formation on copper. When stainless steel is layered on copper, structures are created that consist of both stainless steel and copper at pulse counts of 998 and 1,197. With increased pulse count, the thickness of the stainless steel layer decreases. For pulse counts of 1,497 and higher, the permanent structures are completely composed of copper. Using these same parameters, but without the stainless steel foil on the copper, the laser processing formed agglomerations of nanoparticles on the surface regardless of pulse count. The structure morphology and chemistry of the surface features are characterized with surface and subsurface analysis to study the material make-up of the structures and investigate the pulse count necessary to fully remove the stainless steel, leaving a structured copper surface.

Damage failure prediction study of carbon fiber metal laminates in hot stamping process

In addressing the difficulty of forming Fiber Metal Laminates (FMLs), a laminate composed of a 0.1 mm-thick 304 Stainless Steel Foil (SSF) and Carbon Fiber Reinforced Plastics (CFRP) as the base material is prepared using a specific process. Subsequently, forming limit diagrams are obtained through hemispherical bulge forming experiments to investigate the forming performance of FMLs laminates. The damage phenomena of various forming specimens during the thermal stamping process are analyzed. Based on different damage forms, corresponding theoretical models are established to simulate and predict the forming damage modes of FMLs through simulation. The research results indicate that the stamping formability of FMLs is influenced by the damage tolerance of the thin stainless steel foil. During the thermal stamping process, FMLs may experience delamination, fracture/crack of the thin stainless steel foil, and rupture/tearing/wrinkling of the prepreg. To address these issues, cohesive elements, GTN-M-K damage, and Hashin damage models are established, providing a reasonable simulation prediction of the stamping damage phenomena of FMLs.

Evaluation of surface pretreatment methods on thin austenitic stainless steel foils for adhesive bonding applications

ABSTRACT Stainless steel is used across all industries, from the chemical or construction sector to household appliances. To produce load bearing joints, a surface treatment of the passive surface of austenitic stainless steel is generally necessary. However, the treatment of thin-walled foil materials inhibits challenges concerning the deformation under thermal loads. This work investigates the effectiveness and mechanisms of different surface treatments on 50 µm thin AISI 316 L steel foil. Basic cleaning, surface finishing with an aluminum oxide abrasive, flame-pyrolytic deposition of silicon dioxide and application of a primer, etching with hydrochloric acid, treatment by atmospheric plasma, ns-pulsed laser surface cleaning, and fs-laser structuring are investigated. The effects of these treatments are analyzed in surface energy investigations by contact angle measurement, roughness measurements, and SEM-EDX. The bonding strength is tested with epoxy adhesives and a methyl methacrylate adhesive under 90° peel load. The failure mechanisms are further investigated by FTIR spectroscopy and SEM-EDX. The results show that the used coating with primer produces the strongest bonds, followed by the fs-laser treatment. In particular, sub-microscopic surface structures induced by fs-laser show promising results. SEM images show a full wetting of the capillary structures, providing the possibility of mechanical interlocking on a sub-microscopic level.

Influence of Silicon Oxide Processes on the Performance of Copper Indium Gallium Selenide Flexible Solar Cells

Stainless steel (SS) foils have successful flexible device applications because of their excellent high‐temperature performance and commercial availability, and they are widely used as flexible substrate materials for Cu(In,Ga)Se2 (CIGS) solar cells. The method used to control metal impurities is crucial for producing high‐quality cells. Herein, CIGS precursor films are deposited on SS foils coated with a SiOx/Ti compound barrier layer by sputtering a CIGS quaternary target. The absorber layer is recrystallized at a high annealing temperature (≈600 °C). The relationship between cell performance and SiOx layer processes is investigated. The diffusion of Fe and Cr in the annealed films is influenced by SiOx layer processes. The proposed CIGS flexible cells obtain better conversion efficiency when thicker SiOx layers are deposited at high sputtering powers.