Casting structure of pure aluminum by electric pulse modification at different superheated temperatures

Electric pulse modification (EPM) is a novel technique that reduces grain size by altering the structure of a melt. It was investigated that the response of the casting structure of high pure aluminum to EPM in different superheated melts. The results indicate that the grain refining effect of a given pulse electric field holds an optimal temperature range, moreover, a lower or higher superheated temperature will both disadvantage the improvements of casting structure. It essentially lies in the cooperative action between the distorted absorption of clusters and the activated capability of atoms in the aluminum melt.     

Heat-transfer model on the improvement of continuous casting slab temperature

A heat transfer model on the solidification process has been established on the basis of the technical conditions of the slab caster in No.3 steel works of Wuhan Iron & Steel Corporation, and the temperature field in the solidifying slab was calculated which was verified by the measured slab surface temperature. The influences of the main operating factors including casting speed, spray cooling patterns, superheat of melt and slab size on the solidification process were analyzed and the means of enhancing the slab temperature was brought forward. Raising the casting speed to 1.3 m/min, controlling the flowrate of secondary cooling water and improving the cooling pattern at the lower segments of secondary cooling zone could improve the slab temperature effectively. And the increasing the superheat is adverse to the production of high temperature slab.     

The evolution of microstructure and mechanical properties during high-speed direct-chill casting in different Al–Mg_2Si in situ composites

The effect of high-speed direct-chill(DC) casting on the microstructure and mechanical properties of Al–Mg_2Si in situ composites and AA6061 alloy was investigated. The microstructural evolution of the Al–Mg_2Si composites and AA6061 alloy was examined by optical microscopy, field-emission scanning electron microscopy(FE-SEM) and transmission electron microscopy(TEM). The results revealed that an increase of the casting speed substantially refined the primary Mg_2Si particles(from 28 to 12 μm), the spacing of eutectic Mg_2Si(from 3 to 0.5 μm), and the grains of AA6061 alloy(from 102 to 22 μm). The morphology of the eutectic Mg_2Si transformed from lamellar to rod-like and fibrous with increasing casting speed. The tensile tests showed that the yield strength, tensile strength, and elongation improved at higher casting speeds because of refinement of the Mg_2Si phase and the grains in the Al–Mg_2Si composites and the AA6061 alloy. High-speed DC casting is demonstrated to be an effective method to improve the mechanical properties of Al–Mg_2Si composites and AA6061 alloy billets.     

Effect of cross wedge rolling on the microstructure of GH4169 alloy

The metal microstructure during the hot forming process has a significant effect on the mechanical properties of final products. To study the microstructural evolution of the cross wedge rolling (CWR) process, the microstructural model of GH4169 alloy was programmed into the user subroutine of DEFORM-3D by FORTRAN. Then, a coupled thermo-mechanical and microstructural simulation was performed under different conditions of CWR, such as area reduction, rolling temperature, and roll speed. Comparing experimental data with simulation results, the difference in average grain size is from 11.2% to 33.4% so it is verified that the microstructural model of GH4169 alloy is reliable and accurate. The fine grain of about 12-15 μm could be obtained by the CWR process, and the grain distribution is very homogeneous. For the symmetry plane, increasing the area reduction is helpful to refine the grain and the value should be around 61%. Moreover, when the rolling temperature changes from 1000 to 1100℃ and the roll speed from 6 to 10 r·min-1, the grain size of the rolled piece decreases first and then increases. The temperature may be better to choose the value around 1050℃ and the speed less than 10 r·min-1.     

Microstructure evolution and mechanical properties of a large-sized ingot of Mg–9Gd–3Y–1.5Zn–0.5Zr(wt%) alloy after a lower-temperature homogenization treatment

In this paper,a large-sized ingot of Mg–9Gd–3Y–1.5Zn–0.5Zr(wt%) alloy with a diameter of 600 mm was successfully prepared by the semi-continuous casting method.The alloy was subsequently annealed at a relatively low temperature of 430°C for 12 h as a homogenization treatment.The microstructure and room-temperature mechanical properties of the alloy were investigated systematically.The results show that the as-cast alloy contained a mass of discontinuous lamellar-shaped 18 R long-period stacking ordered(LPSO) phases with a composition of Mg10 Zn Y and an α-Mg matrix,along with net-shaped Mg5(Y,Gd) eutectic compounds at the grain boundaries.Most of the eutectic compounds dissolved after the homogenization treatment.Moreover,the amount and dimensions of the lamellar-shaped LPSO phase obviously increased after the homogenization treatment.The structure of the phase transformed into 14H-type LPSO with composition Mg12Zn(Y,Gd).The mechanical properties of the heat-treated large-sized alloy ingot are uniform.The ultimate tensile strength(UTS) and tensile yield strength(TYS) of the alloy reached 207.2 MPa and 134.8 MPa,respectively,and the elongation was 3.4%.The high performances of the large-sized alloy ingot after the homogenization treatment is attributed to the strengthening of the α-Mg solid solution and to the plentiful LPSO phase distributed over the α-Mg matrix.     

Evaluation of the mold-filling ability of alloy melt in squeeze casting

The mold-filling ability of alloy melt in squeeze casting process was evaluated by means of the maximum length of Archimedes spiral line. A theoretical evaluating model to predict the maximum filling length was built based on the flowing theory of the incompressible viscous fluid. It was proved by experiments and calculations that the mold-filling pressure and velocity are prominent influencing factors on the mold-filling ability of alloy melt. The mold-filling ability increases with the increase of the mold-filling pressure and the decrease of the proper mold-filling velocity. Moreover, the pouring temperature relatively has less effect on the mold-filling ability under the experimental conditions. The maximum deviation of theoretical calculating values with experimental results is less than 15%. The model can quantitatively estimate the effect of every factor on the mold-filling ability.     

The evolution of microstructure and mechanical properties during high-speed direct-chill casting in different Al-Mg2Si in situ composites

The effect of high-speed direct-chill (DC) casting on the microstructure and mechanical properties of Al-Mg₂Si in situ composites and AA6061 alloy was investigated. The microstructural evolution of the Al-Mg₂Si composites and AA6061 alloy was examined by optical microscopy, field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The results revealed that an increase of the casting speed substantially refined the primary Mg₂Si particles (from 28 to 12 μm), the spacing of eutectic Mg₂Si (from 3 to 0.5 μm), and the grains of AA6061 alloy (from 102 to 22 μm). The morphology of the eutectic Mg₂Si transformed from lamellar to rod-like and fibrous with increasing casting speed. The tensile tests showed that the yield strength, tensile strength, and elongation improved at higher casting speeds because of refinement of the Mg₂Si phase and the grains in the Al-Mg₂Si composites and the AA6061 alloy. High-speed DC casting is demonstrated to be an effective method to improve the mechanical properties of Al-Mg₂Si composites and AA6061 alloy billets.     

Influence of hydrogen content on the behavior of grain reflnement in hypereutectic aluminum-silicon alloy

Dissolved hydrogen is harmful to mechanical properties of refined hypereutectic aluminum-silicon alloys. In the present work, by using a stepped-form mold and the hydrogen-detecting instrument HYSCAN Ⅱ, the relationship between the initial hydrogen content in the melt and the refinement effect on the casting of hypereutectic aluminum-silicon alloy was investigated. The experimental results show that the cooling rate, the hydrogen content and the grain refinement effect are three interactive factors. When the hydrogen content is above 0.20 mL/100 g and the cooling rate is lower than that in 50 mm-thick step, hydrogen dissolved in the alloy melt influences the grain refinement effect. With increasing the cooling rate, the critical hydrogen content increases too. It is expected that much hydrogen in the melt make the net interfacial energy larger than or equal to zero, resulting in the shielding of the particles AlP during solidification and that the critical gas content is closely related to the critical radius of embryo bubbles.     

Fine structure and phase composition of Fe–14Mn–1.2C steel:influence of a modified mixture based on refractory metals

The effect of TiO_2,ZrO_2 and Na_3AlF_6 ultrafine powders on the fine structure and the phase composition of Fe–14Mn–1.2C steel was investigated.The introduction of the ultrafine powders into the melt influenced the grain size,the quantity,and the character of distribution of nonmetallic inclusions in the railroad frogs.The microstructure of castings was improved significantly because of the refinement of the grain structure and an increase of the grain-boundary area.After the modifying mixture was introduced into the melt,either the microtwins of one or two intersecting systems or the precipitations of ε-martensite of different types,or simultaneously the microtwins and wafers of ε-martensite,were present in each grain.     

Effects of correlative factors on the interdendritic melt flow brought by the bulge in continuous casting slabs

The effects of various factors on the flow speed of interdendritic melt were analyzed in detail in the process of continuous casting slabs. When the solid-liquid interface bends periodically, the expression of solute distribution in the columnar crystal zone was deduced, and the quantitative calculation was also made. The results show that the bulge and the interdendritic spacing are responsible for the flow speed of interdendritic melt. At the initial stage of solidification the bulge operates, and at the final stage the interdendritic spacing operates. The experimental results of macrosegregation in the slabs validated the calculated results of the flow speed of interdendritic melt, which shows that the calculated results are basically consistent with the experimental ones.     

Effect of heat treatment on the microstructure of a Ni–Fe based superalloy for advanced ultra-supercritical power plant applications

The effect of heat treatment on the microstructure and microhardness of a Ni–Fe based superalloy for700 °C advanced ultra-supercritical coalfi red power plants was investigated. Results showed that the main phases in the alloy were γ, γ′, MC and M_23C_6, and no harmful phase was observed in the alloy.M_23C_6-type carbides discretely distributed nearby grain boundaries as the alloy was aged at above840 °C. The microhardness decreased with increasing aging temperature. The coarsening of γ′ led to the increment of microhardness at 780 °C and 810 °C for a short aging time, and a signi fi cant decrease in microhardness after aging at 840 °C. The aging temperature had more signi fi cant role on the microstructure than holding time. Therefore, to obtain optimum strengthening effect for this alloy, the aging temperature should not exceed 810 °C.     

A fractal-based model for the microstructure evolution of silicon bronze wires fabricated by dieless drawing

The back-propagation neural (BPN) network was proposed to model the relationship between the parameters of the dieless drawing process and the microstructures of the QSi3-1 silicon bronze alloy. Combined with image processing techniques, grain sizes and grain-boundary morphologies were respectively determined by the quantitative metallographic method and the fractal theory. The outcomes obtained show that the deformed microstructures exhibit typical fractal features, and the boundaries can be characterized quantitatively by fractal dimensions. With the temperature of 600–800℃ and the drawing speed of 0.67–1.00 mm·s-1, either a lower temperature or a higher speed will cause a smaller grain size together with an elevated fractal dimension. The developed model can be capable for forecasting the microstructure evolution with a minimum error. The average relative errors between the predicted results and the experimental values of grain size and fractal dimension are 3.9% and 0.9%, respectively.     

As-cast structure of DC casting 7075 aluminum alloy obtained under dual-frequency electromagnetic field

We have experimentally determined the as-cast structures of semi-continuous casting 7075 aluminum alloy obtained in the presence of dual-frequency electromagnetic field. Results suggest that the use of dual-frequency electromagnetic field during the semi-continuous casting process of 7075 aluminum alloy ingots reduces the thickness of the surface segregation layer, increases the height of the melt meniscus, enhances the surface quality of the ingot, and changes the surface morphology of the melt pool. Moreover, low-frequency electromagnetic field was found to show the most obvious influence on improving the as-cast structure because of its high permeability in conductors.     

Establishment and Application of A Mathematical Model for Rectangular Billet Continuos Casting

A two dimension unsteady heat transfer model is established for rectangular billet casting. Solidification process of liquid steel in secondary cooling zone was analyzed using direct difference method. The influence of operation parameters including casting speed and temperature of liquid steel was investigated. Experimental results have been used for increasing the casting speed.     

Simulation of macrosegregation in a 36-t steel ingot using a multiphase model

Macrosegregation is the major defect in large steel ingots caused by solute partitioning and melt convection during casting. In this study,a three-phase(liquid, columnar dendrites, and equiaxed grains) model is proposed to simulate macrosegregation in a 36-t steel ingot. A supplementary set of conservation equations are employed in the model such that two types of equiaxed grains, either settling or adhering to the solid shell, are well simulated. The predicted concentration agrees quantitatively with the experimental value. A negative segregation cone was located at the bottom owing to the grain settlement and solute-enriched melt leaving from the mushy zone. The interdendritic liquid flow was carefully analyzed, and the formation of A-type segregations in the mid-height of the ingot is discussed. Negative segregation was observed near the riser neck due to the specific relationship between flow direction and temperature gradient. Additionally, the as-cast macrostructure of the ingot is presented, including the grain size distribution and columnar–equiaxed transition.     

Microstructure Characteristics and Apparent Viscosity of Hypereutectic Al-24%Si Alloy Melt During Semi-solid State Stirring

The microstructural evolution and apparent viscosity of hypereutectic Al-24%Si alloy during semi-solid state shearing were studied with a Searte type viscometer. When the alloy melt was continuously stirred from 720 ℃ to eutectic temperature, the primary Si crystals were gradually changed from elongated platelets to near-spherical shapes. It was found that some nondendritic α-phase formed when the melt was stirred below 585 ℃. The experiment showed that the semi-solid stirring had strong effect on inhibiting the anisotropic growth of Si crystals during solidification. The apparent viscosity of the alloy melt increased slowly with the decreasing of temperature before the formation of nondendritic α-phase, which caused the dramatic increase of apparent viscosity.     

Kinetics of recrystallization for twin-roll casting AZ31 magnesium alloy during homogenization

The kinetics of recrystallization for twin-roll casting AZ31 magnesium alloy with different thicknesses during homogenization was analyzed. It is shown that fine grains are first formed at the boundaries of deformed bands in the twin-roll casting slab. The recrystallized grains with no strain are gradually substituted for the deformed microstructure of twin-roll casting AZ31 magnesium alloy. The incubation temperature and time for the recrystallization of a twin-roll casting AZ31 magnesium alloy strip with a thickness of 3 mm are lower and shorter than those of the 6-mm thick strip, respectively. The 3-mm thick twin-roll casting magnesium alloy has finer grains than the 6-mm thick strip. The activation energies of recrystallization for twin-roll casting AZ31 magnesium alloy slabs with the thickness of 3 and 6 mm are 88 and 69 kJ/mol, respectively. The kinetics curves of recrystallization for twin-roll casting AZ31 magnesium alloy were obtained.     

Refinement of primary Si grains in Al–20%Si alloy slurry through serpentine channel pouring process

In this study, a serpentine channel pouring process was used to prepare the semi-solid Al–20%Si alloy slurry and refine primary Si grains in the alloy. The effects of the pouring temperature, number of curves in the serpentine channel, and material of the serpentine channel on the size of primary Si grains in the semi-solid Al–20%Si alloy slurry were investigated. The results showed that the pouring temperature, number of the curves, and material of the channel strongly affected the size and distribution of the primary Si grains. The pouring temperature exerted the strongest effect, followed by the number of the curves and then the material of the channel. Under experimental conditions of a four-curve copper channel and a pouring temperature of 701℃, primary Si grains in the semi-solid Al–20%Si alloy slurry were refined to the greatest extent, and the lath-like grains were changed into granular grains. Moreover, the equivalent grain diameter and the average shape coefficient of primary Si grains in the satisfactory semi-solid Al–20%Si alloy slurry were 24.4 μm and 0.89, respectively. Finally, the refinement mechanism and distribution rule of primary Si grains in the slurry prepared through the serpentine channel pouring process were analyzed and discussed.     

Low cycle fatigue behavior of micro-grain casting K4169 superalloy at room temperature

The strain-controlled low cycle fatigue tests were carried out at 298 K for the newly developed micro-grain casting K4169 superalloy,and the cyclic stress response,deformation and fracture behaviors of the alloy were studied.The results show that the fatigue life of the alloy was increased by more than two times compared with other casting K4169 alloys.This can be partly attributed to grain refinement impeding crack initiation and propagation.When the strain amplitude was in plastic range(Δε     

Microstructure and texture evolution of Mg–3Zn–1Al magnesium alloy during large-strain electroplastic rolling

Large-strain deformation by single electroplastic rolling(EPR) was imposed on AZ31 magnesium alloy strips. During EPR at low temperature(150–250°C), numerous twins formed in the alloy. After EPR at a high temperature(350°C), the number of twins reduced and some dynamic recrystallization(DRX) grains formed at grain boundaries and twinned regions. The synergic thermal and athermal effects generated by electropulsing, which promoted dislocation motion, induced a few small DRX grains, and ductile bandings were mainly responsible for large-strain deformation during EPR. The inclination angle of the basal pole stemmed from the counterbalance of the inclination direction of the basal pole between the DRX grains and deformed coarse grains.