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Due to the rapid thermal cycles involved in additive manufacturing of metals, high internal stresses and peculiar microstructures occur, which influence the parts mechanical properties. To systematically examine their formation, in-process measurements of the temperature are needed. Since the part emissivity is strongly inhomogeneous and rapidly changing in the process, the applicability of thermography for the determination of thermodynamic temperatures is limited. Measuring the thermal radiation in different wavelengths simultaneously, temperature and emissivity can be separated. Here, we present results of a preliminary study using multispectral thermography to obtain real temperatures and emissivities in directed energy deposition (DED) processes.
Additive manufacturing offers a range of novel applications. However, the manufacturing process is complex and the production of almost defect-free parts with high reliability and durability is still a challenge. Thermography is a valuable tool for process surveillance, especially in metal additive manufacturing processes. The high process temperatures allow one to use cameras usually operating in the visible spectral range. Here, we compare the results of measurements during the manufacturing process of a commercial laser metal deposition setup using a mid wavelength infrared camera with those from a short wavelength infrared camera and those from a visual spectrum high-speed camera with band pass filter in the near infrared range.
Currently, corrosion rates (CR) and/or corrosion products (CP) obtained for methanogen-induced microbiologically influenced corrosion (Mi-MIC) on carbon steel are mainly analyzed from static-incubations. By using a multiport-flow-column, much higher CRs (0.72 mm/yr) were observed, indicating static-incubations are not suitable for determining the corrosive potential of Mi-MIC. With the combination of various analytical methods (ToF-SIMS/SEM-EDS/SEM-FIB) and contrary to previously published data, we observed that CPs contained phosphorus, oxygen, magnesium, calcium and iron but lacked carbon-related species (e.g. siderite). Overall, siderite nucleation is disrupted by methanogens, as they convert aqueous bicarbonate into carbon dioxide for methanogenesis resulting in increased localized corrosion.
A three-dimensional multi-physics numerical model was developed for the calculation of an appropriate equivalent volumetric heat source and the prediction of the transient thermal cycle during and after fusion welding. Thus the modelling process was separated into two studies. First, the stationary process simulation of full-penetration keyhole laser beam welding of a 15 mm low-alloyed steel thick plate in flat position at a welding speed of 2 m/min and a laser power of 18 kW was performed. A fixed keyhole with a right circular cone shape was used to consider the energy absorbed by the workpiece and to calibrate the model. In the calculation of the weld pool geometry and the local temperature field, the effects of phase transition, thermo-capillary convection, natural convection and temperature-dependent material properties up to evaporation temperature were taken into account. The obtained local temperature field was then used in a subsequent study as an equivalent heat source for the computation of the transient thermal field during the laser welding process and the cooling stage of the part. The system of partial differential equations, describing the stationary heat transfer and the fluid dynamics, were strongly coupled and solved with the commercial finite element software COMSOL Multiphysics 5.0. The energy input in the transient heat transfer simulation was realised by prescription of the nodes temperature. The prescribed nodes reproduced the calculated local temperature field defining the equivalent volumetric heat source. Their translational motion through the part was modelled by a moving mesh approach. An additional remeshing condition and helper lines were used to avoid highly distorted elements. The positions of the elements of the polygonal mesh were calculated with the Laplace’s smoothing approach. Good correlation between the numerically calculated and the experimentally observed weld bead shapes and transient temperature distributions was found.
The shape of the weld pool in laser beam welding plays a major role to understand the dynamics of the melt and its solidification behavior. The aim of the present work was its experimental and numerical investigation. To visualize the geometry of the melt pool in the longitudinal section a butt joint configuration of 15 mm thick structural steel and transparent quartz glass was used. The weld pool shape was recorded by means of a high-speed video camera and two thermal imaging MWIR and VIS cameras. The observations show that the dimensions of the weld pool vary depending on the depth. The regions close to the surface form a teardrop shaped weld pool. A bulge-region and its temporal evolution were observed approximately in the middle of the depth of the weld pool. Additionally, a transient numerical simulation was performed until reaching a steady state to obtain the weld pool shape and to understand the formation mechanism of the observed bulging phenomena. A fixed keyhole with an experimentally obtained shape was used to represent the full-penetration laser beam welding process. The model considers the local temperature field, the effects of phase transition, thermo-capillary convection, natural convection and temperature-dependent material properties up to evaporation temperature. It was found that the Marangoni convection and the movement of the laser heat source are the dominant factors for the formation of the bulging-region. Good correlation between the numerically calculated and the experimentally observed weld bead shapes and the time-temperature curves on the upper and bottom surface were found.
The geometrical characteristics of the weld end crater are commonly used as a means of validating numerical results in welding simulations.
In this paper, an analytical model is developed for calculating the cooling stage of the welding process after the moving energy source is turned off. Solutions for various combinations of heat sources and heated bodies are found. It is shown that after turning off the Energy source, additional melting of the base material in the longitudinal direction may occur due to the overheated liquid metal. The developed technique is applied to complete-penetration keyhole laser beam welding of 2 mm thick austenitic stainless-steel plate 316L at a Welding speed of 20 mm/s and a laser power of 2.3 kW. The results show a theoretical increase in the weld end crater length of up to 19% compared to the length of the steady-state weld pool. It is found that at the moment of switch off, the weld end crater center, where solidification of the liquid metal ends, is shifted from the heat source axis toward the weld pool tail. The solidification rate and the direction of crystallization of the molten material during the welding process and those in the weld end crater differ significantly. A good agreement between the computational results and the welding experiments is achieved.
A novel approach for the reconstruction of an equivalent volumetric heat source from a known weld pool shape is proposed. It is based on previously obtained weld pool geometries from a steady-state thermo-fluid dynamics simulation. Hereby, the weld pool dimensions are obtained under consideration of the most crucial physical phenomena, such as phase transformations, thermo-capillary convection, natural convection, and temperature-dependent material properties. The algorithm provides a time and calibration efficient way for the reproduction of the weld pool shape by local Lamé curves. By adjusting their parameters, the identification of the finite elements located within the weld pool is enabled. The heat input due to the equivalent heat source is assured by replacing the detected nodes’ temperature by the melting temperature. The model offers variable parameters making it flexible and adaptable for a wide range of workpiece thicknesses and materials and allows for the investigation of transient thermal effects, e.g., the cooling stage of the workpiece. The calculation times remain acceptably short especially when compared to a fully coupled process simulation. The computational results are in good agreement with performed complete-penetration laser beam welding experiments.
A numerical framework for simulation of the steady-state thermal behaviour in keyhole mode welding has been developed. It is based on the equivalent heat source concept and consists of two parts: computational thermo-fluid dynamics and heat conduction. The solution of the thermo-fluid dynamics problem by the finite element method for a bounded domain results in a weld pool interface geometry being the input data for a subsequent heat conduction problem solved for a workpiece by a proposed boundary element method. The main physical phenomena, such as keyhole shape, thermo-capillary and natural convection and temperature-dependent material properties are taken into consideration. The developed technique is applied to complete-penetration keyhole laser beam welding of a 15 mm thick low-alloyed steel plate at a welding speed of 33 mm/s and a laser power of 18 kW. The fluid flow of the molten metal has a strong influence on the weld pool geometry. The thermo-capillary convection is responsible for an increase of the weld pool size near the plate surfaces and a bulge formation near the plate middle plane. The numerical and experimental molten pools, cross-sectional weld dimensions and thermal cycles of the heat affected zone are in close agreement.
A technique for calculating the main solidification parameters for a two-dimensional columnar crystal growth during complete penetration laser beam welding of thin steel sheets was developed. Given that the weld pool interface is described by Lamé curves (superellipses) within the horizontal plane of growth, general analytical solutions were derived for the geometry of the crystal axis and the corresponding growth rate and cross-sectional area of the crystal. A dimensionless analysis was performed to provide insights on the dependence of the solidification parameters on the shape and dimensions of the rear part of the weld pool boundary. The derived solutions were applied for the case of complete penetration laser beam keyhole welding of 2 mm thick 316L austenitic chromium-nickel steel sheets. It was shown that the reconstruction of the weld pool boundary with Lamé curves provides higher accuracy and flexibility compared to results obtained with elliptical functions. The validity of the proposed technique and the derived analytical solutions was backed up by a comparison of the obtained solutions to known analytical solutions and experimentally determined shapes and sizes of the crystals on the top surface of the sheet. The dimensions of the calculated crystal axis correlated well with the experimentally obtained results.
Study on the transition behavior of the bulging effect during deep penetration laser beam welding
(2022)
The present work is devoted to the study of the transition behavior of the recently confirmed widening of the weld pool, known as the bulging effect, during high-power deep penetration laser beam welding of thick unalloyed steel sheets. A three-dimensional transient multi-physics numerical model is developed, allowing for the prediction of the bulge formation and the study of its temporal behavior. The model is generalized to account automatically for the transition from partial to complete penetration. Several experimental measurements and observations, such as drilling period, weld pool length, temperature, efficiency, and metallographic cross-sections are used to verify the model and assure the plausibility of the numerical results. The analysis of the calculated temperature and velocity distributions, as well as the evolution of the keyhole geometry, shows that the formation of a bulging region strongly depends on the penetration depth of the weld. Based on the numerical results, the bulge is found to occur transiently, having its transition from a slight bulge to a fully developed bulging between penetration depths of 6 mm and 9 mm, respectively.
The present work is devoted to the numerical analysis of the high-power laser beam welding of thick sheets at different welding speeds. A three-dimensional transient multi-physics numerical model is developed, allowing for the prediction of the keyhole geometry and the final penetration depth. Two ray tracing algorithms are implemented and compared, namely a standard ray tracing approach and an approach using a virtual mesh refinement for a more accurate calculation of the reflection points. Both algorithms are found to provide sufficient accuracy for the prediction of the keyhole depth during laser beam welding with process speeds of up to 1.5 m/min. However, with the standard algorithm, the penetration depth is underestimated by the model for a process speed of 2.5 m/min due to a trapping effect of the laser energy in the top region. In contrast, the virtually refined ray tracing approach results in high accuracy results for process speeds of both 1.5 m/min and 2.5 m/min. A detailed study on the trapping effect is provided, accompanied by a benchmark including a predefined keyhole geometry with typical characteristics for the high-power laser beam welding of thick plates at high process speed, such as deep keyhole, inclined front keyhole wall, and a hump.
The present work deals with the recently confirmed widening of the weld pool interface, known as a bulging effect, and its relevance in high power laser beam welding. A combined experimental and numerical approach is utilized to study the influence of the bulge on the hot cracking formation and the transport of alloying elements in the molten pool. A technique using a quartz glass, a direct-diode laser illumination, a high-speed camera, and an infrared camera is applied to visualize the weld pool geometry in the longitudinal section. The study examines the relevance of the bulging effect on both, partial and complete penetration, as well as for different sheet thicknesses ranging from 8 mm to 25 mm. The numerical analysis shows that the formation of a bulge region is highly dependent on the penetration depth and occurs more frequently during partial penetration above 6 mm and complete penetration above 8 mm penetration depth, respectively. The location of the bulge correlates strongly with the cracking location. The obtained experimental and numerical results reveal that the bulging effect increases the hot cracking susceptibility and limits the transfer of alloying elements from the top of the weld pool to the weld root.
The amount of absorbed energy in the keyhole as well as its spatial and temporal distribution is essential to model the laser beam welding process. The recoil pressure, which develops because of the evaporation process induced by the absorbed laser energy at the keyhole wall, is a key determining factor for the macroscopic flow of the molten metal in the weld pool during high-power laser beam welding. Consequently, a realistic implementation of the effect of laser radiation on the weld metal is crucial to obtain reliable and accurate simulation results. In this paper, we discuss manyfold different improvements on the laser-material interaction, namely, the ray tracing method, in the numerical simulation of the laser beam welding process. The first improvement relates to locating the exact reflection points in the ray tracing method using a so-called cosine condition in the determination algorithm for the intersection of reflected rays and the keyhole surface. A second correction refers to the numerical treatment of the Gaussian distribution of the laser beam, whose beam width is defined by a decay of the laser intensity by a factor of 1/e2, thus ignoring around 14% of the total laser beam energy. In the third step, the changes in the laser radiation distribution in the vertical direction were adapted by using different approximations for the converging and the diverging regions of the laser beam, thus mimicking the beam caustic. Finally, a virtual mesh refinement was adopted in the ray tracing routine. The obtained numerical results were validated with experimental measurements.
Herein, an improved ray-tracing routine using a virtual mesh refinement approach is adopted in a 3D transientmultiphysics computational fluid Dynamics model for deep penetration wire feed laser beam welding. In a previous study, it was shown that the improved localization of the reflection points of the subrays within the keyhole leads to a more realistic development of the keyhole Depth being validated with experimental results. Another effect investigated in Detail herein is a drastic change in the flow behavior in the weld pool, which promotes the occurrence of a necking area in the solidification line and subsequent bulging under specific circumstances. This has a detrimental effect on the filler material element transport in the weld pool, leading to an inhomogeneous dilution of the added material. The numerical observations are backed up by experimentally obtained data, allowing to provide a clear physics-based explanation of the reduced mixing behavior of the filler wire in the melt pool.
This study presents mechanisms of the evolution of a narrowed region in the weld pool center during deep penetration laser beam welding. In numerous numerical studies presented in this study, it was also found that the local reduction of the weld pool size can cause detrimental effects on the melt flow behavior and the resulting properties of the welds. A particularly large influence of this effect was identified in three aspects. First, the local variation of the solidification sequence of the weld pool causes an increase in the hot-cracking susceptibility due to a locally delayed solidification. Second, it was proven that a change in the local length and width of the weld pool is associated with an adverse impact on the potential flow routes of the molten material that induces stronger local variations of its solidification. Thus, the element mixing, e.g., during the welding with filler materials, is blocked. This leads to a non-homogeneous chemical composition of the final weld and can cause undesired effects on the final material properties. Finally, another observed effect is related to the reduced ability of process pores to reach the top surface. As this type of porosity is usually produced around the keyhole tip, the change of the fluid flow regime above this area plays a significant role in determining the final path of the pores until the premature solidification in the middle of the weld pool captures them. This study summarizes mainly numerical results that were supported by selected experimental validation results.
A steel pipeline segment of 2.5 m length was subjected to quasi-static four-point bending load in three steps for studying the initial cracking and damage accumulation based on the Acoustic Emission (AE) technique and by the direct current potential drop (DCPD) technique. For the latter, a new post-test analysis method was established.
AE is found more sensitive to crack initiation than DCPD. Formation of mesoscopic and macroscopic cracks as well as their closure and the resulting friction generate weighted peak frequencies below 400 kHz, whereas microscopic cracking produces AE with broad band spectra identifiable by weighted peak frequencies above 400 kHz. Critical states alike the maximum load level and the leak opening were accompanied by peak amplitudes above 85 dBAE. This rather fundamental study provides a data base for possibly developing advanced strategies of detection and alarm systems based on acoustic monitoring of pipelines, or at least, steel structures.
Ferritic spheroidal graphite cast iron (SGI) materials have a remarkable technical poten-tial and economic impact in modern industry. These features are closely related to the question of how the cast materials can be produced without structural defects and graphite degenerations such as for example chunky graphite. Although the chunky graphite degeneration superficially seems to be well known, its metallurgical background is still controversially discussed, appropriate field-tested non-destructive tools for its quantification in castings are lacking and the knowledge on its impact on material properties is fairly limited. Addressing this status, the article is providing a current overview on the subject. Existing theories on formation and growth mechanisms of chunky graphite are briefly reviewed. Furthermore, from a metallurgical point of view, causes for the appearance of chunky graphite as well as preventive measures are concisely summarized. Particular attention is paid to the morphology of chunky graphite and how it can be characterized by destructive and non-destructive techniques. Special emphasis was laid on providing a comprehensive overview on the impact of chunky graphite on strength, ductility, fatigue limit, fatigue crack growth rate as well as fracture tough-ness of ferritic SGI materials based on experimental data. Moreover, conclusions for the assessment of castings affected by chunky graphite are drawn.
This paper is focused on the approximation of absorbed Charpy impact energy-temperature curves (KV-T) and the management of sub-size test piece results in Charpy pendulum impact tests. Both subjects are frequently underestimated but may have a strong impact on the assessment of product quality and structural integrity. The status of related test standards, product standards, structural integrity assessment procedures and corresponding research is reviewed.
It is concluded that the state of regulation is partly insufficient and wrong. There is a wide gap between the state of knowledge in the field of materials testing and the requirements of product standards and structural integrity assessment procedures. The present paper aims at boosting and supporting the necessary discussion among the parties involved to raise the level of technical safety. Correspondingly, a large experimental database was created by Charpy impact testing of popular modern structural Steels with nominal yield strength from 235 MPa to 960 MPa. KV-T data were generated using test pieces with thicknesses between 2.5 mm and 10 mm. Different strategies for KV-T curve fitting, definition of transition temperatures, as well as upper and lower shelf energy levels were followed, and different scaling procedures were applied to the sub-size test piece results. The results show that proportional scaling of sub-size to full-size test piece results in terms of KV should be disallowed because it is a wrong approach.
Regulations still incorporating such procedures should be revised as soon as possible. Existing nonproportional scaling and conversion procedures were applied. The results obtained illustrate that neither an overall nor consistent conservatism nor an adequate conservatism level can be achieved. In summary, the standardizing bodies should enforce the discussion to revise relevant test standards considering more precise specifications on Charpy data fitting. Furthermore, proposals are made for an improved management of sub-size test piece results.
One of the main factors affecting the use of lasers in the industry for welding thick structures is the process accompanying solidification cracks. These cracks mostly occurring along the welding direction in the welding center, and strongly affect the safety of the welded components. In the present study, to obtain a better understanding of the relation between the weld pool geometry, the stress distribution and the solidification cracking, a three-dimensional computational fluid dynamic (CFD) model was combined with a thermo-mechanical model. The CFD model was employed to analyze the flow of the molten metal in the weld pool during the laser beam welding process. The weld pool geometry estimated from the CFD model was used as a heat source in the thermal model to calculate the temperature field and the stress development and distributions. The CFD results showed a bulging region in the middle depth of the weld and two narrowing areas separating the bulging region from the top and bottom surface. The thermo-mechanical simulations showed a concentration of tension stresses, transversally and vertically, directly after the solidification during cooling in the region of the solidification cracking.
In recent years, laser beam welding has found wide applications in many industrial fields. Solidification cracks are one of the most frequently encountered welding defects that hinder obtaining a safe weld joint. Decades of research have shown that one of the main causes of such cracks are the strain and the strain rate. Obtaining meaningful measurements of these strains has always been a major challenge for scientists, because of the specific environment of the measurement range and the many obstacles, as well as the high temperature and the plasma plume. In this study, a special experimental setup with a high-speed camera was employed to measure the strain during the welding process. The hot cracking susceptibility was investigated for 1.4301 stainless steel, and the critical strain required for solidification crack formation was locally and globally determined.
Using a novel optical measurement technique together with the optical flow algorithm, a two-dimensional deformation analysis during welding was conducted. The presented technique is the first to provide a measurement of the full strain field locally in the immediate vicinity of the solidification front.
Additionally, the described procedure of the optical measurement allows the real material-dependent values of critical strain and strain rate characterizing the transition to hot cracking during laser welding processes to be determined. Furthermore, the above-mentioned technique is independet on the welding process, which means, it can be also used for arc welding processes. Dependency between the external strain rate and the critical local strain and strain rate has been observed. That is to say, the critical local strain and strain rate is increased with an increase of the strain rate.Moreover, this technique allows automatic identification of the cases that can be critical for the solidification crack formation by monitoring the state of strain on the crack-sensitive region within the mushy zone.
In this study, the influence of the welding speed, the arc power, and the laser focal position on the solidification crack formation for partial penetration laser hybrid–welded thick-walled plates was investigated.
The solidification cracking in the weld root is a result of interaction between metallurgical and geometrical and thermomechanical factors.
Experimentally, a direct correlation between the welding speed and the crack number was observed. That is by reducing the welding velocity, the crack number was decreased. The focal position shows also a significant influence on the crack number. By focusing the laser on the specimen surface, the crack number has been significantly diminished.
The wire feed speed showed a very slight influence on the crack formation. That is due to the large distance between the critical region for cracking and the arc region.
The numerical model shows a high stress concentration in the weld root for both components (vertical and transversal).
Numerically, the reduced welding speed showed a strong impact on stress, as the model demonstrated a lower stress amount by decreasing the welding speed.
The metallurgical factors, such as the assumed accumulation of the low-melting eutectics in the weld root, should be a contribution for solidification cracking, where the tensile stress is acting.
Determination of residual stress evolution during repair welding of high-strength steel components
(2022)
During the assembly of steel structures, unacceptable weld defects may be found. An economical solution is local thermal gouging of the affected areas and re-welding. Due to high shrinkage restraints of repair weld and sur- rounding structure, high global and local welding stresses superimpose, and may lead to cracking and component failure, especially in connection with the degraded microstructure and mechanical properties of high-strength steels during the repair process. Component-related investigations of high-strength steels (FOSTA P1311/ IGF20162N) focus on welding residual stress evolution during local thermal gouging and rewelding. In this study, repair welding of S500MLO (EN 10225) is carried out using in-situ digital image correlation (DIC) and ex- situ X-ray diffraction (XRD) to analyse strains and stresses. Self-restrained slit specimen geometries were identified representing defined rigidity conditions of repair welds of real components, which were quantified using the restraint intensity concept. The specimens were rewelded with constant welding heat control and parameters. Weld specimens exhibited significantly increased transverse residual stresses with higher transverse restraint intensities, in the weld metal, and in the heat affected zone. Transverse stresses along the weld seam decrease at the weld seam ends leading to different stress state during gouging and welding. XRD analysis of the longitudinal and transverse local residual stresses after cooling to RT showed a good comparability with global DIC analyses.
The role of defects in the fatigue strength of Wire Arc Additively Manufactured (WAAMed) Ti-6Al-4V is analysed by means of the IBESS model, a fracture mechanics short crack growth approach based on the cyclic R-curve. Pores and crack-like defects are analysed. Estimations of the role of pore shape and size agree well with published fatigue data of WAAM Ti-6Al-4V with pores. The model is also used to explain the effect of fabrication defects on the scatter of experimental data. This demonstrates that short crack growth models represent a suitable engineering tool for the fatigue assessment of defective AM materials.
This paper presents the application of short crack propagation models based on the cyclic R-curve for assessing the fatigue strength of additively manufactured (AM) materials containing fabrication defects. Chapetti’s and IBESS models were implemented in combination with Murakami’s √area parameter, considering recently published data on laser powder bed fusion processed AISI 316L stainless steels. Estimated S-N curves and Kitagawa-Takahashi diagrams predict fairly well the experimental data, especially the origin of the failure from internal or surface defects. These results provide an indication that the methods based on the cyclic R-curve constitute suitable tools for fatigue behavior assessment of AM materials.
Components distort during directed energy deposition (DED) additive manufacturing (AM) due to the repeated localised heating. Changing the geometry in such a way that distortion causes it to assume the desired shape – a technique called distortion-compensation – is a promising method to reach geometrically accurate parts. Transient numerical simulation can be used to generate the compensated geometries and severely reduce the amount of necessary experimental trials. This publication demonstrates the simulation-based generation of a distortioncompensated DED build for an industrial-scale component. A transient thermo-mechanical approach is extended for large parts and the accuracy is demonstrated against 3d-scans. The calculated distortions are inverted to derive the compensated geometry and the distortions after a single compensation iteration are reduced by over 65%.
Distortions in Additive Manufacturing (AM) Laser Metal Deposition (LMD) occur in the newly-built component due to rapid heating and solidification and can lead to shape deviations and cracking. This paper presents a novel approach to quantify the distortions experimentally and to use the results in numerical simulation validation. Digital Image Correlation (DIC) is applied together with optical filters to measure in-situ distortions directly on a wall geometry produced with LMD. The wall shows cyclic Expansion and shrinking with the edges bending inward and the top of the sample exhibiting a slight u-shape as residual distortions. Subsequently, a structural Finite Element Analysis (FEA) of the experiment is established, calibrated against experimental temperature profiles and used to predict the in-situ distortions of the sample. A comparison of the experimental and numerical results reveals a good agreement in length direction of the sample and quantitative deviations in height direction, which are attributed to the material model used. The suitability of the novel experimental approach for measurements on an AM sample is shown and the potential for the validated numerical model as a predictive tool to reduce trial-and-error and improve part quality is evaluated.
In additive manufacturing (AM) directed energy deposition (DED), parts are built by welding layers of powder or wire feedstock onto a substrate with applications for steel powders in the fields of forging tools, spare parts, and structural components for various industries. For large and bulky parts, the choice of toolpaths influences the build rate, the mechanical performance, and the distortions in a highly geometry-dependent manner. With weld-path lengths in the range of hundreds of meters, a reliable, automated tool-path generation is essential for the usability of DED processes. This contribution presents automated tool-path generation approaches and discusses the results for arbitrary geometries. Socalled “zig-zag” and “contour-parallel” processing strategies are investigated and the tool-paths are automatically formatted into machine-readable g-code for experimental validation to build sample geometries. The results are discussed in regard to volume-fill, microstructure, and porosity in dependence of the path planning according to photographs and metallographic cross-sections.
With the recent rise in the demand for additive manufacturing (AM), the need for reliable simulation tools to support experimental efforts grows steadily. Computational welding mechanics approaches can simulate the AM processes but are generally not validated for AM-specific effects originating from multiple heating and cooling cycles. To increase confidence in the outcomes and to use numerical simulation reliably, the result quality Needs to be validated against experiments for in-situ and post-process cases. In this article, a validation is demonstrated
for a structural thermomechanical simulation model on an arbitrarily curved Directed Energy Deposition (DED)part: at first, the validity of the heat input is ensured and subsequently, the model’s predictive quality for in-situ
deformation and the bulging behaviour is investigated. For the in-situ deformations, 3D-Digital Image Correlation measurements are conducted that quantify periodic expansion and shrinkage as they occur. The results show a strong dependency of the local stiffness of the surrounding geometry. The numerical Simulation model is set up in accordance with the experiment and can reproduce the measured 3-dimensional in-situ displacements. Furthermore, the deformations due to removal from the substrate are quantified via 3D-scanning, exhibiting considerable distortions due to stress relaxation. Finally, the prediction of the deformed shape is discussed in regards to bulging simulation: to improve the accuracy of the calculated final shape, a novel Extension of the model relying on the modified stiffness of inactive upper layers is proposed and the experimentally observed bulging could be reproduced in the finite element model.
A phenomenological approach is proposed to describe and predict the random behaviour of the total strain in plain and fiber concrete under compressive fatigue loading. Twofold viewpoints are considered in the assessment of the fatigue damage process. The first one, acknowledged as the stochastic cumulative damage evolution in terms of the number of applied cycles is represented by a sample function, physically identified with the total specimen strain caused by matrix microcracking. The second one is ascribed to the intrinsic scatter of the total lifetime referred to as the prefixed ultimate fatigue strain limit state (not necessarily failure). The sample function, once normalized to the total fatigue lifetime, is identified as a cumulative distribution function (cdf) of the generalized extreme value (GEV) family, particularly as Weibull distribution. Besides the reliable probabilistic lifetime prediction for the material under compressive fatigue, the approach allows fatigue tests to be prematurely interrupted while the remaining evolution of the ε-N curve up to failure is fully restored from the fragment recorded. In this way, a remarkable time and cost reduction of the experimental program is achieved without detriment of data reliability.
Determination of fatigue crack growth in the near-threshold regime using small-scale specimens
(2022)
A complete description of the experimental procedure for characterizing the intrinsic fatigue crack propagation threshold (ΔKth,eff) as well as the fatigue crack growth rate (FCGR) in the near-threshold regime using small-scale specimens is presented. A comparative study is carried out on the high strength steel S960QL considering different single edge notch bend (SENB) specimen geometries. On one hand, the reference dimensions of 6 mm thickness (B) and 19 mm width (W) are analysed and referred to as conventional specimens. On the other hand, small-scale specimens with B = 3 mm and W = 4 and 6 mm are also considered. Several loading configurations (3-, 4- and 8-point bending) are used and a load ratio R = 0.8 is applied to avoid crack closure effects. The direct current potential drop (DCPD) technique is used to monitor the crack length. The reduced dimensions of the small-scale specimens imply the necessity of implementing a modified testing procedure compared to the recommendations of current standards for the generation of FCGR data. The results show a good agreement between tests conducted on different specimen sizes, which opens new perspectives in the use of small-scale specimens for characterizing the fatigue crack growth properties in metallic materials. Recommendations and limitations of the procedure are provided and discussed.
Laser texturing is an emerging technology for generating surface functionalities on basis of optical, mechanical, or chemical properties. Taking benefit of laser sources with ultrashort (fs) pulse durations features outstanding precision of machining and negligible rims or burrs surrounding the laser-irradiation zone. Consequently, additional mechanical or chemical post-processing steps are usually not required for fs-laser surface texturing (fs-LST). This work aimed to provide a bridge between research in the field of tribology and laser materials processing. The paper reviews the current state-of-the-art in fs-LST, with a focus on the tribological performance (friction and wear) of specific self-organized surface structures (so-called ripples, grooves, and spikes) on steel and titanium alloys. On the titanium alloy, specific sickle-shaped hybrid micro-nanostructures were also observed and tribologically tested. Care is taken to identify accompanying effects affecting the materials hardness, superficial oxidation, nano- and microscale topographies, and the role of additives contained in lubricants, such as commercial engine oil.
Plasma-Transferred-Arc (PTA) welding is a process that enables high deposition rates, but also causes increased thermal load on the component. Laser metal deposition (LMD) welding, on the other hand, reaches a high level of precision and thus achieves comparatively low deposition rates, which can lead to high processing costs. Combining laser and arc energy aims to exploit the respective advantages of both technologies. In this study, a novel approach of this process combination is presented using a PTA system and a 2 kW disk laser. The energy sources are combined in a common process zone as a high-speed plasma laser cladding technology (HPLC), which achieves process speeds of 10 m/min at deposition rates of 6.6 kg/h and an energy per unit length of 39 J/mm.
This work explores the feasibility of producing bead-on-plate welds of a CrCoNi medium entropy alloy and a CrMnFeCoNi high entropy alloy using electron beam welding. The alloys were welded in two states: one in an as-cold-rolled condition and the other in an annealed condition. In addition, the materials are welded with two different parameters. The FCC microstructure of the welds is investigated using scanning electron microscopy assisted by energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy and electron-backscattered diffraction. The impact of the weld on the microstructure is discussed. The heat-affected zone is negligible for the annealed condition of both medium and high entropy alloys since there is no driving force for recrystallisation and the exposure time to high temperature is insufficient for grain coarsening. The texture formed in the fusion zone is also discussed and compared to the texture in the base metal and the heat-affected zone. Although the grain growth along the (100) crystallographic direction is preferential in all cases, the crystallographic texture type differs from each weld. Higher hardness values are measured in the medium entropy alloy’s base metal and fusion zone than in the high entropy alloy.
This work investigates the microstructure formed in friction stir welds of FCC alloys, focused on two multiprincipal alloys: a CoCrFeMnNi high-entropy alloy (HEA) and a CoCrNi medium-entropy alloy (MEA). A commercial stainless steel AISI 304 is used for comparison. The largest nugget was formed in the MEA, while the smallest was formed in the HEA. Grain refinement occurs in the stirred zone in all welds. Discontinuous dynamic recrystallisation is the predominant restoration mechanism during friction stir welding of the three investigated alloys. A sharp decrement in the Σ3 boundary fraction occurs in the stirred zone of the AISI 304 and HEA welds, while comparable values with the base metal are found for the MEA weld. The peak in the maximum index of crystallographic texture is observed on the advancing side of the stirred zone of the AISI 304 weld. A strong <001> θ-fibre texture is formed in the advancing side of the nugget in the AISI 304 from a well-established {123} <634> S-type texture in the base metal. Multiple crystallographic texture components without specific fibres are identified in most regions of the welds, indicating the complex shear path history during friction stir welding.
Advanced high strength steels are usually coated by a zinc layer for an increased resistance against corrosion. During the resistance spot welding of zinc coated steel grades, liquid metal embrittlement (LME)mayoccur. As a result, cracking inside and around the spot weld indentation is observable. The extent of LME cracks is influenced by a variety of different factors. In this study, the impact of the used electrode geometry is investigated over a stepwise varied weld time.
A spot welding finite element simulation is used to analyse and explain the observed effects. Results show significant differences especially for highly increased weld times. Based on identical overall dimensions, electrode geometries with a larger working plane allow for longer weld times, while still preventing LME within the investigated material and maintaining accessibility.
Liquid metal embrittlement (LME) cracking can occur during resistance spot welding (RSW) in zinc-coated advanced high-strength steels (AHSS) for automotive production. In this study, a methodological variation of hold time is performed to investigate the process-related crack influence factors. A combination of numerical and experimental investigations confirms, that the extent of heat dissipation and re-heating of the sheet surface can be influenced and thus the degree of crack formation can be controlled in a targeted manner by the parameterisation of the hold time. The temperature and stress history of crack-free and crack-afflicted spot welds are analysed and a conclusion on the borders defining the LME active region is derived.
Due to the increasing global demand for pure silver, native wire silver aggregates in very high purities are gaining more industrial attention. Up to the present, no substantial metallurgical Investigation of natural wire silver exists in the accessible literature. To convey urgently needed cross-disciplinary fundamental knowledge for geoscientists and metallurgical engineers, twenty natural wire silver specimens from eight different ore deposits have been investigated in detail for the first time by EBSD (Electron Back Scattering Diffraction), supported by light microscopy and micro-probe analyses. The improved understanding of the natural silver wire microstructure provides additional Information regarding the growth of natural silver aggregates in comparison to undesired artificial growth on electronic devices. Clear evidence is provided that natural silver curls and hairs exhibit a polycrystalline face-centered cubic microstructure associated with significant twinning. Although the investigated natural wire silver samples have relatively high purity (Ag > 99.7 wt.-%), they contain a variety of trace elements such as, S, Cu, Mn, Ni, Zn, Co and Bi, As and Sb. Additionally, Vickers micro-hardness measurements are provided for the first time which revealed that natural silver wires and curls are softer than it might be expected from conversion of the general Mohs hardness of 2.7.
Aircraft main landing gear (MLG) components are commonly manufactured from low-alloyed, martensitic, ultra-high strength steels (UHSS) that have to be coated for corrosion protection, representing an expensive and environmentally harmful production step. To avoid already partly banned corrosion protection plating, the new high-alloyed UHSS, Ferrium S53 (UNS S10500), has been designed to replace lowalloyed legacy materials and has been subjected to a limited field test over five years. As with the legacy alloys, UNS S10500 has a fully hardened martensitic microstructure known to be susceptible to hydrogen assisted cracking, per se. Containing about 10 wt% Cr, steels such as S10500 are at the lower limit for corrosion resistant alloys. Similar to super-martensitic stainless steels used in the oil and gas industry, a common failure sequence in marine environments represents pitting and subsequent hydrogen assisted stress corrosion cracking (HASCC). For addressing such phenomena quantitively, as required for respective lifetime assessments of MLG components and systems, the tolerance of such materials dependent on the absorbed hydrogen concentration must be evaluated quantitatively. However, there is a lack of such valuable materials data, as well as of the fractographic behavior dependent on the hydrogen concentration that might be absorbed during HASCC. To provide an improved understanding of the hydrogen dependent mechanical and fractographic behavior, samples of the legacy AISI 4340 and the new S10500 MLG steels have electrochemically been hydrogen-saturated and subjected to tensile testing. In contrast to a previous study, this contribution for the first time focuses on materials that have been salvaged from real service used landing gear components. In this study, it has been demonstrated that the service-applied S10500 steel has not only a higher strength, but also an improved ductility in comparison to the legacy AISI 4340 steel after similar service durations that provides a higher tolerance against hydrogen concentrations that might be absorbed during potential pitting and HASCC in marine environments. In addition, it has been found that the absorbed hydrogen concentration significantly affects the fracture behavior. Interestingly, hardening of the hydrogen charged low-alloyed AISI 4340 steel changes the fracture topography from trans- toward intergranular, while hardening of the S10500 steel turned the fracture topography from inter- to transgranular at respectively high hydrogen concentrations.
The Tsumeb Mine in Namibia represents one of the best-preserved mining sites in the world and is rapidly gaining cross-disciplinary interest among cultural and engineering scientists. Most of the open pit and the shaft mining equipment are still in place, including the ore processing units and the local power plant. The mining area thus deserves recognition as an industrial world heritage site, especially due to the rarity of such locations on the African continent. The Shaft #1 headgear, built in 1924, represents one of the oldest known riveted steel headgears of the Promnitz design worldwide. In contrast to similar steel structures located in the northern hemisphere, it has been exposed to a different rural semi-arid climate since it is located in the Otavi Mountain Land, characterized by semi-annual change of rainy and dry seasons. Parts of the Shaft #1 headgear have remained largely untouched for more than 70 years. Besides its outstanding heritage value, it thus also represents an interesting object for studying the composition of corrosion layers formed on mild steel surfaces when exposed to continental and industrial mining atmospheres. To find a suitable transparent corrosion prevention coating, various on-site coating samples were evaluated after 11 months of outdoor exposure, including Owatrol Oil®, which is based on natural oil and alkyd resin with strong wicking potential. The substance is frequently applied for the conservation of single components but is not yet widely used on large steel structures in the field of industrial heritage conservation. However, it represented the most stable anti-corrosion coating under the local atmospheric conditions in the on-site tests. Thus, the suitability of Owatrol Oil® as a transparent coating for corrosion protection of riveted mild steel structures in such climates was further investigated as a more recent approach for the conservation of large steel structures. Since the protective coatings are exposed to strong UV radiation in the local climate, the addition of a specific UV stabilizer mixture was also tested. For such laboratory tests, two mild steel samples were taken. The first one originated from a diagonal strut of the 1920s and the second one from a handrail mounted in the early 1960s. Using corresponding high-resolution scanning electron microscopy (HR-SEM) and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) it was found that the corrosion layers are predominantly composed of lepidocrocite and goethite. A weathering program simulating the specific environmental conditions at Tsumeb in a UV climate chamber was developed and the corrosion resistance of the mild steel surface was subsequently evaluated by potentiodynamic measurements. Such tests proved to be a fast and reliable procedure for ranking the corrosion resistance of the old mild steels. It was found that the long-term corrosion layers already provide significant protection against further corrosion in the simulated environment. However, the study also showed that this can be further improved by the application of the Owatrol Oil® as a protective coating that also seals crevices. The addition of the UV stabilizers, however, led to a significant deterioration in corrosion protection, even in comparison to that of the uncoated long-term corrosion layers on the surface. Regular overcoating seems more advisable for the long-term preservation of the Shaft #1 headgear than modifying the Owatrol Oil® Coating with the tested UV-stabilizing additives.
Wear test results exhibit often large scattering. Hence, the study of spreading of experimental results requires big datasets.
In various studies, wear coefficients were found to have lognormal distributions. Therefore, it was supposed that the wear coefficient is affected by two normally distributed variables, which combine through a product.
In the present study, we demonstrate that a lognormal distribution may arise from a nonconstant wear coefficient, too, i.e., when a system does not follow Archard’s law.
The concept behind this Research Topic (RT) was to collect works, in which Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) techniques are employed to study tribological phenomena and to push the resolution of measurements towards single asperity contact. Thanks to the direct determination of sample height with sub-nanometer resolution and the possibility of measuring local friction, AFM can be employed after a tribotest to detect topography and friction changes at the nanometer scale. Recently, efforts are being expended to use AFM cantilevers as tribometers, i.e., as probes altering the volume of suitable samples, thereby measuring tip and/or sample wear and friction at the nano/microscale. Thus, single asperity contact, friction, and wear can be investigated. Since friction and wear at the macroscale are the result of asperities interactions, such experiments are of great importance for better understanding of tribological processes.
The underlying cause of mechanical anisotropy in additively manufactured (AM) parts is not yet fully understood and has been attributed to several different factors like microstructural defects, residual stresses, melt pool boundaries, crystallographic and morphological textures. To better understand the main contributing factor to the mechanical anisotropy of AM stainless steel 316L, bulk specimens were fabricated via laser powder bed fusion (LPBF). Tensile specimens were machined from these AM bulk materials for three different inclinations: 0◦, 45◦, and 90◦ relative to the build plate. Dynamic Young’s modulus measurements and tensile tests were used to determine the mechanical anisotropy. Some tensile specimens were also subjected to residual stress measurement via neutron diffraction, porosity determination with X-ray micro-computed tomography (μCT), and texture analysis with electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD). These investigations revealed that the specimens exhibited near full density and the detected defects were spherical. Furthermore, the residual stresses in the loading direction were between −74 ± 24 MPa and 137 ± 20 MPa, and the EBSD measurements showed a preferential ⟨110⟩ orientation parallel to the build direction. A crystal plasticity model was used to analyze the elastic anisotropy and the anisotropic yield behavior of the AM specimens, and it was able to capture and predict the experimental behavior accurately. Overall, it was shown that the mechanical anisotropy of the tested specimens was mainly influenced by the crystallographic texture.
Heat accumulation during laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) of metallic build parts can adversely affect their microstructure and mechanical properties. To study the heat accumulation during 316L steel based parts manufactured by LPBF, a finite element method (FEM) based numerical study is carried out. For the investigation, a computationally efficient FEM based model, where the whole layer is simultaneously exposed to a heat source, is used. The simulation results are compared with experimental results to validate the numerical model. While considering different influencing factors such as volumetric energy density (VED) and inter-layer time (ILT), the FEM model is shown to successfully simulate the process of heat accumulation during LPBF based manufacturing of a cuboidal shaped geometry. It is shown that ILT and VED have a significant effect on heat accumulation. The validated numerical model provides a good basis for the optimization of processing parameters and geometries for a future investigation of a reduction of heat accumulation effects. Furthermore, it can be used to quickly provide preheating boundary conditions for detailed investigations by different model approaches at a finer scale for future studies.
The present contribution is the first research reporting full penetration HLAW joints in 15 mm thick EH36 steel butt T-welds with square grooves on 2F welding position by single-sided welding. The effects of welding parameters were investigated to increase the quality of the joints.
Conditions leading to defect-free full penetration welds fulfilling naval regulations includes a laser power of 12.5 kW, a welding speed of 1.6 m/min and the vertical laser offset distance from the flange of 1 mm. Advanced characterization of selected welds included a microstructural identification by optical microscopy, SEM, and XRD, revealing the presence of acicular, polygonal and Widmanstätten ferrite, lath martensite, and some retained austenite at FZ. Hardness and microhardness mapping tests showed values of 155 HV at base metal and 200 to 380 HV at the fusion zone connecting the web to the flange.
the joints throughout the structure. The flat units are constituted by butt welded flat plates, on which longitudinal T-welded reinforcements are placed to rigidize the structure. Among the different welding technologies, Hybrid Laser Arc Welding (HLAW) is becoming a mature process, profitable and highly productive. In addition, more innovative welding equipment are being developed nowadays, offering greater work flexibility, and raising expectations of achieving better quality, and economic viability. Another key point of HLAW to keep in mind is that structural distortions are reduced, resulting in decreasing the cost and time of straightening work.
In the present contribution, the influence of HLAW parameters on the quality of fillet joints of naval steel has been analysed. Experimental HLAW tests were performed with a high power disk laser to join EH36 naval steel plates, with a T configuration. The influence of different processing parameters has been analysed, as the laser power, welding speed, wire feed rate and the configuration of the HLAW processes (including head angle and laser/arc leading process). In addition, FEM simulations were carried out in order to estimate residual stresses and distortion of welded part. The distortion values provided by FEM presented excellent agreement with the measured experimental results. To evaluate the welds, non destructive tests including X-ray tests, metallographic analysis of cross sections, and microhardness mapping tests were performed.
Full penetration 8 mm T welds were obtained for the first time at an industrially applicable 2F position with a reasonable HLAW head angle, in one single step without sealing root, and using zero gap square groove Edge preparation. The present contribution presents welding rates up to 2.2 m/min for 2F T-joints of this steel thickness, a much higher processing velocity than previously reported for industrial applications.
Creep-resistant steels such as the 13CrMoV9-10, used in the construction of thick-walled pressure vessels, are most commonly submerged arc welded (SAW). These steels can develop stress relief cracks (SRC) if the mandatory post weld heat treatment (PWHT) is performed improperly. Current PWHT parameters, such as heating rate and holding time at a specific holding temperature, are based on both empirical experience and conventional free shrinking welding experiments to characterize the SRC-susceptibility of the weld. These cannot adequately depict the higher residual stresses caused by the structurally induced stiffness of the surrounding construction. This study discusses the development of a repeatable, precise, and time-efficient methodology to study the effects of different stress levels and heating rates on the SRC susceptibility of the coarse grain heat-affected zone (CGHAZ). For that purpose, samples were thermically treated to simulate a coarse grain heat-affected zone (CGHAZ) and subsequently exposed to representative levels of stress during the heating phase of a PWHT. The recorded stress and heating rate–dependent strains were mathematically analyzed via curve tracing/calculus to identify interdependent effects. This procedure facilitates the measurement of material characteristics such as carbide growth on grain boundaries at the µm-scale via an integrated value over the entire sample volume. The first and second derivatives show a slight, precipitate-dependent, increase in hardness of the sample, depending on the heating rate and applied stress. This new methodology generates an improved assessment of the SRC susceptibility of SAW microstructures of creep-resistant CrMoV steels.
Multi-Principal-Element or High-Entropy Alloys (MPEAs/HEAs) have gained increasing interest in the past two decades largely due to their outstanding properties such as superior mechanical strength and corrosion resistance. However, research studies on their processability are still scarce. This work assesses the effect of different machining conditions on the machinability of these novel alloys, with the objective of advancing the introduction of MPEA systems into industrial applications. The present study focuses on the experimental analysis of finish-milling conditions and their effects on the milling process and resulting surface finish of CoCrFeNi, Al0.3CoCrFeNi and Al0.3CoCrFeNiMo0.2 alloys fabricated via Spark Plasma Sintering. Ball-nose-end milling experiments have been carried out various milling parameters such as cutting speed, feed per cutting edge, and ultrasonic assistance. In situ measurements of cutting forces and temperature on the tool edge were performed during the experiments, and surface finish and tool wear were analyzed afterwards. The results exhibited decreasing cutting forces by means of low feed per cutting edge and reduced process temperatures at low cutting speed, with the use of ultrasonic-assisted milling. It was shown that the machinability of these modern alloys through conventional, as well as modern machining methods such as ultrasonic-assisted milling, is viable, and common theories in machining can be transferred to these novel MPEAs.
Compared to conventional welding consumables using low transformation temperature (LTT) filler materials is an innovative method to mitigate tensile residual stresses due to delayed martensite transformation of the weld. For the effective usage of LTT filler materials, a deeper understanding of the complex processes that lead to the final residual stress state during multipass welding is necessary. Transformation kinetics and the strain evolution of multi-pass welds during welding were investigated in situ at the beamline HEMS@PETRAIII, Germany. Compared to conventional welds, the total strain was reduced and compression strain was achieved when using LTT filler materials. For an optimal use of the LTT effect in the root of multi-pass welds, the alloying concept must be adapted taking care of dilution.
State-of-the-art laser powder bed fusion (PBF-LB/M) machines allow pre-heating of the substrate plate to reduce stress and improve part quality. However, two major issues have been shown in the past: First, with increasing build height the apparent pre-heat temperature at the surface can deviate drastically from the nominal pre-heat temperature in the substrate plate. Second, even within a single layer the local surface pre-heat temperature can show large gradients due to thermal bottlenecks in the part geometry underneath the top surface. Both lead to unwanted changes in microstructure or defects in the final parts. In this study, a first attempt is taken to show the feasibility of pre-heating the top surface with the onboard laser beam to overcome the mentioned issues. A single layer of a group of three parts built from IN718 to a height of 33.5 mm is pre-heated in a commercially available PBF-LB/M machine to an average steady state surface temperature of 200 °C using the onboard laser beam. The parts are continuously heated, omitting powder deposition and melting step. Temperatures are measured by thermocouples underneath the surface. The experiments are supported by a thermal finite element (FE) model that predicts the temperature field in the parts. When heating the parts uniformly with the laser beam, differences in surface temperatures as large as 170 K are observed. To overcome this inhomogeneity, the heat flux supplied by the laser beam is modulated. An optimized, spatial heat flow distribution is provided by the thermal FE model and translated into a scan pattern that reproduces the optimized heat distribution on the PBF-LB/M machine by locally modulating hatch distance and scan velocity. This successfully reduces the differences in surface temperature to 20 K. Thermographic imaging shows that a homogeneous surface temperature can be achieved despite the localized heat input by the beam. The potential for industrial application of the optimized laser-heating technique is discussed.
Metals that are exposed to high pressure hydrogen gas may undergo detrimental failure by embrittlement. Understanding the mechanisms and driving forces of hydrogen absorption on the surface of metals is crucial for avoiding hydrogen embrittlement. In this study, the effect of stress-enhanced gaseous hydrogen uptake in bulk metals is investigated in detail. For that purpose, a generalized form of Sievert's law is derived from thermodynamic potentials considering the effect of microstructural trapping sites and multiaxial stresses. This new equation is parametrized and verified using experimental data for carbon steels, which were charged under gaseous hydrogen atmosphere at pressures up to 1000 bar. The role of microstructural trapping sites on the parameter identification is critically discussed.
Effect of Tensile Loading and Temperature on the Hydrogen Solubility of Steels at High Gas Pressure
(2023)
The hydrogen solubility in ferritic and martensitic steels is affected by hydrostatic stress, pressure, and temperature. In general, compressive stresses decrease but tensile stresses increase the hydrogen solubility. This important aspect must be considered when qualifying materials for high‐pressure hydrogen applications (e.g., for pipelines or tanks) by using autoclave systems. In this work, a pressure equivalent for compensating the effect of compressive stresses on the hydrogen solubility inside of closed autoclaves is proposed to achieve solubilities that are equivalent to those in pipelines and tanks subjected to tensile stresses. Moreover, it is shown that the temperature effect becomes critical at low temperatures (e.g., under cryogenic conditions for storing liquid hydrogen). Trapping of hydrogen in the microstructure can increase the hydrogen solubility with decreasing temperature, having a solubility minimum at about room temperature. To demonstrate this effect, the generalized law of the hydrogen solubility is parameterized for different steels using measured contents of gaseous hydrogen. The constant parameter sets are verified and critically discussed with respect to the high‐pressure hydrogen experiments.
The impact of crack closure and environmental effects on the experimental determination of the fatigue crack propagation threshold is a major problem for the assessment of cyclically loaded components, especially at low stress ratios 𝑅. In this work, the influence of the experimental procedure and air humidity on d𝑎∕d𝑁 − 𝛥𝐾 data at different 𝑅 is discussed. Unlike the results at 𝑅 = −1, the threshold values obtained at 𝑅 ≈ 0.8, i.e. under negligible crack closure levels, show a very small scatter band regardless of the variation of the test parameters and environmental conditions.
Alloy 36 (1.3912), also known as “Invar,” is an alloy with 36% nickel. The alloy has a remarkably low thermal expansion coefficient in certain temperature ranges. This peculiarity is called the invar effect, which was discovered in 1896 by the Swiss physicist Charles Édouard Guillaume. Therefore, it is used in applications in which dimensional stability is critical, such as molding tools for composite materials in aerospace, automotive applications, or liquified natural gas (LNG) cargo tanks. Moreover, increasingly complex structures and the optimization of resource efficiency also require additive manufacturing steps for the production or repair of components. Additively manufactured components have a heterogeneous microstructure and anisotropic mechanical properties. In addition, the manufactured components require subsequent machining surface finishing, like finish milling, to achieve their final contour. Nickel iron alloys are difficult to machine. Additionally, inhomogeneous microstructure may lead to unstable cutting forces and conditions. In part I of this investigation, the initial alloy 36 is modified with the elements Ti, Zr, and Hf up to a maximum of 0.33 wt.-%. The influence of the modification elements on the microstructure as well as on the hardness of the AM components is examined. Furthermore, one modification is applied to metal arc welding process and investigated. Part II focuses on the effect of the alloy modifications on machinability as well as on the surface integrity of plasma-transferred-arc-welded (PTA) and finish milled invar components.
Co-Cr alloys are frequently used for highly stressed components, especially in turbine and plant construction, due to their high resistance to thermal and mechanical stress, as well as to corrosive and abrasive loads. Furthermore, they are classified as difficult-to-cut materials because of their high strength and toughness as well as their low thermal conductivity. However, for Co, an increased cost and supply risk can be observed in recent years. Therefore, additive manufacturing (AM) offers significant economic advantages due to higher material efficiency regarding repair, modification, and manufacturing of such components. Concerning inhomogeneity and anisotropy of the microstructure and properties as well as manufacturing-related stresses, a lot of knowledge is still necessary for the economic use of additive welding processes in SMEs. In addition, subsequent machining, particularly contour milling, is essential to generate the required complex contours and surfaces. Hence, additive and machining manufacturing processes need to be coordinated in a complementary way, especially due to additional challenges arising in milling of heterogeneous hard-to-cut microstructures. Recently, it has been shown that modern, hybrid cutting processes, such as ultrasonic-assisted milling (US), can improve the cutting situation. In this investigation, the Co-Cr initial alloy is additionally modified with Ti and Zr up to 1 wt% with the aim to enhance the homogeneity of the microstructure and, thus, the machinability. Hence the investigation includes finish milling tests of the AM components and the comparison of US and conventional machining. Both the modifications and the ultrasonic assistance exhibit a significant effect on the machining situation; for example US causes a higher surface integrity of the finish milled surfaces compared to conventional milling.
Cobalt chromium alloys are often used in turbine and plant construction. This is based on their high thermal and mechanical stress resistance as well as their high wear resistance to corrosive and abrasive loads. However, cobalt is a cost-intensive material that is difficult to machine. Moreover, increasingly complex structures and the optimisation of resource efficiency also require additive manufacturing steps for the production or repair of components in many sectors. Concerning inhomogeneity and anisotropy of the microstructure and properties as well as manufacturing-related stresses, a lot of knowledge is still necessary for the economic use of additive welding processes in SMEs. As a result of the high stresses on the components
and requirements for a high surface quality, a complementary use of additive and machining manufacturing processes is necessary. Thereby, Co–Cr alloys are extremely challenging for machining with geometrically defined cutting edges because of their low thermal conductivity combined with high strength and toughness. An approach to solve this problem is to refine and homogenise the microstructure. This is achieved by modifying the alloy with elements zirconium and hafnium, which are added up to a maximum of 1 wt.-%. A reduction of the process forces and stresses on the tool and work piece surface is also achievable via hybrid milling processes. There are already studies on the combined use of additive and machining manufacturing processes based on laser technology. However, knowledge based on powder and wire-based arc processes is important, as these processes are more widespread. Furthermore, the effects on the surface zone of additively manufactured components by hybrid finish milling have not yet been a subject of research. The results show that the structural morphology could be significantly influenced with the addition of zirconium and hafnium.
Motivated by the loss of tensile strength in 9%Ni steel arc-welded joints performed using commercially available Ni-based austenitic filler metals, the viability of retaining tensile strength using an experimentally produced matching ferritic filler metal was confirmed. Compared to the austenitic Ni-based filler metal (685 MPa), higher tensile strength in gas metal arc (GMA) welded joints was achieved using a ferritic filler metal (749 MPa) due to its microstructure being similar to the base metal (645 MPa). The microstructure of hard martensite resulted in an impact energy of 71 J (-196 °C), which was two times higher than the specified minimum value of _>34 J. The
tensile and impact strength of the welded joint is affected not only by its microstructure, but also by the degree of its mechanical mismatch depending on the type of filler metal. Welds with a harder microstructure and less mechanical mismatch are important for achieving an adequate combination of tensile strength and notched impact strength. This is achievable with the cost-effective ferritic filler metal. A more desirable combination of mechanical properties is guaranteed by applying low preheating temperature (200 °C), which is a more practicable and economical solution compared to the high post-weld heat treatment (PWHT) temperature (580 °C) suggested by other research.
Motivated by the tensile strength loss of 9%Ni steel arc welded joints made using Ni-based austenitic filler metals, the feasibility of maintaining the tensile strength using matching ferritic filler metal has been demonstrated. In comparison with shielded metal arc welded joint made using Ni-based austenitic electrode ENiCrMo-6, higher tensile strength comparable to that of the base metal was obtained using matching ferritic electrode. Besides, sufficient impact toughness energies with much lower mismatch were obtained for weld metal and heat-affected zone.
Welded joint with a lower mechanical mismatching is of considerable importance for achieving acceptable combination of tensile strength and impact toughness.Abetter combination of These mechanical properties is ensured by applying a post weld heat treatment.
Motivated by the tensile strength loss of 9%Ni steel arc welded joints made using Ni-based austenitic filler metals, the feasibility of maintaining the tensile strength using matching ferritic filler metal has been demonstrated. In comparison with shielded metal arc welded joint made using Ni-based austenitic electrode ENiCrMo-6, higher tensile strength comparable to that of the base metal was obtained using matching ferritic electrode. Besides, sufficient impact toughness energies with much lower mismatch were obtained for weld metal and heat-affected zone.
Welded joint with a lower mechanical mismatching is of considerable importance for achieving acceptable combination of tensile strength and impact toughness. A better combination of These mechanical properties is ensured by applying a post weld heat treatment.
Comparison between GTA and laser beam welding of 9%Ni steel for critical cryogenic applications
(2018)
IncomparisonwithGTAweldedjoints,highertensilestrengthcomparabletothatofthebasemetalwasobtained for laser beam welded joints due to fine martensitic microstructure. Impact fracture toughness values with much lower mismatching were obtained for laser beam welded joints due to similarity in the microstructures of its weld metal and HAZ. In this case, the lower impact fracture toughness obtained (1.37J/mm2) was much higher than that of the GTA welded joints (0.78J/mm2), which was very close to the specified minimum value (≥0.75J/mm2). In contrast to other research works, the overall tensile and impact properties are influenced not only by the fusion zone microstructure but also by the size of its hardened area as well as the degree of its mechanical mismatching, as a function of the welding process. A better combination of tensile strength and impact toughness of the concerned steel welded joints is assured by autogenous laser beam welding process.
Resistance spot welding is an established joining process for the production of safetyrelevant components in the automotive industry. Therefore, consecutive process monitoring is essential to meet the high quality requirements. Artificial neural networks can be used to evaluate the process parameters and signals, to ensure individual spot weld quality. The predictive accuracy of such algorithms depends on the provided training data set, and the prediction of untrained data is challenging. The aim of this paper was to investigate the extrapolation capability of a multi-layer perceptron model. That means, the predictive performance of the model was tested with data that clearly differed from the training data in terms of material and coating composition. Therefore, three multi-layer perceptron regression models were implemented to predict the nugget diameter from process data. The three models were able to predict the training datasets very well. The models, which were provided with features from the dynamic resistance curve predicted the new dataset better than the model with only process parameters. This study shows the beneficial influence of process signals on the predictive accuracy and robustness of artificial neural network algorithms.
Especially, when predicting a data set from outside of the training space.
The application of anti-corrosion coated, high-strength steels in the automotive industry has increased in recent years. In combination with various zinc-based surface coatings, liquid metal embrittlement cracking can be observed in some of these materials. A high-quality, crack-free spot-welded joint is essential to realize the lightweight potential of the materials. In this work, the LME susceptibility of different coatings, which will be determined by the crack length and the occurrence rate, will be investigated using a welding under external load setup. The uncoated specimens did not show any LME. EG, GI and GA showed significantly less LME than ZM coatings. The latter coatings showed much larger crack lengths than the EG, GI and GA coatings. Furthermore, two mechanisms regarding the LME occurrence rate were observed: the occurrence of LME in zinc–magnesium coatings was theorized to be driven by the material properties of the coatings, whereas the occurrence of LME at EG, GI and GA samples was forced mainly by the application of the external tensile load.
In the experimental setup of this work, the materials were exposed to unusually high mechanical loads (up to 80% of their yield strength) to evoke LME cracks.
Nickel alloys are cost intensive materials and generally classified as difficult-to-cut material. However, machining of these materials is needed especially in case of alloy 36 (1.3912), which is commonly used in mould construction for the production of fibre-reinforced composites. With regard to repair, modification and manufacturing of such components, additive manufacturing offers significant economic advantages. Nevertheless, subsequent machining steps are needed to achieve the final component contour and defined surface conditions. Dependent on the material and machining process conditions, detrimental tensile residual stresses may be the result on the machined surface, having negative impact on the component performance and safety. In this investigation, machining experiments were carried out on wire arc additive manufactured components made of alloy 36, varying the cutting speed and the feed rate. In addition, the conventional milling process (CM) was compared with a modern, hybrid machining process, the ultrasonic-assisted milling (US). The cutting forces and the surface-near residual stresses were analysed using X-ray diffraction. A significant improvement of the machinability as well as the surface integrity by using the ultrasonic assistance was observed, especially at low cutting speeds. The CM induced mainly tensile residual stresses, the US mainly compressive residual stresses.
Alloy 36 (1.3912) is an alloy with 36% nickel and 64% iron and is generally classified as a difficult-to-cut material. Increasingly complex structures and the optimization of resource efficiency are making additive manufacturing (AM) more and more attractive for the manufacture or repair of components. Subsequent machining of AM components is unavoidable for its final contour. By using modern, hybrid machining processes, e.g., ultrasonic-assisted milling (US), it is possible to improve the cutting situation regarding the resulting surface integrity as well as the cutting force. Part I deals with the influence of the alloying elements Ti, Zr, and Hf on the microstructure and the hardness of the initial alloy 36. Part II focusses on the effect of the alloy modifications and the ultrasonic assistance on machinability as well as on the surface integrity after finish-milling. The results show a highly significant influence of the ultrasonic assistance. The cutting force during the US is reduced by over 50% and the roughness of approx. 50% compared to conventional milling (CM) for all materials investigated. Moreover, the US causes a defect-free surface and induces near-surface compressive residual stresses. CM leads to a near-surface stress state of approx. 0 MPa.
The increasing adoption of Open Science principles has been a prevalent topic in the welding science community over the last years. Providing access to welding knowledge in the form of complex and complete datasets in addition to peer-reviewed publications can be identified as an important step to promote knowledge exchange and cooperation. There exist previous efforts on building data models specifically for fusion welding applications; however, a common agreed upon implementation that is used by the community is still lacking. One proven approach in other domains has been the use of an openly accessible and agreed upon file and data format used for archiving and sharing domain knowledge in the form of experimental data. Going into a similar direction, the welding community faces particular practical, technical, and also ideological challenges that are discussed in this paper. Collaboratively building upon previous work with modern tools and platforms, the authors motivate, propose, and outline the use of a common file format specifically tailored to the needs of the welding research community as a complement to other already established Open Science practices. Successfully establishing a culture of openly accessible research data has the potential to significantly stimulate progress in welding research.
An approach to develop an arc sensor for gap width estimation during automated NG-GMAW with a weaving electrode motion is introduced by combining arc sensor readings with optical measurements of the groove shape to allow precise analyses of the process. The two test specimen welded for this study were designed to feature a variable groove geometry in order to maximize efficiency of the conducted experimental efforts, resulting in 1696 individual weaving cycle records with associated arc sensor measurements, process parameters and groove shape information. Gap width was varied from 18 mm to 25 mm and wire feed rates in the range of 9 m/min to 13 m/min were used in the course of this study. Artificial neural networks were applied as a modelling tool to derive an arc sensor for estimation of gap width suitable for online process control that can adapt to changes in process parameters as well as changes in the weaving motion of the electrode. Wire feed rate, weaving current, sidewall dwell currents and angles were defined as inputs to calculate the gap width. The evaluation of the proposed arc sensor model shows very good estimation capabilities for parameters sufficiently covered during the experiments.
The impact of the microstructure of Fe-16Cr-0.2C on high-temperature oxidation – sulphidation in SO2
(2021)
This study elucidates the impact of the microstructure of Fe-16Cr-0.2C on oxide layer formation at 650 ◦C in Ar-0.5 % SO2. A cold-rolled and two heat-treated states of the alloy were exposed for up to 1000 h. The samples were characterised in detail from microstructural and chemical perspectives using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (ToF-SIMS). The microstructural modification of the alloy by heat-treatment was advantageous. It was found that Cr-carbides support chromia formation and reduce sulphidation when their area fraction is low and diameter is small.
The phase transformation under various cooling rates and in different HAZ regions for high-strength armour steel was analysed by dilatometry. To develop a continuous cooling transformation (CCT) diagram, the samples were heated up to a peak temperature of 1250 °C to achieve a coarse-grained microstructure and then cooled down with a cooling time t 8/5 varying from 3 to 240 s. Analysis of dilatation curves revealed the austenite decomposition process, during which transformation temperatures were determined. The results showed martensitic transformations for all welding-relevant cooling times. Furthermore, to analyse different heat-affected subzones of the weld, the peak temperature was varied between 550 and 1250 °C at a constant cooling time t 8/5 of 6 s. The simulated coarse-grained heat-affected zone (CGHAZ) and fine-grained-heat affected zone (FGHAZ) showed only martensitic transformations with transformation temperatures below 400 °C. The steel exhibited an inhomogeneous hardness with hardening in the CGHAZ and FGHAZ and softening in the intercritical and subcritical HAZ. The physically simulated microstructure was validated by a real hybrid laser-arc weld microstructure.
Sample functions, i.e., stochastic process realizations, are used to define cumulative damage phenomena which end into an observable terminal state or failure. The complexity inherent to such phenomena justifies the use of phenomenological models associated with the evolution of a physical magnitude feasible to be monitored during the test. Sample functions representing the damage evolution may be identified, once normalized to the interval [0,1], with cumulative distribution functions (cdfs), generally, of the generalized extreme value (GEV) family. Though usually only a fraction of the whole damage evolution, according to the specific problem handled, is available from the test record, the phenomenological models proposed allow the whole damage process to be recovered. In this way, down- and upwards extrapolations of the whole damage process beyond the scope of the experimental program are provided as a fundamental tool for failure prediction in the practical design. The proposed methodology is detailed and its utility and generality confirmed by its successive application to representative well-known problems in fatigue and fracture characterization. The excellent fittings, the physical interpretation of the model parameters and the good expectations to achieve a complete probabilistic analysis of these phenomena justify the interest of the proposed phenomenological approach with possible applications to other cumulative damage processes.
n this work, three classes of fatigue models are reviewed according to the fatigue regimes commonly considered in the current components design. Particular attention is devoted to the so-called Class III fatigue models, covering the three fatigue regimes, namely, LCF, HCF and VHCF. The applicability and limitations of the pro-posed analytical sigmoidal solutions are discussed from the viewpoint of practical design. The compatible Weibull S-N model by Castillo and Canteli is revisited and improved by considering a new reference parameter GP = E⋅σM ⋅(dε/dσ)|M as the driving force alternative to the conventional stress range. In this way, the requirement, σM ≤ σu, according to the real experimental conditions, is fulfilled and the parametric limit number of cycles, N0, recovers its meaning. The probabilistic definition of the model on the HCF and VHCF regimes is maintained and extended to the LCF regime. The strain gradients may be calculated from the monotonic or cyclic stress–strain curve of the material although a direct derivation from the hysteresis loop is recommended. Some Class III fatigue models from the literature and another one improved by the authors are applied to the assessment of one experimental campaign under different stress ratios conditions and the results compared accordingly. Finally, the new probabilistic GP-N field is evaluated. The results confirm the practical confluence of the stress- and the strain-based approaches into a single and advantageous unified methodology.
In this contribution, chemical, structural, and mechanical alterations in various types of femtosecond laser-generated surface structures, i.e., laser-induced periodic surface structures (LIPSS, ripples), Grooves, and Spikes on titanium alloy, are characterized by various surface analytical techniques, including X-ray diffraction and glow-discharge optical emission spectroscopy. The formation of oxide layers of the different laser-based structures inherently influences the friction and wear performance as demonstrated in oil-lubricated reciprocating sliding tribological tests (RSTTs) along with subsequent elemental mapping by energy-dispersive X-ray analysis. It is revealed that the fs-laser scan processing (790 nm, 30 fs, 1 kHz) of near-wavelength-sized LIPSS leads to the formation of a graded oxide layer extending a few hundreds of nanometers into depth, consisting mainly of amorphous oxides. Other superficial fs-laser-generated structures such as periodic Grooves and irregular Spikes produced at higher fluences and effective number of pulses per unit area present even thicker graded oxide layers that are also suitable for friction reduction and wear resistance. Ultimately, these femtosecond laser-induced nanostructured surface layers efficiently prevent a direct metal-to-metal contact in the RSTT and may act as an anchor layer for specific wear-reducing additives contained in the used engine oil.
Dissimilar metal weld overlays of nickel-base alloys on low-alloy steel components are commonly used in the oil and gas, petrochemical, and power generation industries to provide corrosion and oxidation resistance in a wide range of service Environments and temperatures. Traditionally, dissimilar weld overlays are produced using cold or hot wire gas tungsten arc welding.
This study aims to identify and evaluate potential advantages of low heat input gas metal arc welding processes over the conventional gas tungsten arc welding in the production of such overlays. Parts I and II of this publication series described characteristics of the heat-affected zone and the transition zone region of alloy 625 on grade 22 steel overlays. These results indicate a good resistance against hydrogen-assisted cracking, which is being verified within this third part of the publication series. To determine the hydrogen-assisted cracking susceptibility, welded samples are tested using the delayed hydrogen-assisted cracking test. Fractography is performed using scanning electron microscopy along with energy dispersive spectroscopy. The results confirm the suitability and efficiency of low heat input gas metal arc welding for dissimilar weld overlays. Variation of the postweld heat treatment procedure bears potential for improvement in this respect.
Low heat input gas metal arc welding for dissimilar metal weld overlays part II: the transition zone
(2018)
Dissimilar metal weld overlays (DMWOL) of nickel base alloys on low alloy steel components are commonly used in the oil and gas, petrochemical, and power generation industries to provide corrosion and oxidation resistance in a wide range of service environments and temperatures. Traditionally, dissimilar weld overlays are produced using cold or hot wire gas tungsten arc welding. This study aims to identify and evaluate potential advantages of low heat input gas metal arc welding processes over the conventional gas tungsten arc welding in the production of dissimilar weld overlays. In order to evaluate the quality of these overlays regarding resistance against hydrogen-assisted cracking, their transition zone region is investigated in this part of the publication series. Metallurgical characterization, including energy-dispersive x-ray spectroscopy, is performed on Alloy 625/grade 22 steel overlays. The transition zone is characterized by a narrow planar growth zone and steep compositional gradients from the fusion boundary towards the weld metal. Evidence of low carbon contents in the planar growth zone, as well as for carbide precipitation in the cellular growth zone was found. The microstructure in the transition zone region of the fusion zone shows characteristics known to be suitable for good resistance against hydrogen embrittlement.
A 3D electro-thermomechanical model is established in order to investigate liquid metal embrittlement.
After calibration to a dual phase steel of the 1000 MPa tensile strength class, it is used to analyse the thermo-mechanical system of an experimental procedure to enforce liquid metal embrittlement during resistance spot welding. In this procedure, a tensile stress level is applied to zinc coated advanced high strength steel samples during welding. Thereby, liquid metal embrittlement formation is enforced, depending on the applied stress level and the selected material.
The model is suitable to determine and visualise the corresponding underlying stresses and strains responsible for the occurrence of liquid metal embrittlement. Simulated local stresses and strains show good conformity with experimentally observed surface crack locations.
Modern advanced high-strength steel sheets for automotive applications are mostly zinc coated for corrosion resistance. However, the presence of zinc can—besides its positive effects—increase the material’s susceptibility to liquid metal embrittlement (LME) during resistance spot welding (RSW). Zinc and its eutectics are, due to their low melting point, present in liquid state during the welding process. This fact can, in combination with other factors like tensile strains or stresses, lead to the formation of brittle, intergranular cracks in the weld, and heat-affected zone. This phenomenon is commonly called liquid metal embrittlement. In order to understand the process from a practical perspective, one must learn what factors facilitate it. In this study, industry-relevant parameters are investigated regarding their influence on the occurrence of LME, embodied by the formation of surface cracks. It was found that electrode wear has less of an influence on the cracking susceptibility than welding current or tensile stresses. Finite element analysis is believed to provide a powerful tool in order to gain insights on the formation process. Modeling of the process shows promising initial results, revealing the underlying local stress and strain fields, unmeasurable with common techniques.
Contact-resonance AFM (CR-AFM) has been used in recent years for the measurement of mechanical properties. Compared with other techniques, CR-AFM has a much shorter acquisition time, compensating the incomplete theoretical understanding of the underlying physical phenomena. In the present paper, we propose a procedure, which allows to determine the elastic modulus of the sample as a parameter of the fit of the CR frequency as a function of the load. It is concluded that CR measurements are not appropriate for polymer samples. Major drawbacks are the bad resolution for moduli lower than ca. 10 GPa and the lack of a comprehensive physical model.
Laser beam welding of aluminum die casting is challenging. A large quantity of gases (in particular, hydrogen) is absorbed by aluminum during the die-cast manufacturing process and is contained in the base material in solved or bound form. After remelting by the laser, the gases are released and are present in the melt as pores. Many of these metallurgic pores remain in the weld seam as a result of the high solidification velocities. The natural (Archimedean) buoyancy is not sufficient to remove the pores from the weld pool, leading to process instabilities
and poor mechanical properties of the weld. Therefore, an electromagnetic (EM) system is used to apply an additional buoyancy
component to the pores. The physical mechanism is based on the generation of Lorentz forces, whereby an electromagnetic pressure is introduced into the weld pool. The EM system exploits the difference in electrical conductivity between poorly conducting pores (inclusions) and the comparatively better conducting aluminum melt to increase the resulting buoyancy velocity of the pores. Within the present study, the electromagnetic supported degassing is investigated in dependence on the laser beam power, welding velocity, and electromagnetic flux density. By means of a design of experiments, a systematic variation of these parameters is carried out for partial penetration laser beam welding of 6mm thick sheets of wrought aluminum alloy AlMg3 and die-cast aluminum alloy AlSi12(Fe), where the wrought alloy serves as a reference. The proportion of pores in the weld seams is determined using x-ray images, computed tomography images, and cross-sectional images. The results prove a significant reduction of the porosity up to 70% for both materials as a function of the magnetic flux density.
The paper describes an experimental investigation of the electromagnetic porosity reduction in partial penetration laser beam welding of 6 mm thick aluminum die casting AlSi9MnMg. The Investigation reveals that the usage of an electromagnetic field leads to a significant reduction of the porosity as well as to a surface smoothing of aluminum die casting. Based on the reference case without an electromagnetic influence, the porosity area was reduced gradually up to 76%.
Metallurgical pores as well as process pores were removed from the weld pool. Also the weld reinforcement was improved up to 78%. Best results were reached with a frequency of 4325 Hz and a magnetic flux density of 348 mT. Although a complete prevention of porosity was not achieved, the best weld seam reached a high quality and can be ranked in valuation group B of DIN EN ISO 13919-2:2001–12.
Cast magnesium alloys welds produced by refill friction stir spot welding (refill FSSW) show low lap shear strength (LSS) and constantly fail in stirred zone (SZ) shear mode. The cause is most probably related to the heavily textured microstructure. Here, to re-engineer the resulting microstructure, we pro- pose a novel process variant, the differential rotation refill FSSW (DR-refill FSSW). DR-refill FSSW stim- ulates discontinuous dynamic recrystallization and produces a bimodal microstructure with weakened texture. Therefore, the deformation incompatibility between SZ and thermal-mechanically affected zone is avoided. The welds have 50% higher LSS than that of standard refill FSSW welds, and fail in a different failure mode, i.e., SZ pull-out mode. DR-refill FSSW provides a new and effective strategy for improving the performance of spot welds based on microstructural engineering.
The application of magnesium (Mg) inevitably involves dissimilar welding with steel. A novel solid state spot welding method, refill friction stir spot welding (refill FSSW), was utilized to weld AZ31 Mg alloy to galvanized DP600 steel. Although Mg/Fe is an immiscible alloy system, defect-free welds with high strength were successfully obtained in a wide parameter window. The results of microstructure, interfacial reactions, and mechanical properties are reported to reveal the underlying joining mechanism. Due to the melting of Zn coating and subsequent Mg-Zn reactions, Mg-Zn eutectic and intermetallic compounds were detected within welds. Heterogeneous interfacial reactions occur along Mg/steel interface, and the relationship between interfacial structure and fracture behavior was investigated. The joining mechanism is associated with Zn coating and Fe-Al layer: 1) the presence of Zn coating is beneficial for achieving high-quality welding between Mg and steel, it protects the interface from oxidation and contributes to brazing of the weld; 2) the Al present in Mg alloy reacts with Fe, resulting in the growth of Fe-Al layer, which contributes to the diffusion bonding in the interface. The overall results clearly show that Refill FSSW is a competitive welding method for joining Mg and galvanized steel.
Optimized planning and evaluation of dental implant fatigue testing: A specific software application
(2020)
Mechanical complications in implant-supported fixed dental prostheses are often related to implant and prosthetic design. Although the current ISO 14801 provides a framework for the evaluation of dental implant mechanical reliability, strict adherence to it may be difficult to achieve due to the large number of test specimens which it requires as well as the fact that it does not offer any probabilistic reference for determining the endurance limit. In order to address these issues, a new software program called ProFatigue is presented as a potentially powerful tool to optimize fatigue testing of implant-supported prostheses. The present work provides a brief description of some concepts such as load, fatigue and stress-number of cycles to failure curves (S-N curves), before subsequently describing the current regulatory situation. After analyzing the two most recent versions of the ISO recommendation (from 2008 and 2016), some limitations inherent to the experimental methods which they propose are highlighted. Finally, the main advantages and instructions for the correct implementation of the ProFatigue free software are given. This software will contribute to improving the performance of fatigue testing in a more accurate and optimized way, helping researchers to gain a better understanding of the behavior of dental implants in this type of mechanical test.
Statement of problem
The design of the implant-abutment connection has been widely researched, but the impact of different crown-abutment geometries remains unclear.
Purpose
The purpose of this in vitro study was to evaluate the effect of different crown-abutment margin geometries on the mechanical behavior and fit of screw-retained implant-supported single-crown restorations by using mechanical static and fatigue tests and mastication simulation.
Material and methods
A total of 45 cobalt-chromium premolar-shaped metal frameworks were fabricated for single-unit implant-supported screw-retained restorations on stock abutments and internal hexagon Ø4.25×11-mm cylindrical implants. They were divided into 3 groups according to margin geometry: S, shoulder; C, chamfer; and F, feather-edge. Three static load until fracture and 24 dynamic load tests were performed by using the International Organization for Standardization 14801:2016 standard (ISO 14801:2016) (number of cycles limit: 5×106 cycles, frequency: 6 Hz). The ProFatigue software program was used to optimize the procedure (S, n=12 specimens; C, n=7 specimens; and F, n=5 specimens). Six additional specimens from each group were subjected to a mastication simulation (limit number of cycles: 1×106 cycles, cyclic loading from Pmin=30 N to Pmax=300 N, frequency: 6 Hz). Results from the fatigue tests were reported descriptively, and the Fisher exact test was used to analyze the difference in failure modes. Data from maximum misfit were evaluated by photogrammetry and statistically analyzed with the Anderson-Darling test and the Kruskal-Wallis and Dunn multiple comparison tests (α=.05).
Results
The fatigue limit was 456 N for group S, 512 N for group C, and 514 N for group F. The mean ±standard deviation misfit was 2.6 ±0.1 μm for group S, 3.8 ±1.1 μm for group C, and 3.6 ±0.8 μm for group F. Differences in misfit between groups S and C and between groups S and F were statistically significant (P<.05).
Conclusions
Crown-abutment connections with chamfer and feather-edge margins showed better mechanical behavior, while shoulder margin exhibited better fit. However, high levels of fit were achieved for all the evaluated geometries.
size limitations and high production costs of L-PBF make it competitive for smaller, highly complex components, while the less complex elements of an assembly are manufactured conventionally. This leads to scenarios that use L-PBF only where it’s beneficial, and it require an integration and joining to form the final product. For example, L-PBF combustion swirlers are welded onto cast parts to produce combustion systems for stationary gas turbines. Today, the welding process requires complex welding fixtures and tack welds to ensure the correct alignment and positioning of the parts for repeatable weld results. In this paper, L-PBF and milled weld preparations are presented as a way to simplify the Tungsten inert gas (TIG) welding of rotationally symmetrical geometries using integrated features for alignment and fixation. Pipe specimens with the proposed designs are manufactured in Inconel 625 using L-PBF and milling. The pipe assembly is tested and TIG welding is performed for validation. 3D scans of the pipes before and after welding are evaluated, and the weld quality is examined via metallography and computed tomography (CT) scans. All welds produced in this study passed the highest evaluation group B according to DIN 5817. Thanks to good component alignment, safe handling, and a stable welding process, the developed designs eliminate the need for part-specific fixtures, simplify the process chain, and increase the process reliability. The results are applicable to a wide range of components with similar requirements.
Automotive engine lubricants
(2019)
In 2003, ASTM Manual 37, Fuels and Lubricants Handbook: Technology, Properties, Performance and Testing, featured a chapter discussing automotive lubricants, including engine oils, automatic transmission fluids, manual transmission fluids, gear lubricants, and greases. This chapter, by Schwartz, Tung, and McMillan, surveyed all of these classes of lubricants, up to its publication in 2003.
More recently, the period between 2003 and 2010 has been addressed as part of a book copublished by ASTM and SAE International (coeditors Simon Tung and George Totten), where Fox surveyed the development of engine oil specifications that emerged during those years.
This chapter surveys the evolution of engine oil design and testing since 2002 and concludes with insights into future directions offered by recent tribological research. Our objective is to provide a reader new to the field with an understanding of the following:
- Engine oil composition and formulation
- North American engine oil specification development, and an outline of emergent European specifications
- How emergent specifications and legislative requirements are linked to the introduction of new engine hardware
- How tribological innovation can contribute to future enhancements in engine efficiency
In parallel, we will provide several tables comparing groups of contemporaneous specifications.
This article presents a cost-effective and reliable method for welding 30 mm thick sheets of shipbuilding steel EH36. The method proposes to perform butt welding in a two-run technique using hybrid laser arc welding (HLAW) and submerged arc welding (SAW). The HLAW is performed as a partial penetration weld with a penetration depth of approximately 25 mm. The SAWis carried out as a second run on the opposite side. With a SAWpenetration depth of 8 mm, the weld cross-section is closed with the reliable intersection of both passes. The advantages of the proposed welding method are: no need for forming of the HLAW root; the SAW pass can effectively eliminate pores in the HLAWroot; the high stability of the welding process regarding the preparation quality of the weld edges. Plasma cut edges can be welded without lack of fusion defects. The weld quality achieved is confirmed by destructive tests.
The present work deals with the development of a strategy for the prevention of end crater defects in high-power laser welding of thick-walled circumferential welds. A series of experiments were performed to understand the influence of the welding Parameters on the formation of end crater defects such as pores, cracks, root excess weld metal and shrinkage cavities in the overlap area. An abrupt switch-off of the laser power while closing the circumferential weld leads to a formation of a hole which passes through the whole welded material thickness. A laser power ramp-down causes solidification cracks which are initiated on the transition from full-penetration mode to partial penetration. Defocusing the laser beam led to promising results in terms of avoiding end crater defects. Cracks and pores in the overlap area could be effectively avoided by using defocusing techniques.
A strategy for avoiding of end crater imperfections was tested on flat specimens of steel grade S355J2 with a wall thickness of between 8 mm and 10 mm and then transferred on the 10 mm thick pipe sections made of high-strength pipeline steel API5L-X100Q.
Laser metal deposition (LMD) is an established technology for two-dimensional surface coatings. It offers high deposition rates, high material flexibility, and the possibility to deposit material on existing components. Due to these features, LMD has been increasingly applied for additive manufacturing of 3D structures in recent years. Compared to previous coating applications, additive manufacturing of 3D structures leads to new challenges regarding LMD process knowledge. In this paper, the process steps for LMD as additive manufacturing technology are described. The experiments are conducted using titanium alloy Ti-6Al-4Vand Inconel 718. Only the LMD nozzle is used to create a shielding gas atmosphere. This ensures the high geometric flexibility needed for additive manufacturing, although issues with the restricted size and quality of the shielding gas atmosphere arise. In the first step, the influence of process parameters on the geometric dimensions of single weld beads is analyzed based on design of experiments. In the second step, a 3D build-up strategy for cylindrical specimen with high dimensional accuracy is described. Process parameters, travel paths, and cooling periods between layers are adjusted. Tensile tests show that mechanical properties in the as-deposited condition are close to wrought material. As practical example, the fir-tree root profile of a turbine blade is manufactured. The feasibility of LMD as additive technology is evaluated based on this component.
Polychromatic and wavelength-selective neutron transmission radiography were applied during bead-on-plate welding on 5 mm thick sheets on the face side of martensitic low transformation temperature (LTT) steel plates using gas tungsten arc welding (GTAW). The in situ visualization of austenitization upon welding and subsequent α’-martensite formation during cooling could be achieved with a temporal resolution of 2 s for monochromatic imaging using a single neutron wavelength and of 0.5 s for polychromatic imaging using the full spectrum of the beam (white beam). The spatial resolution achieved in the experiments was approximately 200 µm. The transmitted monochromatic neutron beam intensity at a wavelength of λ = 0.395 nm was significantly reduced during cooling below the martensitic start temperature Ms since the emerging martensitic phase has a ~10% higher attenuation coefficient than the austenitic phase. Neutron imaging was significantly influenced by coherent neutron scattering caused by the thermal motion of the crystal lattice (Debye–Waller factor), resulting in a reduction in the neutron transmission by approx. 15% for monochromatic and by approx. 4% for polychromatic imaging.
In 2015, the University of Manchester hosted a workshop (‘Mind the Gap’) aimed at identifying gaps in a number of structural integrity fitness-for-service procedures, including R5, R6, BS 7910 and API/ASME. The findings were subsequently summarised in a journal paper and shared with the relevant stakeholders. A second workshop, this time hosted by the University of Bristol in 2017, was intended to build on the findings of the earlier event, identifying which gaps had been filled, which remain and whether new ones have been identified in the meantime. ‘Mind the Gap 2’ was wide-ranging, including consideration of failure by fracture, fatigue crack growth, hightemperature creep and environmentally assisted crack growth, along with the use of innovative techniques to follow the progress of crack growth from the atomic to the macroscopic scale. A summary of the whole event is thus outside the scope of a single paper, so here we concentrate mainly on advances in fracture assessment, on the interface between inspection and ECA, and on how developments are being incorporated into structural integrity procedures. There is a particular emphasis on the energy transition in the UK, where the planned energy mix will include both nuclear power and offshore wind.
Fatigue tests were performed on the forged aluminum alloy EN AW-2618A in the T61 state. Different stress ratios (R = -1, R = 0.1) were selected to study the influence of mean stress on fatigue life. Two overaged states (10 h/230 ◦C, 1000 h/230 ◦C) were also tested to investigate the influence of overaging on fatigue life. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) was used to characterize the precipitates (S-phase), which are mainly responsible for the strength of the alloy. A fractographic analysis was also performed to determine the failure mode. Overaging reduces the fatigue life compared to the T61 state. The longer the aging time, the lower the fatigue resistance. The reason is the decrease in (yield) strength, which correlates with the radius of the S-phase: the precipitate radius increases by a factor of approximately two for the overaged states compared to the initial state. The analysis of the fracture surfaces showed crack initiation occurs predominantly on the outer surface and is
associated with the primary phases.
Tribological properties of ultrahigh-molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) and cross-linked polyethylene (XLPE) were studied in two different wear modes. Firstly, reciprocating sliding wear studies under non-conformal contact investigated the effects of counterface surface roughness (polished, lapped and ground) of Ti6Al4V on the friction and wear of the polyethylenes. Secondly, two-body abrasive wear studies in conformal contact against different abrasive grit size papers were also carried out to ascertain the wear sensitivity of the polyethylenes under these adverse conditions. Wear mechanisms were studied using optical and scanning electron micrographs. The results of the reciprocating sliding wear studies showed that surface roughness of the counterface influenced friction and wear characteristics although no correlation was found between the coefficient of friction and specific wear rate. XLPE demonstrated wear sensitivity, particularly under severe abrasive wear condition. The results indicated that the performance of the polyethylenes greatly depends upon the tribological system under which it is operating.
In this contribution, we present a physically motivated heat source model for the numerical modeling of laser beam welding processes. Since the calibration of existing heat source models, such as the conic or Goldak model, is difficult, the representation of the heat source using so-called Lamé curves has been established, relying on prior Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulations.
Lamé curves, which describe the melting isotherm, are used in a subsequent finite-element (FE) simulation to define a moving Dirichlet boundary condition, which prescribes a constant temperature in the melt pool. As an alternative to this approach, we developed a physically motivated heat source model, which prescribes the heat input as a body load directly. The new model also relies on prior CFD simulations to identify the melting isotherm. We demonstrate numerical results of the new heat source model on boundary-value problems from the field of laser beam welding and compare it with the prior CFD simulation and the results of the Lamé curve model and experimental data.