Hardfacing using supersonic laser depostion of stellite-6

The capability of manufacturing coatings is of central importance in engineering design. Many components require nowadays the application of additional layers, to enhance mechanical properties and protect against hostile environments. Supersonic Laser Deposition (SLD) is a novel coating method, based upon Cold Spray (CS) principles. In this technique the deposition velocities can be significantly lower than those required for effective bonding in CS applications. The addition of laser heat energy permits a change in the thermodynamic experience of impacting particles, thereby offering a greater opportunity for metallurgical bonding at lower velocities compared to the CS process technology. The work reported in this paper demonstrates the ability of the SLD process to deliver hard facing materials to engineering surfaces. Stellite-6 has been deposited on low carbon steel tubes over a range of process parameters, determining the appropriate target power and traverse speeds for coating deposition. Coating properties and parameters were examined to determine the main properties, micro-structure and processing cost. Their morphology was studied through optical microscopy, SEM and X-Ray Diffraction. The results have shown that SLD is capable of depositing Stellite-6, with enhanced properties compared to laser clad counterparts.

Numerical study of the shielding properties of macroscopic hybrid ferromagnetic/superconductor hollow cylinders

We study the magnetic shielding properties of hybrid ferromagnetic/ superconductor (F/S) structures consisting of two coaxial cylinders, with one of each material. We use an axisymmetric finite-element model in which the electrical properties of the superconducting tube are modeled by a nonlinear E-J power law with a magnetic-field-dependent critical current density whereas the magnetic properties of the ferromagnetic material take saturation into account. We study and compare the penetration of a uniform axial magnetic field in two cases: 1) a ferromagnetic tube placed inside a larger superconducting tube (Ferro-In configuration) and 2) a ferromagnetic tube placed outside the superconducting one (Ferro-Out configuration). In both cases, we assess how the ferromagnetic tube improves the shielding properties of the sole superconducting tube. The influence of the geometrical parameters of the ferromagnetic tube is also studied: It is shown that, upon an optimal choice of the geometrical parameters, the range of magnetic fields that are efficiently shielded by the high-temperature superconductor tube alone can be increased by a factor of up to 7 (2) in a Ferro-Out (Ferro-In) configuration. The optimal configuration uses a 1020 carbon steel with a thickness of 2 mm and a height that is half that of the superconducting cylinder (80 mm). © 2009 IEEE.

A mathematical model of crevice and pitting corrosion—I. The physical model

A predictive and self-consistent mathematical model incorporating the electrochemical, chemical and ionic migration processes characterizing the propagation stage of crevice and pitting corrosion in metals is described. The model predicts the steady-state solution chemistry and electrode kinetics (and hence metal penetration rates) within an active corrosion cavity as a function of the many parameters on which these depend, such as external electrode potential and crevice dimensions. The crevice is modelled as a parallel-sided slot filled with a dilute sodium chloride solution. The cavity propagation rates are found to be faster in the case of a crevice with passive walls than one with active walls. The distribution of current over the internal surface of a crevice with corroding walls can be assessed using this model, giving an indication of the future shape of the cavity. The model is extended to include a solid hydroxide precipitation reaction and considers the effect of consequent changes in the chemical and physical environment within the crevice on the predicted corrosion rates. In this paper, the model is applied to crevice and pitting corrosion in carbon steel.

Microstructure and wear properties of laser clad Fe based amorphous composite coatings

A FeNiSiBV amorphous composite coating was developed by laser cladding of metallic powders on AISI 1020 low carbon steel substrate. The coatings were studied using X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy and scanning electron microscopy. The coating reveals different microstructures along the depth of the coating. The transition zone exhibits good metallurgical bonding between the substrate and the coating. The layer consists of amorphous phase in majority and nanocrystalline phase/crystalline phase in minority. Accompanied with the nanocrystalline phase, the amorphous phase is concentrated in the middle of the coating. The crystalline phase in the coating is identified as Fe2B. A gradient distribution of the microhardness ranges from 1208 HV0.2 to 891 HV0.2 in the coating along the depth. The coating shows higher microhardness and better wear property than the substrate.

Effect of Process Conditions on Microstructure and Corrosion Resistance of Cold-Sprayed Ti Coatings

Ti and Ti alloys can be applied to steels as a protective coating in view of its excellent resistance to corrosive environment. Cold spraying, as a new coating technique, has potential advantages in fabrication of Ti coating in comparison with conventional thermal spraying techniques. In this study, Ti coatings were prepared on carbon steel substrates by cold spraying via controlling the process conditions. The microstructure of coatings was observed by SEM. The porosity of coatings was estimated by image analysis and the bond strength was tested for comparison of the process conditions. Potentiodynamic polarization and open-circuit potential (OCP) measurements were performed to understand the corrosion behavior of the coatings. The SEM examination shows that the coatings become more compact with the increases of pressure and temperature of driving gas. The potentiodynamic polarization curves indicate that the coating which has lower porosity has lower corrosion current. The polarization and OCP measurement reveal that cold-sprayed Ti coating can provide favorable protection to carbon steel substrate. The polishing treatment of coating surface polishes the rough outer layer including the small pores as well as decreases the actual surface area of the coating, leading to the considerable improvement of corrosion resistance.

Micro/nanoreservoirs for controlled release of active species in smart functional coatings

This work reports one possible way to develop new functional coatings used to increase the life time of metallic structures. The functionalities selected and attributed to model coatings in the frame of this work were corrosion protection, self-sensing and prevention of fouling (antifouling). The way used to confer those functionalities to coatings was based on the encapsulation of active compounds (corrosion inhibitors, pH indicators and biocides) in micro and nanocontainers followed by their incorporation into the coating matrices. To confer active corrosion protection, one corrosion inhibitor (2-mercaptobenzothiazole, MBT) was encapsulated in two different containers, firstly in silica nanocapsules (SiNC) and in polyurea microcapsules (PU-MC). The incorporation of both containers in different models coatings shows a significant improvement in the corrosion protection of aluminum alloy 2024 (AA2024). Following the same approach, SiNC and PU-MC were also used for the encapsulation of phenolphthalein (one well known pH indicator) to introduce sensing properties in polymeric coatings. SiNC and PU-MC containing phenolphthalein acted as corrosion sensor, showing a pink coloration due to the beginning of cathodic reaction, resulting in a pH increase identified by those capsules. Their sensing performance was proved in suspension and when integrated in coatings for aluminium alloy 2024 and magnesium alloy AZ31. In a similar way, the biocide activity (antifouling) was assigned to two polymeric matrices using SiNC for encapsulation of one biocide (Dichloro-2-octyl-2H-isothiazol-3-one, DCOIT) and also SiNC-MBT was tested as biocide. The antifouling activity of those two encapsulated compounds was assessed through inhibition and consequent decrease in the bioluminescence of modified E. coli. That effect was verified in suspension and when incorporated in coatings for AISI 1008 carbon steel. The developed micro and nanocontainers presented the desired performance, allowing the introduction of new functionalities to model coatings, showing potential to be used as functional additives in the next generation of multifunctional coatings.

Estudo de uma central hidroeléctrica com base em turbina hidráulica reversível

Trabalho Final de Mestrado para obtenção do grau de Mestre em Engenharia Mecânica

Perfil Logístico del Acero en Colombia

La industria metalúrgica a nivel mundial es considerada como el segundo clúster más grande y emplea aproximadamente setenta millones de personas sumando los sectores que se mueven en esta industria no formalizados. Igualmente genera el segundo PIB más grande en el mundo después de la industria petrolera. Además, en el panorama nacional, es una industria con un alto desarrollo , crecimiento acelerado y de grandes aportes económicos al país, tanto en materia de empleo como en desarrollo infraestructural, siendo de los principales sectores con mayor contribución en el país aportando un 9% de PIB. De acuerdo a esto se realizó un estudio que permitirá conocer el desarrollo de esta industria en Colombia y evaluar su infraestructura logística, ya que se puede percibir un importante potencial en esta industria debido a la necesidad y alta demanda del acero como materia prima; así como su contribución al desarrollo económico en Colombia. En este documento se apreciara la estructura de la cadena de suministros del acero, se describirá el clúster, se interpretaran datos reales de producción, ventas y exportaciones. Igualmente se estudiarán las percepciones del gremio y sus propuestas de crecimiento, las influencias políticas y económicas que inciden en la operación de esta industria. De acuerdo a esto, el interés es que mediante este proyecto de investigación se realice un estudio de la situación actual de la industria del acero en Colombia, identificando sus competencias, elementos para implementar y la infraestructura necesaria para estar al nivel de los principales competidores a nivel mundial.

Corrosion by sulfate reducing bacteria that utilize nitrate

16S rRNA gene sequencing was used to identify a sulfate-reducing bacterium (SRB) from a Danish North Sea oilfield water injection system. This species was cultivated, purified and subsequently identified as being >97% similar to Desulfovibrio gracilis. Like some other Desulfovibrio species this SRB, strain OP102, could reduce nitrate as an electron acceptor and produce ammonia in the absence of sulfate. In addition, in the presence of sulfate, when nitrate was dosed at 100 mg/l it was again reduced by the bacterium, with some ammonium production. Therefore, this mechanism could be important in oilfield systems where nitrate is applied to prevent sulfide generation by SRB which leads to reservoir souring. In static tests the influence of this Desulfovibrio on corrosion was assessed using carbon steel coupons, in the presence of sulfate and in the presence of sulfate with 100 mg/l nitrate. Corrosion rates were less than 1.5 mpy when coupons were incubated in the same water, with sulfate and with nitrate. Furthermore, the occurrence of pitting corrosion was fairly low under all circumstances.

Hot working microstructure map for magnesium AZ31

A thermomechanical processing (TMP) structure map is proposed that plots the critical strains required for dynamic recrystallization along with the grain sizes that result. These maps are useful in identifying the limits to grain refinement and designing hot working processes. They are readily constructed for well studied alloys such as plain carbon steel. In light of the recent interest in the hot working of magnesium, initial steps are taken here to construct a TMP structure map for the most common wrought magnesium alloy, AZ31. The completion of dynamic recrystallization is estimated using a geometrical approach and a twinning region is identified.

Formation of ultra-fine ferrite in hot rolled strip: potential mechanisms for grain refinement

A novel single-pass hot strip rolling process has been developed in which ultra-fine (<2 μm) ferrite grains form at the surface of hot rolled strip in two low carbon steels with average austenite grain sizes above 200 μm. Two experiments were performed on strip that had been re-heated to 1250°C for 300 s and air-cooled to the rolling temperatures. The first involved hot rolling a sample of 0.09 wt.%C–1.68Mn–0.22Si–0.27Mo steel (steel A) at 800°C, which was just above the Ar3 of this sample, while the second involved hot rolling a sample of 0.11C–1.68Mn–0.22Si steel (steel B) at 675°C, which is just below the Ar3 temperature of the sample. After air cooling, the surface regions of strip of both steel A and B consisted of ultra-fine ferrite grains which had formed within the large austenite grains, while the central regions consisted of a bainitic microstructure. In the case of steel B, a network of allotriomorphic ferrite delineated the prior-austenite grain boundaries throughout the strip cross-section. Based on results from optical microscopy and scanning/transmission electron microscopy, as well as bulk X-ray texture analysis and microtextural analysis using Electron Back-Scattered Diffraction (EBSD), it is shown that the ultra-fine ferrite most likely forms by a process of rapid intragranular nucleation during, or immediately after, deformation. This process of inducing intragranular nucleation of ferrite by deformation is referred to as strain-induced transformation.

Nucleation sites for ultrafine ferrite produced by deformation of austenite during single-pass strip rolling

An austenitic Ni-30 wt pct Fe alloy, with a stacking-fault energy and deformation characteristics similar to those of austenitic low-carbon steel at elevated temperatures, has been used to examine the defect substructure within austenite deformed by single-pass strip rolling and to identify those features most likely to provide sites for intragranular nucleation of ultrafine ferrite in steels. Samples of this alloy and a 0.095 wt pct C-1.58Mn-0.22Si-0.27Mo steel have been hot rolled and cooled under similar conditions, and the resulting microstructures were compared using transmission electron microscopy (TEM), electron diffraction, and X-ray diffraction. Following a single rolling pass of ∼40 pct reduction of a 2mm strip at 800 °C, three microstructural zones were identified throughout its thickness. The surface zone (of 0.1 to 0.4 mm in depth) within the steel comprised a uniform microstructure of ultrafine ferrite, while the equivalent zone of a Ni-30Fe alloy contained a network of dislocation cells, with an average diameter of 0.5 to 1.0 µm. The scale and distribution and, thus, nucleation density of the ferrite grains formed in the steel were consistent with the formation of individual ferrite nuclei on cell boundaries within the austenite. In the transition zone, 0.3 to 0.5 mm below the surface of the steel strip, discrete polygonal ferrite grains were observed to form in parallel, and closely spaced “rafts” traversing individual grains of austenite. Based on observations of the equivalent zone of the rolled Ni-30Fe alloy, the ferrite distribution could be correlated with planar defects in the form of intragranular microshear bands formed within the deformed austenite during rolling. Within the central zone of the steel strip, a bainitic microstructure, typical of that observed after conventional hot rolling of this steel, was observed following air cooling. In this region of the rolled Ni-30Fe alloy, a network of microbands was observed, typical of material deformed under plane-strain conditions.

A comparative study of microstructures and mechanical properties obtained by bar and plate rolling

Microstructures and mechanical properties of a low carbon steel were studied after plate rolling and bar rolling. Plate rolling is characterized as a monotonic compressive loading, while bar rolling is characterized as a cross-compressive loading. A four-pass plate rolling and bar rolling experiment was designed so that the material experiences the same amount of strain at each pass during rolling. The rolling experiment was performed at moderately high temperatures (450, 550 and 650 °C). The microstructures and mechanical properties of the low carbon steel acquired from the two types of rolling experiments were compared. The results revealed that differences of loading path attributed by monotonic loading (plate rolling) and cross loading (bar rolling) significantly influenced the microstructures and mechanical properties such as yield stress, ultimate tensile stress, strain hardening exponent and elongation of the low carbon steel.

Residual thermal stresses in a Fe3Al/Al2O3 gradient coating system

To combine the merits of both metals and ceramics into one material, many researchers have been studying the deposition of alumina coating using plasma spray on metal substrates. However, as the coatings are deposited at a high temperature, residual thermal stresses develop due to the mismatch of thermal expansion coefficients of the coating and substrate and these are responsible for the initiation and expansion of cracks, which induce the possible failure of the entire material. In this paper, the residual thermal-structural analysis of a Fe3Al/Al2O3 gradient coating on carbon steel substrate is performed using finite element modelling to simulate the plasma spray. The residual thermal stress fields are obtained and analyzed on the basis of temperature fields in gradient coatings during fabrication. The distribution of residual thermal stresses including radial, axial and shear stresses shows stress concentration at the interface between the coatings and substrate. The mismatch between steel substrate and composite coating is still the dominant factor for the residual stresses

Low strain processing of LC and ULC steels

Temper rolling and tension levelling are commonly used to manufacture flat rolled steel. Both processes lengthen the steel at strains up to 3% by applying a load and stretching the strip. By latering the balance between the load and the tension the formability of the low carbon and ultra low carbon steel may be optimised.