Materials Science Forum Vol. 1000

Abstract: Plastics materials have been an integral part in people’s daily life due to their high elasticity, formability and lightweight characteristics which are suitable for many products. However, exponentially growth of plastics waste leads to heavy environmental problems due to the plastics nature which is not easily degradable. One of solution to alleviate environmental problems due to plastics waste is to use pyrolysis method to burn plastics waste and convert them into lighter hydrocarbon which can be used as a source of energy. In this final project, the addition of zeolite catalyst in pyrolysis process of Polypropylene plastic waste has been studied in the terms of energy activation. Isoconversional Friedman and Flynn-Wall-Ozawa methods were used. The results may suggest that the role of zeolite as catalyst is pronounced only in the early stage of pyrolysis process. Keywords: plastics waste, Polypropylene, Zeolite, Friedman, Flynn-Wall-Ozawa

Abstract: In this research, investigation of mechanical properties and microstructure on Pulsatile Current Gas Tungsten Arc Welding (PC-GTAW) was carried out. AISI 304L was chosen as a base material with autogenous welding and butt joint configuration. The dimension of the base material was 120 x 50 mm and the thickness of 3 mm. The welding with pulsatile current and constant current were used in the welding process in this study. In the pulsatile current, the mean current was made all the same with a constant current of 100 amperes. The peak current, base current and time of peak and base current were varied to make it the same. The welding speed used is constant at 2.0 mm/s. The result shows that the HAZ area will get shrinkage if welded using pulsatile current welding. The welding with a pulsatile current can produce more fine cellular dendritic structure than the welding with a constant current. The UTS in the welding with a pulsatile current was lower than the welding with constant current, while the impact toughness in the welding with a pulsatile current was higher than the welding with a constant current. The highest of the UTS and the impact toughness of 577.62 MPa on parameter 65-A and 27 J on parameter 65-C, respectively.

Abstract: Here, we present a numerical approach to analyze the integrity of a vessel that was subject to a weld repair. A Post-Weld Heat Treatment (PWHT) process was implemented to a vessel undergone weld repair due to leakage. Due to the thick wall of the welded bottom head, this welding process must be followed by the PWHT to relieve the residual stress, as well as to improve the material properties. PWHT process was performed by heating the welded area to reach 675 °C temperature. A numerical approach using finite element analysis (FEA) method was performed to analyze the integrity of the vessel. Based on the analysis, the structure is still stable within the applied load. PWHT process does not lead to buckling on the main structure and the load is still lower than the load required for the occurrence of buckling. A sensitivity analysis was also performed with reduced temperatures to 630 °C or reduction of PWHT area width. These changes were found to have negligible effects in reducing the stress and strains in the vessel. After PWHT is completed, the structure is still considered to be safe to be operated, as indicated by its strain that is still below the allowable strain and only relatively small deflection was occurred.

Abstract: In this study, the GMAW parameters for welding of A36 mild steel have been investigated to get the minimum of distortion. The type of welded joint used was square groove T-joint fillet weld with filler wire ER70S-6. The welding current and the welding speed were selected as input parameters while the response used was distortion (longitudinal bending distortion and angular distortion). Taguchi method was used to determine optimal welding parameters which the minimum distortion. Design of experiment was set two factors with three level in each factor and three replication, so the L₉ Taguchi’s orthogonal array was applied. The minimum conditions were determined using S/N ratio with a quality character of smaller is better (SB). In addition, to determine the significance of the welding parameters used ANOVA. The results show that the welding current of 170 A and the welding speed of 4.0 mm/s were obtained as the minimum of longitudinal bending distortion and angular distortion. Based on analysis of variance, the welding current was a parameter that greatly affects the longitudinal bending distortion with the percentage contribution of 64.36% while angular distortion was strongly influenced by welding speed parameter with the percentage contribution of 53.38%.

Abstract: Dissimilar metal welding was mostly done to optimize the application and engineering requirements with economic considerations. Weld microstructures greatly influenced the mechanical properties of welded joints. The investigations were carried out to evaluate the microstructural and mechanical properties of dissimilar weldment between carbon steel ASTM A36 and austenitic stainless steel 304 with a variation of welding position (1G, 2G, 3G) and weld thickness (6 mm to 12 mm) joints by TIG welding. A detailed analysis was conducted on the weld zone composition, the microstructural, and mechanical properties. The results show that the welding position and thickness of the weld joints influenced the microstructure both in HAZ and weld metal. Size, distribution, and orientation of microstructure were improved and more uniform with increasing of welded joint thickness. In HAZ carbon steel, GB ferrite was dominant, especially for the flat welding position (1G), while for the horizontal position (2G) and the vertical welding position (3G) showed other structures such as Widmanstaten ferrite, hard-structures like martensite and bainite. In the region near the fusion line and the weld metal, the chemical composition changed due to thermal convection, diffusion, and macro-segregation caused by penetration of liquid metal carbon steel into the weld pool. SEM/EDS results indicated diffusion of carbon from carbon steel A36 to stainless steel 304 and formed the hard-structure along the fusion line. The mechanical test results showed that the tensile test breaking point occurred in the parent metal of carbon steel A36. The bending test results showed very high stress on the face side of the welding joint, and there are no cracks from the bending test result. Vickers hardness testing showed that the hardness distribution increased from the carbon steel HAZ to the stainless steel HAZ, and the maximum hardness has achieved the value of 297 Hv at the fusion line of stainless steel 304.

Abstract: The alteration in phase morphology of Ti-6Al-4V alloy fabricated using directed energy deposition (DED) was investigated in this study. Owing to the fast cooling rate during DED, the specimen exhibited the diffusionless transformation products of martensite (α′) and massive (α_m) phases. In the top layer, the α′ exhibited a needle-like morphology with the width of approximately 0.94 μm. Meanwhile, the α_m presented a lamellar structure with α thickness of nearly 0.98 μm. In contrast, the morphology of α′ and α_m started to decompose into α+β phase in the bottom layer. Furthermore, the hardness values increased with higher deposition layers. These phenomena could be explained by the effect of repetitive heating, as the nature of DED method during the depositing of new layers. Moreover, it was observed the α thickness of α_m in the bottom layer was finer than that in the top layer due to the higher cooling rate.

Abstract: Die soldering is a sticking phenomenon between molten aluminum with the surface of steel die in the die casting process, which results in damage to the cast products and l the steel die. In this research, two die materials, H13 and Cr-Mo-V steels were used. Those dies were then treated by two process variables, shot pinning and nitriding-shot pinning. To simulate the die casting process, the samples were dipped into molten Aluminum-Si alloy, ADC12 at 680oC for 30, 300, and 1800 seconds. Characterizations were focused on the surface of the steel, which includes microstructure observation by a microscope, microhardness profile, compound identification, and weight loss measurements. It was found that H13 steel and Cr-Mo-V steel treated by nitriding–shot pinning have higher hardness up to 100% and thinner intermetallic layer. On H13 steel, the compact layer thickness decreased from 19 μm to 17 μm and from 96 μm to 80 μm for the broken layer. Similar trends occurred for Cr-Mo-V steel, where the thickness of the compact layer and broken layer decreased from 38 μm to 19 μm and 119 μm to 45 μm respectively. These results indicate that H13 and Cr-Mo-V steels that were treated by nitriding–shot pinning have a better resistance to die soldering.

Abstract: Iron production by using the direct method has been promoted in order to produce iron effectively, low cost, and environmentally safe. The method was optimal requirements with respect to the feed materials especially iron ore, coal as well as a binder. In this study, the experiments were conducted on physical properties of iron ore briquette from Aceh (Indonesia) to analyze its suitability to meet the feed requirements for iron production. The term iron ore briquette refers to the materials compressed under high pressure formed by variable mixtures of iron ore, coal and binders. In the experiments, the physical properties such as the tumbler index (TI), abrasion index (AI) and shatter indices of the iron ore briquette were carried out. The experimental results show that the iron ore briquette blended with coal and using asphalt as a binder has a high tumbler index (TI) or not easily breakable compared to the iron ore briquette using dammar powder as a binder. On the other hand, the blended coal in iron ore briquette with dammar powder as the binder significantly increases the shelter index or easily breakage.

Abstract: The effect of cooling rates during a double stage solution treatment (DSST) on the volume fraction of the massive phase (α_m) in Ti-6Al-4V alloy was successfully confirmed in the present study. The morphology of Ti-6Al-4V alloy depends on the cooling rates during the cooling from the β region. The α_m, which has a transformation characteristic between martensite (α′) and α diffusion, is reported to be a potential method for obtaining a fine lamellar α/β by thermal decomposition. The different fraction of α_m was found after DSST with the first stage was conducted above the β-transus temperature at 1050 °C, followed by second annealing at different temperatures in the α+β region. It was found that the formation of α_m exists in a specific temperature region. A longer period in this region, which was calculated based on different cooling rates during DSST, will increase the fraction of α_m in the specimen. All specimens after DSST contain α_m with the α width of approximately 1μm and white-dot particles, which is predicted to be V-enriched precipitates. The DSST can be a potential method for producing a high fraction of α_m, which can be thermally decomposed into a fine lamellar α/β, introducing a Ti-6Al-4V alloy with superior mechanical properties.

Abstract: This study was presented due to the increasing demand of High Strength Low Alloy (HSLA) steel, such as demand for thinner-walled and large diameter pipes in oil and gas industries. In order to meet the imposed economic restrictions, the high standard of all kinds of steel properties is required and can be achieved by controlling the steel microstructure. The austenite grain size influences the microstructure and properties of steel significantly, in which fine austenite grain size leads to higher strength, better ductility, and higher toughness. Studying the behavior of steel grain growth during the reheating process is still being a fascinating subject. P.R. Rios and D Zollner [1] mentioned that grain growth is the most important unresolved issue that has been a topic of research for many years. In this research, the behavior of austenite grain growth at a high niobium-low carbon (High Nb-low C) and low Nb-high C HSLA steel was evaluated, and the result was compared with other investigation. The results found that the austenite grain growth at high Nb-high C steel was slower than the growth at a low Nb-low C steel. The activation energy of austenite grain growth and both constant A and exponent n ware determined close agreement was obtained between the prediction of the model and the experimental grain size value.