Solid State Phenomena Vols. 172-174

Abstract: Supermartensitic stainless steels possess an excellent combination of strength, toughness and corrosion resistance and have attracted an increased industrial attention especially from the offshore oil and gas industry, where those materials are already successfully in use. It is well known that the mechanical properties of this type of steels are strongly dependent on the fraction of retained austenite, which is controlled by heat treatment. Because the products manufactured out of these steels are in large sections, temperature gradients and corresponding compositional inhomogeneities are inevitable. Also during heat treatment partitioning of elements between the phases will give local concentrations far removed from the bulk levels. In the present work a 13Cr6Ni2Mo supermartensitic stainless steel is thermodynamically analyzed using the Thermo-Calc^® software package where the influence of compositional variations on phase transformations is investigated, in particular the effect of changes in the Ae₃-temperature is discussed.

Abstract: The phase transformations due to a sequence of chemical treatments leading to the nucleation and biomimetic growth of hydroxyl carbonated apatite (HCA) at the surface of titanium implants were studied by scanning and transmission electron microscopy in cross-section. In the first step, an acid etching forms a rough titanium hydride layer which remains unchanged after subsequent treatments. In the second step, soaking in a NaOH solution induces the growth of nanobelt tangles of nanocrystallized, monoclinic sodium titanate. In the third step, soaking in a simulated body fluid transforms sodium titanate into calcium and phosphorus titanate, by ion exchange in the same monoclinic structure. Then HCA, of a hexagonal structure, grows and embodies the tangled structure showing a preferential direction growth along its “c”-axis, perpendicular to the substrate surface. The interfaces between the different layers seem to be strong enough to prevent interfacial decohesion. The role of the titanate phase in the nucleation of HCA is finally discussed.

Abstract: We propose to reconstruct the g orientation maps from the α maps inherited by the bainitic or martensitic γ→α phase transformation. Our approach comprises two main steps (1) identification of reliable fractions of parent grains – each γ fraction is determined from neighbouring variants related to a unique γ orientation with a low tolerance angle; (2) expansion of these fractions by collecting adjacent variants being in orientation relation (OR) with the calculated g orientation - using a higher tolerance around the strict OR. Moreover, this fully automated g map reconstruction is further improved by an additional semi-automated analysis of α/γ maps. This reconstruction procedure was applied to the α microtexture of bainitic steels. The reliability of the calculations was checked by comparing each γ grain orientation and their corresponding α variants. The results show that even with a large spread around OR, the shape and orientation of most of the γ grains are accurately calculated.

Abstract: The friction welding process provides a continuity of the joined materials at crystalline network level. This continuity is based on diffusion phenomena, on the forces of inter-atomic links as well as on the thermal and mechanical energy inputs. The action of the thermo-deformational field developed during the welding process is associated with solid phase transformations, influenced in terms of nature and intensity by the sensibility to mechanical hardening of the steel components, the critical quenching rate and the re-crystallization temperatures. The composition and microstructural gradients of thermochemically treated steels by carburization and nitriding leads to particularities in the morphology of the transformations induced in the welding plane. The work reports on the transformations observed in the joining plane explored by microstructural, hardness and impact testing.

Abstract: The eutectoid transformation of austenite can occur cooperatively (pearlite transformation) or by means of a non-cooperative mode (Divorced Eutectoid Transformation). In the cooperative mode, ferrite and cementite grow together, leading to the typical lamellar microstructure of pearlite. In the non-cooperative mode, spheroidal cementite particles grow directly from the undissolved carbides in the austenite phase. The transformation product is a fully spheroidized microstructure. In this study, the parameters promoting the occurrence of DET in a hypereutectoid steel (austenitization temperature, cooling rate, presence of proeutectoid cementite in the initial microstructure) were investigated. It is shown that low undercooling levels and a homogenous distribution of fine carbides in the austenite promote the DET over the lamellar transformation mode. The spheroidized microstructures produced by DET lead to larger ductilities comparing to those obtained by the lamellar transformation mode.

Abstract: We first discuss several aspects of group theory for reformulating the group-subgroup re-lations in quasicrystals to crystals transformations based on the original approach proposed by D.Mermin and his group on indiscernability groups. In the second part of the paper, we discuss ways ofdetermining the possible space-groups of approximants of quasicrystals as generated by the perpen-dicular shear technique.

Abstract: An unified structural model has been devised [1] that describes both icosahedral phasesi-AlPdMn and i-AlCuFe. The model suggests that possible icosahedral structures could be found inalloys with general composition Al61:8(PdjCu)21:35(MnjFe)8:29(AljFejMn)4:28(AljCu)4:28. Applied to the systems AlCuMnFe [2] and AlPdFe [3], thisformula leads to the compositions Al66:08Cu21:35Mn8:29Fe4:28 and Al70:36Pd21:35Fe8:29 that have bothbeen synthetized by rapid quenching and annealing.The as-quenched quaternary alloy Al66:08Cu21:35Mn8:29Fe4:28 exhibits a F-icosahedral phase that trans-forms into a decagonal phase after annealing. Its 10-fold axis aligns along one of the 5-fold axes ofthe icosahedral phase. This implies a group-subgroup transformation, with the kernel group ̅5m, anal-ogous to the one observed during CFC to HCP transformations, with kernel ̅3m.The as-quenched and annealed ternary alloy Al70:36Pd21:35Fe8:29 is similar to i-AlPdMn with an iso-morphic substitution of Mn with Fe. A study of the phase diagram of the system AlPdFe [3] showsthat the results are compatible with the structural model proposed here in strong relations with thosepresented in [1] for i-AlPdMn.

Abstract: Mg-based nanostructured materials with a composition of Mg₈₅Ni_15-xM_x (M=Y, La, or Pd) have been fabricated by proper alloying additions and controlling the crystallization process of melt spun metallic glass ribbon. XRD suggests that the average crystallite sizes range from 100 nm in the binary materials to <30 nm in the ternary alloys. Hydrogen absorption/desorption measurements show improved properties compared to nanocrystalline alloys fabricated using other processing strategies. Surface treatment of the binary and Pd-containing ribbons by ball milling or submersion in aqueous NH₄⁺ allows the materials to be activated at 473 K, significantly lower than conventional Mg-based hydrogen storage materials. Y and La additions improve the maximum storage capacity. Absorption kinetics are also improved the materials is alloyed with La, while Y slows the reaction kinetics. Some degradation in storage capacity is observed when the materials are exposed to a cyclic absorption/desorption process, likely due to microstructural coarsening. The Mg₈₅Ni₁₀Pd₅ composition fully absorbs and desorbs ≈5 wt. % H at 473 K, while other bulk Mg-based materials require temperatures in excess of 573 K.

Abstract: Bilayer ribbons were prepared by rapid quenching from the melt using a double-nozzle technique. The composition of the layers was selected from the Fe/Co-Si-B and Fe-Cu-Nb-Si-B systems, respectively. Ribbons with typical thickness of 45-50 microns and width of 6 mm and 10 mm exhibited amorphous structure of both layers in as-quenched state. Temperature dependencies of electrical resistivity, dilatation and magnetization have been investigated in the amorphous state and during crystallization of both layers, which take place at different temperatures. The results combined with investigation of the structures formed in each layer and at the layer interface were compared to those of single-layer ribbons having the compositions of each layer, respectively.

Abstract: The crystallization mechanisms of sputtered Fe_1-xC_x amorphous thin films for three values of atomic carbon content x = 0.28, 0.30 and 0.32 are directly observed using hot stage transmission electron microscopy. Images recorded sequentially are used to track the change caused by heating. Observations concern the nucleation and the growth of iron carbides and their structural identification. Information is also given about their crystallochemistry. They belong to the family of interstitial carbides with carbon atoms located inside iron Triangular Prisms (TP). They are built either from TP Sheets (TPS) stacks deriving from the cementite θ-Fe₃C or from TP Chains (TPC) arrangements deriving from the Eckström-Adcock Fe₇C₃ carbide. The sharp transition between dominant TPS and dominant TPC carbides formations is illustrated. Nucleation and growth processes of both types of carbides are discussed and focus is put on the TPC crystals. They are the first to be formed whatever carbon content of the specimen and really correspond to the dominant phase for the richest-carbon film. When they are less numerous, they can act as nucleation sites for TPS carbides and it is in situ illustrated during the crystallization of the poorest-carbon film where orientation relationships can be found between the TPC-Fe₇C3 carbide and a TPS carbide close to the Hägg carbide χ-Fe₅C₂ The crystallization of Fe_0.70C_0.30 film corresponds to a particular case where TPC carbides and TPS carbides can coexist with the same composition.