The Phenomena and Criteria Determining the Cracking Susceptibility of Repair Padding Welds of the Inconel 713C Nickel Alloy

The creep-resistant casting nickel alloys (e.g., Inconel 713C) belong to the group of difficult-to-weld materials that are using for precise element production; e.g., aircraft engines. In precision castings composed of these alloys, some surface defects can be observed, especially in the form of surface discontinuities. These defects disqualify the castings for use. In this paper, the results of technological tests of remelting and surfacing by the Tungsten Inert Gas method (TIG) in an argon shield and TecLine 8910 gas mixture are presented for stationary parts of aircraft engines cast from Inconel 713C alloy. Based on the results of metallographic studies, it was found that the main problem during remelting and pad welding of Inconel 713C castings was the appearance of hot microcracks. This type of defect was initiated in the partial melting zone, and propagated to the heat affected zone (HAZ) subsequently. The transvarestraint test was performed to determine the hot-cracking criteria. The results of these tests indicated that under the conditions of variable deformation during the remelting and pad welding process, the high-temperature brittleness range (HTBR) was equal 246 °C, and it was between 1053 °C and 1299 °C. In this range, the Inconel 713C was prone to hot cracking. The maximum deformation for which the material was resistant to hot cracking was equal to 0.3%. The critical strain speed (CSS) of 1.71 1/s, and the critical strain rate for temperature drop (CST), which in this case was 0.0055 1/°C, should be used as a criteria for assessing the tendency for hot cracking of the Inconel 713C alloy in the HTBR. The developed technological guidelines and hot-cracking criteria can be used to repair Inconel 713C precision castings or modify their surfaces using welding processes.

A Combined Experimental and Modeling Study for Pellet-Fed Extrusion-Based Additive Manufacturing to Evaluate the Impact of the Melting Efficiency

To improve the product quality of polymeric parts realized through extrusion-based additive manufacturing (EAM) utilizing pellets, a good control of the melting is required. In the present work, we demonstrate the strength of a previously developed melt removal using a drag framework to support such improvement. This model, downscaled from conventional extrusion, is successfully validated for pellet-based EAM—hence, micro-extrusion—employing three material types with different measured rheological behavior, i.e., acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS), polylactic acid (PLA) and styrene-ethylene-butylene-styrene polymer (SEBS). The model’s validation is made possible by conducting for the first time dedicated EAM screw-freezing experiments combined with appropriate image/data analysis and inputting rheological data. It is showcased that the (overall) processing temperature is crucial to enable similar melting efficiencies. The melting mechanism can vary with the material type. For ABS, an initially large contribution of viscous heat dissipation is observed, while for PLA and SEBS thermal conduction is always more relevant. It is highlighted based on scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analysis that upon properly tuning the finalization of the melting point within the envisaged melting zone, better final material properties are achieved. The model can be further used to find an optimal balance between processing time (e.g., by variation of the screw frequency) and material product performance (e.g., strength of the printed polymeric part).

In Situ Formation of Laser-Cladded Layer on Thin-Walled Tube of Aluminum Alloy in Underwater Environment

The first study of thin-walled aluminum-alloy tubes with underwater-laser-nozzle in situ melting technology was carried out. The study mainly covered the influence of the water environment on the laser melting process, melting appearance, geometric characteristics, microstructure, regional segregation and microhardness. During the transfer of the cladding environment from air to water, the uniformity of the cladding layer became poor, but excellent metallurgical bonding was still obtained. The dilution rate (D) decreased from 0.46 to 0.33, while the shape factor (S) increased from 4.38 to 5.98. For the in-air and underwater samples, the microstructure of the melting zone (MZ) and the cladding zone (CZ) were columnar dendrites and equiaxed grains, respectively. In addition, the microstructure of the overlapping zone (OZ) was composed of columnar dendrites and equiaxed grains. The underwater average grain size was smaller than that of in-air. In addition, the water environment was beneficial for reducing the positive segregation in the columnar dendrite region. Compared with the in-air cladding sample, the precipitated phases in the OZ of the underwater cladding sample reduced. Under the combined action of grain refinement and precipitated phase reduction, the microhardness value of the underwater OZ was higher than that of the in-air OZ.

Liquation and Crystallization Cracks in Aluminum Alloy AA2024 during Selective Laser Melting

In this work we studied the microstructure and microhardness of standard AA2024 alloy and AA2024 alloy with the addition of 1.5% Y after pulsed laser melting (PLM) and selective laser melting (SLM). The SLM process was carried out with a 300 W power and 0.1 m/s laser scanning speed. A dispersed microstructure without the formation of crystallization cracks and low liquation of alloying elements was obtained in Y-modified AA2024 aluminum alloy. Eutectic Al3Y and Al8Cu4Y phases were detected in Y-modified AA2024 aluminum alloy. It is led to a decrease in the formation of crystallization cracks The uniform distribution of alloying elements in the yttrium-modified alloy had a positive effect on the quality of the laser melting zone (LMZ) and microhardness.

Formation of a stable defects structure in silicon noise diodes

vThe possibilities and methods of creating a stable defective structure, including dislocation structure near the zones of p–n-transitions of silicon diodes of noise generators on plates with crystallographic orientations (111) and (001) have been investigated. The effective distribution control of uncontrolled impurities in monocrystalline silicon is achieved by forming a stable dislocation structure in its volume. In order to obtain the reproducible characteristics of noise generator diodes, it is necessary that the dislocation density be homogeneous throughout the plate area. Since the density of dislocations is slightly lower at the edge of the dislocation trail than in the middle, this means that the dislocation traces formed by the adjacent melting zones with the help of a laser beam should overlap. On the basis of experimental studies, it has been established that the necessary degree of uniformity of the density of defects generated is achieved by compliance with the condition of a = (1.5–5.0)d, where a is a step, d is a width of the laser spot on the wafer. The melting process was carried out in a nitrogen environment using a laser hettering unit. The real width of the melting zone turns out to be slightly larger than the diameter of the laser spot due to the thermal conductivity of the silicon and is about 10 μm. Increased dislocation generation on the Si3N4 inclusions, as opposed to dislocations on the Si–SiO2 border, leads to an additional expansion of the dislocation track at the work surface of the plate of noise diodes. The presence of the stable dislocation structure, as well as the presence of impurities and secondary metal atoms in the noise diodes ND 103L structure are confirmed by the secondary ion mass spectroscopy (SIMS) method. The results of the study have been tested at Corporation “INTEGRAL” (Belarus) and can be used in the manufacture of silicon noise diodes.

Influence of Low Energy Density Laser Re-Melting on the Properties of Cold Sprayed FeCoCrMoBCY Amorphous Alloy Coatings

Fe-based amorphous alloys (FAA) have excellent anti-corrosion and anti-abrasive comprehensive performances. However, sprayed thin FAA coatings with high porosity cannot provide efficient protection, or even accelerate the corrosion rate of the substrate due to galvanic corrosion. Laser re-melting densifying is usually used to improve the anti-corrosion performance of sprayed coatings. There are two disadvantages of the common laser re-melting method, including crystallization and residual stress. In the present paper, a low density energy laser re-melting method was used to improve the performance of cold spraying (CS) FeCoCrMoBCY FAA coating on 40Cr substrate. The results show that the CS FAA coatings were crystallized partially during the melting process. The hardness of the coating is improved at the melting zone after laser re-melting, which improves the anti-abrasive performance. Potentiodynamic test results show that laser re-melting can decrease the corrosion rate, but the salt spray test indicates that low energy density re-melting cannot eliminate penetrated diffusion passage. Further optimization should be conducted to improve the anticorrosion performance for this method.

Empirical Study on Reduction Behavior and Metallurgical Properties of Vanadia–Titania Magnetite in Blast Furnace

The loss of permeability affects the reduction of the ferrous burden in the cohesive zone of a blast furnace (BF). Vanadia–titania magnetite (VTM) burden of various chemical compositions have different metallurgical properties. The reduction and softening-melting-dripping properties of different kinds of VTM were investigated. The results showed that the core of sinter or pellet is indirectly reduced to wustite and (Fe,Ti)Ox, and the periphery contains interlinked metallic iron and CaSiO3 in the cohesive zone. Wustite and (Fe,Ti)Ox are directly reduced in the melting-dripping zone. The aggregate (Fe, V, Cr) present in the non-dripping causes a loss of valuable components. With the increase in TiO2 content, the substrate phase of molten slag changes from melilite to titanaugite, and the mass of dripping decreases gradually. In addition, the permeability index S increased and the melting zone widened, which indicates that the increase in TiO2 content negatively affected the melting-dripping performance. The mass of the dripping is directly proportional to the pellet ratio. Considering the adverse effect of TiO2 on softening-melting-dripping properties, it is recommended that high TiO2 VTM is smelted while mixed with ordinary ores or with an increased pellet ratio in the burden structure.

Study on the ultrasonic guided wave and online visual monitoring for ultrasonic precise bonding

Ultrasonic precise bonding is an emerging technology in the application of polymer micro-assembly. In the ultrasonic bonding process, the propagation of ultrasound varies with the change of the interfacial polymer physical state. So the ultrasonic guided wave is an effective parameter to in-situ monitor the fusion degree. The ultrasonic guided wave in the ultrasonic bonding process is studied by vibration analysis and online visual monitoring in this paper. The time-frequency characteristics in the ultrasonic guided wave in the bonding process are mainly analyzed by Fast Fourier Transform spectrum analysis, Wavelet Packet Decomposition, and envelope spectrum methods. The polymer interfacial fusion is monitored by the high-speed HD camera in the ultrasonic bonding process. The time-frequency characteristics in the ultrasonic guided wave and the fusion behavior of the thermal melt interface are analyzed and correlated. Results indicate that the change of the interfacial thermal melt state is related to the time-frequency characteristics of the ultrasonic guided wave. The fusion of the melting zone, the rotation of the micro-device, the generation or disappearance of local air bubbles all lead to the changing of the harmonic frequency and intensity in the ultrasonic bonding process.

Lithospheric thinning due to hydration and melting at oceanic transform plate boundaries

Transform plate boundaries, one of the key elements of plate tectonics, accommodate lateral motions and produce large earthquakes, but their nature at depth remains enigmatic. Using ultra-long offset seismic data, here we report the presence of a low-velocity anomaly extending down to ~60 km depth beneath the Romanche transform fault in the equatorial Atlantic Ocean. Our result indicates the presence of deep penetration of water leading to extensive serpentinization down to 16 km, followed by a shear mylonite zone down to 32 km over a low-temperature water induced-melting zone, elevating the lithosphere-asthenosphere boundary and hence thinning the lithosphere significantly beneath the transform fault. The presence of a thinned lithosphere and the melt underneath could lead to volcanism, migration and mixing of the water-induced melt with the high-temperature melt beneath the ridge axis, and small-scale convections beneath transform boundaries. Hence, a thinned lithosphere will have a major impact on the dynamics of ridge-transform system, and will influence the evolution of fracture zones and oceanic lithosphere.

Megacrysts of “bubbled” kaersutite in the Neogene-Quaternary of Western Syria: evidence of crystallization in a boiled melt/fluid?

<p>The territory of Syria is a classic area of intraplate Neogene-Quaternary plateau basaltic magmatism (Ponikarov et al., 1969; Sharkov, 2000; Lustrino, Sharkov, 2006; Trifonov et al., 2011, etc.). These basalts belong to the Afro-Arabian large igneous province (LIP) (Ernst, 2014), whose origin, according to geophysical data, is related to the ascent of a mantle thermochemical plume that originated at the liquid iron core-silicate mantle boundary of (Hansen et al., 2012).</p><p>The basalt plateaus of Syria have a similar structure and are formed by numerous basaltic flows, as well as scoria and pyroclastic cones, often containing mantle xenoliths. Approximately 80% of them are represented by green spinel lherzolites and harzburgites, and subordinate amount (~20 %) of xenoliths belong to black series (hornblendite, hornblende clinopyroxenites, clinopyroxenites, phlogopitites, etc., as well as megacrysts of kaersutite, clinopyroxene, ilmenite, sanidine, etc.). Some of the kaersutite megacrysts have unusual “bubbled” structure, containing oval cavities up to 3-4 mm in diameter. We believe that these xenoliths are fragments of the upper cooled margin of the mantle plume above the adiabatic melting zone (Sharkov et al., 2017). Thus, they probe substance of mantle plume and bear important information about the processes within its interior.</p><p>As previously shown (Sharkov et al., 2017), the black series rocks were formed from a melt/fluid released fluid during the incongruent ("secondary") melting of the mantle plume head at the final stage of the magmatic system evolution. The crystallization of this fluid-supersaturated melt could be accompanied by its retrograde boiling, which led to the appearance of "bubbled" crystals.</p><p> </p>