Cast Al-Si-Cu Alloys: Effect of Modification on Thermal and Electrical Conductivities

The effect that modification of cast Al-Si alloys exerts on the thermal and electrical conductivities is presented. The work was conducted by casting a series of samples in a rig that promotes unidirectional solidification to vary the level of microstructure refining, which was assessed by the secondary dendrite arm spacing. The alloys were prepared in a furnace and poured into the rig after adding different amounts of strontium to modify the aspect of the aluminum-silicon eutectic. Measurements were conducted on as-cast and heat-treated specimens. The electrical conductivity tests were referred to the International Annealed Copper Standard. Thermal conductivity of the different samples was obtained by comparing it with that of a high-purity aluminum sample. It was found that either value of conductivity depends on the degree of modification and by heat treating, whereas other microstructural parameters exert a secondary effect.

Preparation and Characterization of Spray Formed 2060 High Speed Steel

Spray forming has attracted considerable attention for the production of high speed steels due to its potential and priority in the microstructure refining and cost saving. In this study, high-quality large billets of 2060 high speed steel were successfully produced by spray forming process using a twin-atomizer facility. As-deposited billet was subsequently processed by hot forging, quenching in oil at 1180 °C and a triple tempering in the temperature range of 500-580 °C. The microstructures and hardness of the deposit and their subsequent development resulting from hot forging and heat treatment were investigated. This paper was designed to provide insight and have a better understanding of such a system for the steel. The results showed that the as-deposited microstructure was composed of the fine equiaxed grains with V-rich MC and W-Mo-rich M2C carbides non-uniformly distributed along the grain boundaries and inside the grains. M2C presented rod-like or unconnected net-shaped morphologies in the as-deposited microstructure. Following hot forging, metastable M2C carbides were completely decomposed into refined MC and M6C nearly spherical carbides uniformly distributed throughout the microstructure. A hardness value of 31HRC was attained for the spray deposited and hot forged samples. With increasing the tempering temperature, hardness was increased firstly and then decreased. Secondary hardening peak appeared at 540 °C for spray formed 2060 steel austenitized at 1180 °C, and the corresponding peak hardness reached 71HRC.

Experimental Study and Response Surface Methodology for Investigation of FSP Process

The article presents the effect of rotational and travelling speed and down force on the spindle torque acting on the tool in Friction Stir Processing (FSP) process. The response surface methodology (RSM) was applied to find a dependence combining the spindle torque acting on the tool with the rotational speed, travelling speed and the down force. The linear and quadratic models with interaction between parameters were used. A better fitting was achieved for a quadratic model. The studies have shown that the increase in rotational speed causes a decrease in the torque while the increase in travelling speed and down force causes an increase in the torque. The tests were conducted on casting aluminium alloy AlSi9Mg. Metallography examination has revealed that the application of FSP process results in a decrease in the porosity in the modified material and microstructure refining in the stir zone. The segregation of Si and Fe elements was evident in the parent material, while in the friction stir processed area this distribution was significantly uniform.

An Experimental Study on the Friction Stir Processing Process of Aluminium Alloy

The effect of rotational and travelling speeds and down force on the torque in Friction Stir Processing (FSP) process are presented. To find a dependence combining the spindle torque acting on the tool with the rotational speed, travelling speed and the down force, the artificial neural networks have been applied. Studies have shown that the increase in the rotational speed causes decrease in the torque while the increase in the travelling speed and down force causes the increase in the torque at the same time. The relationship between parameters of the process and the temperature of the tool, based on measurement head TermSTIR, were presented. Tests were conducted on casting aluminium alloy AlSi9Mg. Application of FSP process resulted in a decrease in the porosity in the modified material and microstructure refining