Wire-Feeding Laser Welding of Copper/Stainless Steel Using Different Filler Metals

Ni-based filler metal and Ni-Cu-based filler metal were used to obtain copper/stainless steel (Cu/SS) joints through wire-feeding laser welding. Along the SS/weld interface, there exist different grain sizes (from coarse columnar grains to fine equiaxed grains). The heat affected zone (HAZ) on the copper side consisted of two areas with different grain sizes and the size of the grain in the Cu-HAZ of the Ni-Cu-based filled joint was much smaller than that of the Ni-based filled joint. Our results showed that grain refinement at the copper/weld (Cu/weld) interface of the Ni-Cu-based filled joint was observed through high-resolution electron backscattered diffraction (EBSD). There was a hardness elevation at the Cu/weld interface of the Ni-Cu-based filled joint due to the grain refinement on the weld of the copper side. The maximum tensile strength of the Ni-Cu-based filled joint was obtained and reached 91.2% of the tensile strength of the copper base metal (Cu-BM). Joints in this study were observed to fracture in a ductile mode. Furthermore, the Ni-Cu-based filled joint exhibited a higher plastic deformation, which was primarily caused by the large deformation of the weld zone and the large deformation of the Cu-BM due to the high plasticity of the weld, which alleviated the stress concentration, as indicated by 2D-digital image correlation (DIC) test results.     

Effects of the Ultrasonic Assisted Surface Rolling Process on the Fatigue Crack Initiation Position Distribution and Fatigue Life of 51CrV4 Spring Steel

In this paper, the effects of the fatigue crack initiation position (FCIP) on fatigue life are discussed. Different modified gradient fields (MGFs) are prepared on the surface of 51CrV4 spring steel components by an ultrasonic assisted surface rolling process (USRP). Subsequently, the fatigue behaviour of steels with different FCIPs is systematically studied. The results show that the fatigue life of steels first exhibits an increasing tendency and then a decreasing tendency with increasing distance between an FCIP and the surface. When an FCIP shifts from the surface of the sample to the interior, the fatigue crack initiation resistance on the interior is greater than that on the surface, which leads to an increase in fatigue life. However, when the FCIP further shifts towards the centre of the specimen, the stress triaxiality experienced by the fatigue source gradually increases, which results in a peak in the curve of FCIP versus fatigue life. The magnitude of this peak fatigue life is related to the change in the stress triaxiality. Moreover, according to focused ion beam-high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (FIB-HRTEM) microstructural analysis near FCIPs, under a higher stress triaxiality, the crack tip area is subject to greater stress constraints, making the multiplication and movement of dislocations in this area more difficult, resulting in the decrease in movable dislocation density. This decrease in dislocation density leads to an increase in the stress concentration and accelerates the crack growth rate, decreasing the fatigue life. Therefore, the significant change in fatigue life is controlled by the MGF and stress triaxiality.     

Factorial Analysis of Fiber Laser Fusion Cutting of AISI 304 Stainless Steel: Evaluation of Effects on Process Performance,Kerf Geometry and Cut Edge Roughness

Factorial Design-of-Experiment analyses were applied for conventional and beam oscillation fiber laser cutting of 10 mm thick AISI 304 stainless steel. Considered factors in case of the conventional process with a static beam involve both laser and cutting gas parameters, in particular the laser power, the focal plane position, the cutting gas pressure, the nozzle stand-off distance as well as the nozzle diameter. The conducted trials were evaluated with respect to the achievable cutting speed, the cut kerf geometry and the cut edge roughness. Noticeable correlations between cut edge roughness and cut kerf geometry stimulated the development of a corresponding Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) model of the cutting gas flow through the kerf. A specific approach of data synchronization revealed that the experimentally determined roughness values do well correlate with numerically computed values of the backward directed component of the gas-induced shear stress and that the cut kerf geometry as internal process-inherent boundary condition influences relevant cutting characteristics more than controllable external cutting gas parameters. Finally, effects of circular beam oscillation were investigated by an additional factorial analysis considering the laser power, the focal plane position, the oscillation frequency and the oscillation amplitude as factors. The results demonstrate the potential of beam oscillation techniques for quality improvements in laser cutting.     

Effect of Heat Treatment Conditions on Corrosion Resistance of 0.28C–1.4Mn–0.3Si–0.26Cr Steel with Nb,Ti, and V Microadditions

The article presents the results of the research on the influence of heat treatment conditions on corrosion resistance of newly developed HSLA-type (High Strength Low Alloy) steel in selected corrosive environments. Laboratory tests were carried out with using a salt spray chamber, enabling the continuous spraying of brine mist (5% NaCl) during 96 h under high humidity conditions. Additionally, as part of corrosion experiments, tests were carried out using the gravimetric method, in which the intensity of corrosive processes was measured by the linear corrosion rate. The research conducted revealed that the best corrosion resistance was noted for steel with a high-temperature tempered martensite microstructure. Investigated 0.28C–1.4Mn–0.3Si–0.26Cr steel with Nb, Ti, and V microadditions can be used in offshore drilling constructions and production platforms exposed to salts present in sea water, chlorides, sulfates, carbonates, and bromides, among others.     

On Characteristics of Ferritic Steel Determined during the Uniaxial Tensile Test

Tensile uniaxial test is typically used to determine the strength and plasticity of a material. Nominal (engineering) stress-strain relationship is suitable for determining properties when elastic strain dominates (e.g., yield strength, Young’s modulus). For loading conditions where plastic deformation is significant (in front of a crack tip or in a neck), the use of true stress and strain values and the relationship between them are required. Under these conditions, the dependence between the true values of stresses and strains should be treated as a characteristic—a constitutive relationship of the material. This article presents several methodologies to develop a constitutive relationship for S355 steel from tensile test data. The constitutive relationship developed was incorporated into a finite element analysis of the tension test and verified with the measured tensile test data. The method of the constitutive relationship defining takes into account the impact of high plastic strain, the triaxiality stress factor, Lode coefficient, and material weakness due to the formation of microvoids, which leads to obtained correctly results by FEM (finite elements method) calculation. The different variants of constitutive relationships were applied to the FEM loading simulation of the three-point bending SENB (single edge notched bend) specimen to evaluate their applicability to the calculation of mechanical fields in the presence of a crack.     

Charpy Impact Behavior of a Novel Stainless Steel Powder Wire Mesh Composite Porous Plate

A novel powder wire mesh composite porous plate (PWMCPP) was fabricated with 304 stainless steel powders and wire mesh as raw materials by vacuum solid-state sintering process using self-developed composite rolling mill of powder and wire mesh. The effects of different mesh volume fractions, mesh diameters, and sintering temperatures on the pore structure and Charpy impact properties of PWMCPPs were studied. The results show that PWMCPPs have different shapes and sizes of micropores. Impact toughness of PWMCPPs decreases with increasing wire mesh volume fraction, and increases first and then decreases with increasing wire mesh diameter, and increases with increasing sintering temperature. Among them, the sintering temperature has the most obvious effect on the impact toughness of PWMCPPs, when the sintering temperature increased from 1160 °C to 1360 °C, the impact toughness increased from 39.54 J/cm² to 72.95 J/cm², with an increased ratio of 84.5%. The tearing between layers, the fracture of the metallurgical junction, and the fracture of wire mesh are the main mechanisms of impact fractures of the novel PWMCPPs.     

Experimental and Numerical Study of Combined High and Low Cycle Fatigue Performance of Low Alloy Steel and Engineering Application

The fatigue behaviors of metals are different under different in-service environment and loading conditions. This study was devoted to investigating the combined effects of high and low cycle fatigue loads on the performance of the low alloy steel Q345. Three kinds of experiments were carried out, including the pure high cycle fatigue (HCF) tests, the pure low cycle fatigue (LCF) tests, and the combined high and low cycle fatigue (HLCF) tests. The prediction formulae were proposed for the combined high and low cycle fatigue failure. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and stereo microscope were used to analyze the microstructure and fracture morphology due to different fatigue loads. Case study on the combined high and low cycle fatigue damage of a steel arch bridge was carried out based on the FE method and the proposed formula. The results show that the LCF life decreases evidently due to the prior HCF damages. The HLCF fracture surface is relatively flat near the crack initiation side, and rugged at the other half part. The fatigue damages at the bridge joints increase significantly with consideration of the pre-fatigue damages caused by traffic load. In the 100th anniversary of service, the fatigue damage index without considering the HCF pre-damage is only about 50% of the coupled damage value.     

Weldability of Underwater Wet-Welded HSLA Steel: Effects of Electrode Hydrophobic Coatings

The paper presents the effects of waterproof coatings use to cover electrodes on the weldability of high-strength, low-alloy (HSLA) steel in water. With the aim of improving the weldability of S460N HSLA steel in water, modifications of welding filler material were chosen. The surfaces of electrodes were covered by different hydrophobic substances. The aim of the controlled thermal severity (CTS) test was to check the influence of these substances on the HSLA steel weldability in the wet welding conditions. The visual test, metallographic tests, and hardness Vickers HV10 measurements were performed during investigations. The results proved that hydrophobic coatings can reduce the hardness of welded joints in the heat-affected zone by 40–50 HV10. Additionally, the number of cold cracks can be significantly reduced by application of waterproof coatings on the filler material. The obtained results showed that electrode hydrophobic coatings can be used to improve the weldability of HSLA steel in underwater conditions.     

Stress Intensity Factor Assessment for the Reinforcement of Cracked Steel Plates Using Prestressed or Non-Prestressed Adhesively Bonded CFRP

The use of adhesively bonded carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) materials to reinforce cracked steel elements has gained widespread acceptance in order to extend the lifespan of metallic structures. This allows an important reduction of the stress intensity factor (SIF) at the crack tip and thus a significant increase of the fatigue life. This paper deals with the assessment of the SIF for repaired cracked steel plates, using semi-empirical analysis and finite element analysis. Metallic plates with only one crack originating from a center hole were investigated. Virtual crack closure technique (VCCT) was used to define and evaluate the stress intensity factor at crack tip. The obtained modeling results are compared with experimental investigations led by the authors for different reinforcement configurations including symmetrical and non-symmetrical reinforcement, normal modulus and ultra-high-modulus CFRP plates, and pre-stressed CFRP plates. Results show that finite element model (FEM) analysis can obviously simulate the fatigue performance of the CFRP bonded steel plates with different reinforcement configurations. Moreover, a parametric analysis of the influence of the pre-stressing level was also conducted. The results show that an increase of the pre-stressing level results in an increase of the fatigue life of the element.