{"title":"Analysis of contact state and fracture mode of WC-10Co/B318 steel joint fabricated by resistance welding","authors":"Lingyu Chen , Chong Zhang , Guoyue Liu , Zhongning Guo","doi":"10.1016/j.ijrmhm.2025.107083","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ijrmhm.2025.107083","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The dissimilar joining of B318 steel and two shapes (spherical and cylindrical) of WC-10Co pellets was performed using resistance welding for application in bimetal band saw blades. The study investigates the effects of pellet shape on joint characteristics and contact state by analyzing the welding process, dynamic resistance, temperature field, macroscopic and microscopic joint morphology, and fracture mode. The results indicated that the shear force of joints with different shapes initially increases before decreasing as the welding current rises. The welding range for the spherical joint is narrower than that for the cylindrical joint, and no reaction layer is formed at the joint. In contrast, the cylindrical joint exhibits a shear force of 1175.3N at 750 A, representing the highest value among the two shapes across various welding currents. Under this parameter, the thickness of the formed reaction layer of the cylindrical joint is moderate, with no severe element loss, and fractures occur in the steel's heat-affected zone (HAZ). High-speed photography results showed that spherical joints generate heat faster than cylindrical joints. Numerical simulation results indicated that the peak temperature in spherical joints is higher than in cylindrical joints. These differences can be attributed to variations in pellet curvatures of different shapes, leading to different contact states of the workpieces during welding. This affected the heat generation process, the amount of joint deformation, and the elemental migration and metallurgical reactions at the joint interface. Comparing all aspects, the welding performance of the cylindrical joint proves superior to that of the spherical joint.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":14216,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Refractory Metals & Hard Materials","volume":"128 ","pages":"Article 107083"},"PeriodicalIF":4.2,"publicationDate":"2025-01-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143174310","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Prince Sharma , William C. Tucker , Ganesh Balasubramanian
{"title":"Optimal interplay of charge localization, lattice dynamics and slip systems drives structural softening in dilute W alloys with Re additives","authors":"Prince Sharma , William C. Tucker , Ganesh Balasubramanian","doi":"10.1016/j.ijrmhm.2025.107086","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ijrmhm.2025.107086","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Body centered cubic metals, such as tungsten (W), and their alloys exhibit superior mechanical properties such as high tensile strength and hardness, but their limited ductility contributes to brittleness and causes challenges in manufacturing and machining. While the ductilizing effect of Re additives in dilute W alloys is well reported, a fundamental understanding of the variations in elastic properties with temperature as well as the optimal composition that drives the softening mechanism, is warranted. Here we employ a combination of <em>ab initio</em> molecular simulations and experimental characterization to probe the structural softening in dilute W-Re alloys. We reveal that the coupled effect of charge localization around Re atoms and the predominance of softer phonon modes for a W alloy with 3.1 at.% Re results in the lowest values for the elastic moduli. We develop a probabilistic theory based on the likelihood of Re atoms to be located on the 〈111〉 family of slip directions, to explain the optimum fraction of Re that enhances the structural softening in the alloy. In essence, we corroborate that softening is realized through a reduction of intervening and mutually obstructing slip systems, interlinked with the electronic structure and lattice dynamics.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":14216,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Refractory Metals & Hard Materials","volume":"128 ","pages":"Article 107086"},"PeriodicalIF":4.2,"publicationDate":"2025-01-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143174322","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Bo Yang , Jingtao Chen , Xiaoyang Bi , Bingbing Yang , Jiahao Shi , Xiangyang Ding , Wenxing Yu , Ning Hu
{"title":"Temperature-induced tunable surface roughness in polycrystalline diamond","authors":"Bo Yang , Jingtao Chen , Xiaoyang Bi , Bingbing Yang , Jiahao Shi , Xiangyang Ding , Wenxing Yu , Ning Hu","doi":"10.1016/j.ijrmhm.2025.107084","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ijrmhm.2025.107084","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Polycrystalline diamond (PCD) exhibits ultra-high hardness, fracture toughness and thermal conductivity, which is suitable for service at extreme temperatures. However, the correlation mechanism between temperature and surface roughness in PCD is still unclear, resulting in the inability to obtain atomic-scale surface. Therefore, the surface roughness of PCD at different temperatures was measured using an atomic force microscope, confirming that grain thermal expansion due to temperature has a significant impact on the surface roughness of PCD. Molecular dynamics simulation shows that the coefficient of thermal expansion of PCD decreases with a gradual increase in its average grain size. When the temperature changes, the model with a smaller average grain size exhibits more pronounced expansion compared to the model with a larger average grain size. This expansion inhomogeneity directly contributes to the variation in PCD surface roughness as a function of temperature. Inspired by the above, retaining an appropriate inverse height difference between grains on the surface of PCD based on the mapping relationship between service temperature and surface grain deformation at room temperature. So then, when PCD is raised from room temperature to service temperature, the different grains will be expanded to an approximate height level to obtain an ultra-smooth surface.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":14216,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Refractory Metals & Hard Materials","volume":"128 ","pages":"Article 107084"},"PeriodicalIF":4.2,"publicationDate":"2025-01-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143403198","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Detailed microstructure and the influence of post-treatment on CVD TiAlN wear-resistant coatings","authors":"Monica Mead , Olof Bäcke , Thorsten Manns , Dirk Stiens , Mats Halvarsson","doi":"10.1016/j.ijrmhm.2025.107077","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ijrmhm.2025.107077","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>In this work, the growth modes of low-pressure chemical vapour deposition (LP-CVD) nano-lamellar TiAlN coatings deposited on cemented carbide substrates and the influence of blasting post-treatment on the microstructure are investigated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM) and transmission Kikuchi diffraction (TKD). Detailed information on the microstructure is revealed and gives insight into the growth mechanisms during deposition. Local information on the influence of blast-treatment on the micro- and nanostructure reveals how the material is influenced by external stresses on a microstructural level.</div><div>Two distinct surface morphologies corresponding to specific grain orientations with <111> and <110> directions parallel to the coating normal are observed. Additionally, a growth mechanism is proposed, which suggests that the surface reaction kinetics are influenced by the detailed microstructure of the grains, leading to locally varying Al/Ti ratios. Blast-treatment of the TiAlN coatings leads to bending and intermixing of the nano-lamellae, where the direct visualization of the lamellae enabled the estimation of the deformation. Continuous lattice rotations were observed in the near-surface region, where the magnitude of the lattice rotation in areas with a high orientation density of <110> directions was more pronounced as compared to areas with a high orientation density of <111> directions. This could be related to the local Schmid factors.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":14216,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Refractory Metals & Hard Materials","volume":"129 ","pages":"Article 107077"},"PeriodicalIF":4.2,"publicationDate":"2025-01-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143478959","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Yifan Shi , Fei Zhang , Zulai Li , Mulan Peng , Zhixiang Yang , Di Wu , Lin Yang , He Wei , Quan Shan
{"title":"Research on the characteristics of interface-phase Fe6W6C and abrasive-wear performance of WC/Fe matrix surface composite materials","authors":"Yifan Shi , Fei Zhang , Zulai Li , Mulan Peng , Zhixiang Yang , Di Wu , Lin Yang , He Wei , Quan Shan","doi":"10.1016/j.ijrmhm.2025.107079","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ijrmhm.2025.107079","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This study examines the three-body abrasive-wear performance of WC/Fe surface composites subjected to different matrices, including high‑chromium cast iron (HCCI) and cast steel. These findings indicate that a composite zone can be formed between the matrix and WC preforms, accompanied by a substantial precipitation of carbides. A well-bonded semi-coherent interface forms between Fe<sub>6</sub>W<sub>6</sub>C and Fe, and the orientation relationship of Fe (110)BCC//Fe<sub>6</sub>W<sub>6</sub>C(111) FCC is the N<img>W (Nishiyama Wassermann) orientation relationship. The partial density of states indicates that the highest average layout number of W<img>W bonds at the interface is 0.53, which corresponds to the highest bonding strength at an average bond length of 2.83 Å. Compared with high‑manganese steel (HMS) and high‑carbon steel (HCS) specimens, the HCCI specimen exhibits the lowest weight loss of 0.075 g. Furthermore, its surface roughness is low (3.337 μm), and its wear resistance is 24.09 % and 15.59 % greater than those of the HMS and HCS specimens, respectively.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":14216,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Refractory Metals & Hard Materials","volume":"128 ","pages":"Article 107079"},"PeriodicalIF":4.2,"publicationDate":"2025-01-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143174307","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Xiaohua Ke , Xiongwen Yang , Vishnu Prasad , Qi Peng , Xiao Feng , Zhiping Li
{"title":"Effect of thermal residual stress on the impact failure of PDC in application","authors":"Xiaohua Ke , Xiongwen Yang , Vishnu Prasad , Qi Peng , Xiao Feng , Zhiping Li","doi":"10.1016/j.ijrmhm.2025.107078","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ijrmhm.2025.107078","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>In the application of polycrystalline diamond compact (PDC) bits, more than 90 % of PDC cutters premature failure is directly or indirectly caused by excessive impact. During the different impact failures, the thermal residual stress plays a different role. In this study, PDC specimens—designated S1, S2, and S3—were fabricated using intial diamond powders of varying grain sizes (12 μm, 15 μm, and 18 μm, respectively) and a YG16 tungsten carbide substrate at 1500 °C and 7 GPa. A new method was selected by understanding the deformation of different sections of the PDC blanks after sintering to observe and calculate the thermal residual stress at the interface. The result shows that S2 exhibits the lowest thermal residual stress (0.26 GPa), representing a reduction of 73 % and 56 % compared to S1 (0.92 GPa) and S3 (0.59 GPa), respectively. To further evaluate the effects of thermal residual stress, impact tests simulating drilling conditions were conducted. The test result shows that the thermal residual stress at the interface has little effect on the transverse impact resistance, but has a significant effect on the longitudinal impact resistance of PDC. Additionally, the distribution of cobalt (Co) within the PCD and the state of transition layers between PCD and substrate also reflects the magnitude of thermal residual stress. The microstructure shows initial crack formation tends to occur at the interface and then propagate along the gradient lines of residual stress concentration.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":14216,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Refractory Metals & Hard Materials","volume":"128 ","pages":"Article 107078"},"PeriodicalIF":4.2,"publicationDate":"2025-01-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143174311","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Xuchao Huang , Wenbin Liu , Yanchao Li , Wen Zhang , Taotao Ai , Yichao Yang , Xiaoming Feng , Wenhu Li
{"title":"Hot deformation behavior and microstructure evolution of WRe alloy under high temperature compression","authors":"Xuchao Huang , Wenbin Liu , Yanchao Li , Wen Zhang , Taotao Ai , Yichao Yang , Xiaoming Feng , Wenhu Li","doi":"10.1016/j.ijrmhm.2025.107073","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ijrmhm.2025.107073","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The hot deformation behavior and microstructural evolution of a powder metallurgy W<img>25Re alloy have been investigated by conducting hot compression tests in the temperature range of 1670–1870 K and strain rate range of 0.001–0.1 s<sup>−1</sup>. Based on the experimental results, a constitutive model with a correlation coefficient of 0.974 was established to predict the yield stresses. Furthermore, a hot processing map was constructed in the temperature range of 1670–1870 K and strain rate range of 0.001–0.1 s<sup>−1</sup> to determine the optimum hot processing parameters for the W<img>25Re alloy. In addition, the microstructural evolution of the material was analyzed using electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) techniques. The results indicate that dynamic recovery is the dominant softening mechanism during hot compression. However, the softening effect of dynamic recrystallization becomes more significant with increasing temperature and decreasing strain rate. At deformation temperatures of 1670 K and 1770 K, the alloy exhibited strong 〈100〉// compression direction (CD) and 〈111〉//CD fiber textures. When the deformation temperature is increased to 1870 K, the texture changes from <100>//CD to 〈111〉//CD. The investigation of the thermal deformation mechanism shows that the {123}〈111〉 slip system dominates the thermal deformation process.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":14216,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Refractory Metals & Hard Materials","volume":"128 ","pages":"Article 107073"},"PeriodicalIF":4.2,"publicationDate":"2025-01-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143174313","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Novel radiation dense hard materials: Reactive sintered borides","authors":"G. Singh, J. Gillham, J.M. Marshall","doi":"10.1016/j.ijrmhm.2025.107074","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ijrmhm.2025.107074","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Reactive sintered borides (RSB) were first synthesised in 2016 and are novel hard materials developed as a lower-energy (< 1 keV) neutron absorber with an initial focus for compact radiation shielding in fusion reactors. Despite their novelty, there has been much research on the development and testing of RSBs as candidate nuclear shielding materials. RSBs have attracted considerable attention as low-energy neutron shielding material in combination with low-activation cemented tungsten carbides (cWC) to form the cWC-RSB concept for compact radiation shielding which has the potential to attenuate neutron and γ-rays equal or better than to that of metallic tungsten Mechanical testing indicates that most RSB compositions have hardness and toughness similar to fine-grained cWCs.</div><div>This work details the current state-of-the-art of RSB development and analysis. This includes microscopy, proton and gamma irradiation, RSB-specific sintering processing, exploration of the phase diagram, and mechanical properties of RSBs. Dense RSBs of a variety of compositions have been synthesised demonstrating the potential of RSBs as radiation dense materials and new hard materials.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":14216,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Refractory Metals & Hard Materials","volume":"128 ","pages":"Article 107074"},"PeriodicalIF":4.2,"publicationDate":"2025-01-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143174306","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Olof Bäcke , Henrik Petterson , Dirk Stiens , Wiebke Janssen , Johannes Kümmel , Thorsten Manns , Hans-Olof Andrén , Mats Halvarsson
{"title":"Microstructural investigations of textured CVD (Al,Ti)N/κ-Al2O3 wear resistant coatings","authors":"Olof Bäcke , Henrik Petterson , Dirk Stiens , Wiebke Janssen , Johannes Kümmel , Thorsten Manns , Hans-Olof Andrén , Mats Halvarsson","doi":"10.1016/j.ijrmhm.2025.107075","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ijrmhm.2025.107075","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>In this work, the deposition of κ-Al<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> on textured (Al,Ti)N coatings using chemical vapour deposition (CVD) is explored. Two TiN/(Al,Ti)N/κ-Al<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> coatings with different texture for the (Al,Ti)N layer, 〈111〉 and 〈100〉, have been investigated. The coatings were characterized using X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, transmission and scanning transmission electron microscopy and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy.</div><div>The κ-Al<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> layer deposited on the 〈111〉 textured (Al,Ti)N layer has a 〈001〉 texture, while the κ-Al<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> deposited on the 〈100〉 textured (Al,Ti)N layer shows no clear texture. The difference in κ-Al<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> texture is driven by the (Al,Ti)N facets available for alumina nucleation. κ-Al<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> forms on {111} (Al,Ti)N facets, while γ-Al<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> forms on {100} (Al,Ti)N facets. γ-Al<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> growth is not stable and is subsequently overgrown by κ-Al<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub>. The surface of the 〈100〉 textured (Al,Ti)N layer is dominated by {100} facets, while the surface of the 〈111〉 textured (Al,Ti)N layer is built up of a mixture of {100} and {111} facets. This explains the observed microstructure for the κ-Al<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> layers in the two coatings. Thus, to optimize the deposition of κ-Al<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> on (Al,Ti)N, the latter should exhibit {111} facets.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":14216,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Refractory Metals & Hard Materials","volume":"128 ","pages":"Article 107075"},"PeriodicalIF":4.2,"publicationDate":"2025-01-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143357998","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
L. Cabezas , C. Berger , S. Bridy , E. Jiménez-Piqué , P. Moreno , J. Pötschke , L. Llanes
{"title":"Fracture behavior of binder jetting 3D printed cemented carbides: Influence of printing direction and testing configuration","authors":"L. Cabezas , C. Berger , S. Bridy , E. Jiménez-Piqué , P. Moreno , J. Pötschke , L. Llanes","doi":"10.1016/j.ijrmhm.2025.107069","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ijrmhm.2025.107069","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Cemented carbides exhibit an outstanding performance as materials for tools and components. As applications of these materials become more and more challenging, complex tool geometries are often needed to suit the extreme requirements. Within this context, Additive Manufacturing (AM) has emerged as a popular option, as they combine a group of processing techniques involving layer-by-layer printing. In general, AMed samples are expected to exhibit characteristics linked to the layer-by-layer wise shaping route; and hence, a dependence of the mechanical properties on layer directionality may come out. It is then the main objective of this study to investigate, document and understand the fracture behavior of WC-12<sub>wt.</sub>Co samples fabricated via binder jetting printing (BJT), as a function of layer assemblage orientation. In doing so, specimens corresponding to four combinations of two printing directions and two testing configurations were studied. Use of samples micronotched by means of ultrashort pulsed laser ablation allowed to conclude that, similar to microstructure and hardness, fracture toughness of BJT cemented carbides exhibits an isotropic behavior. However, this is not the case for flexural strength, property for which a strong dependence on the relative orientation of layer assemblage is assessed. In this regard, higher strength and wider data dispersion are attained as loading is applied perpendicular to planes containing layer interfaces, as compared to the parallel case. Similar characteristic strength levels together with relatively lower Weibull modulii, as compared to conventionally manufactured WC-Co grades with similar microstructures, are determined. Extensive and detailed fractographic inspection of broken surfaces allows to conclude that specific location, orientation and distribution of flaws intrinsic to layer interfaces as well as printing route followed, depending on testing configuration, are key factors for defining strength level and dispersion in each case.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":14216,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Refractory Metals & Hard Materials","volume":"128 ","pages":"Article 107069"},"PeriodicalIF":4.2,"publicationDate":"2025-01-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143174309","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}