Advances in Surface Modification of the Materials

A special issue of Applied Sciences (ISSN 2076-3417). This special issue belongs to the section "Applied Physics General".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 January 2022) | Viewed by 26785

Special Issue Editor

Institute of Manufacturing Technologies, Warsaw University of Technology, 85 Narbutta Str., 02-524 Warsaw, Poland
Interests: welding and surface engineering; thermal spraying; coatings; surface modification
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The Section “Advances in Surface Modification of the Materials” of Applied Sciences covers an important domain of research and development. At present, this field has reached such a mature level that is prevalent in production and remanufacturing processes of advanced machine parts. Many domains of activities are concerned, ranging from maritime to the oil industry, including agriculture, aeronautics, communications, energy, etc.

This Special Issue intends to gather original scientific peer-reviewed articles and review articles featuring important and recent developments or achievements of surface modifications with a special emphasis on real or potential applications. The authors are well-known experts in their domain who are invited to submit their contribution at any moment from now to the end of May 2020. The papers can cover either experimental or theoretical aspects or both. Thermal spray, laser and plasma cladding, friction surfacing of the materials and surface characterization, etc. of modern engineer materials.

Prof. Dr. Tomasz Chmielewski
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • surface modification
  • thermal spray
  • laser cladding
  • plasma cladding
  • friction surfacing
  • surface remanufacturing
  • PVD
  • CVD

Published Papers (13 papers)

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Editorial

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4 pages, 203 KiB  
Editorial
Advances in Surface Modification of the Materials
by Tomasz Chmielewski
Appl. Sci. 2022, 12(22), 11432; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/app122211432 - 11 Nov 2022
Viewed by 791
Abstract
The surfaces of engineering materials play key roles in interactions with the environment and very often influence durability under external conditions [...] Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Surface Modification of the Materials)

Research

Jump to: Editorial

13 pages, 6182 KiB  
Article
Wear Resistance Comparison Research of High-Alloy Protective Coatings for Power Industry Prepared by Means of CMT Cladding
by Paweł Kołodziejczak, Mariusz Bober and Tomasz Chmielewski
Appl. Sci. 2022, 12(9), 4568; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/app12094568 - 30 Apr 2022
Cited by 19 | Viewed by 1727
Abstract
In this study, four protective coating materials: Inconel 718, Inconel 625, Alloy 33 and Stellite 6 were deposited on 16Mo3 steel tubes by means of CMT (Cold Metal Transfer), as an advanced version of MAG (Metal Active Gas) welding method. In the next [...] Read more.
In this study, four protective coating materials: Inconel 718, Inconel 625, Alloy 33 and Stellite 6 were deposited on 16Mo3 steel tubes by means of CMT (Cold Metal Transfer), as an advanced version of MAG (Metal Active Gas) welding method. In the next step, the surface of the deposited coating was remelted by means of TIG (Tungsten Inert Gas) welding method. SEM microstructure of coatings–substrate has been reported, and an EDX-researched chemical composition of the coatings was compared to the nominal chemical composition. The hardness distribution in the cross-section was performed, which revealed that among investigated coatings, Stellite 6 layer is the hardest, at about 500 HV0.2. Other materials such as Inconel 625, Inconel 718 and Alloy 33 represented a cladded zone hardness about 250 HV0.2. Stellite 6 layer had the lowest wear resistance in the dry sand/rubber wheel test, and Stellite 6 layer had the highest wear resistance in the erosive blasting test. This proved the existence of different wear mechanisms in the two test methods used. In the dry sand/rubber wheel test, the Alloy 33 and Inconel 718 only represented higher wear resistance than substrate 16Mo3 steel. In abrasive blasting tests all coatings had higher wear resistance than 16Mo3 steel; however, Stellite 6 coatings represented an approximately 5 times higher durability than other investigated (Inconel 625, Inconel 718, and Alloy 33) coatings. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Surface Modification of the Materials)
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9 pages, 2000 KiB  
Article
Boriding of Laser-Clad Inconel 718 Coatings for Enhanced Wear Resistance
by Thomas Lindner, Ali Günen, Gerd Töberling, Sabrina Vogt, Mustafa Serdar Karakas, Martin Löbel and Thomas Lampke
Appl. Sci. 2021, 11(24), 11935; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/app112411935 - 15 Dec 2021
Cited by 14 | Viewed by 1756
Abstract
Nickel-based superalloys are particularly suitable for applications under corrosive conditions. Economic advantages can be achieved by limiting the use of materials to the surface region. Furthermore, the tribological property profile can be significantly improved by surface hardening. In the present study, the possibility [...] Read more.
Nickel-based superalloys are particularly suitable for applications under corrosive conditions. Economic advantages can be achieved by limiting the use of materials to the surface region. Furthermore, the tribological property profile can be significantly improved by surface hardening. In the present study, the possibility of a process combination comprising a coating and a surface hardening technology was investigated. For this purpose, Inconel 718 coatings were applied to austenitic stainless steel by laser cladding. Subsequently, a thermochemical surface hardening by boriding was carried out. Scanning electron microscopic (SEM) examinations were performed to evaluate the microstructure. The phase composition was determined by means of X-ray diffraction (XRD) for the different states of the coating system. The influence of thermochemical hardening was investigated for different wear conditions. The increase in microhardness and wear resistance clearly demonstrates the utilization potential of the presented process combination. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Surface Modification of the Materials)
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13 pages, 6518 KiB  
Article
Laser Assisted Size Reduction of Gold (Au) Particles onto a Titanium (Ti) Substrate Surface
by Oktawian Bialas, Tomasz Poloczek, Mateusz Lis, Adam Skowronek, Jacek Górka and Marcin Adamiak
Appl. Sci. 2021, 11(18), 8755; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/app11188755 - 20 Sep 2021
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1489
Abstract
This paper aims to perform laser assisted size reduction to nanoparticles of gold (Au) sputtered layer on titanium (Ti) base material using an innovative method that could potentially be applied in novel blood contact and thromboresistive devices in the living body, such as [...] Read more.
This paper aims to perform laser assisted size reduction to nanoparticles of gold (Au) sputtered layer on titanium (Ti) base material using an innovative method that could potentially be applied in novel blood contact and thromboresistive devices in the living body, such as ventricular assist devices (VADs). The enrichment of the surface layer of titanium with gold nanoparticles, due to its bioproperties, may contribute to the reduction of inflammatory reactions and infections occurring mainly in the first postoperative period causing implant failure. The possibility of obtaining superficial size reduction and/or bonding of nano gold particles with Ti micromachining by picosecond laser treatment was evaluated. The quantitative assessment of the particles has been made using SEM and are depicted on the histograms, whereby the appropriate number of particles determine the antibacterial properties and health safety. The initial analysis of micromachining process of the prepared material was focused on power-depth dependence by confocal microscopy. The evaluation of gold particles was conducted using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) using SE and QBSD detectors with energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) analysis. Attempts to reduce the deposited gold coating to the size of Au nanoparticles and to melt them into titanium matrix using a laser beam have been successfully completed. There seems to be no strict relationship between particle size distribution of gold onto Ti, probably due to too low energy to excite titanium enough, resulting from difference in Ti and Au melting point temperatures. However, the obtained results allow continuation of pilot studies for augmented research and material properties analysis in the future. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Surface Modification of the Materials)
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13 pages, 1214 KiB  
Article
Effect of Plasma Surface Modification on Print Quality of Biodegradable PLA Films
by Joanna Izdebska-Podsiadły
Appl. Sci. 2021, 11(17), 8245; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/app11178245 - 06 Sep 2021
Cited by 15 | Viewed by 3013
Abstract
PLA films, as non-absorbent materials, require modification of the surface before the printing process in order to improve the wettability of the substrate and to obtain proper ink adhesion to the substrate. In this paper, the surfaces of two kinds of PLA films [...] Read more.
PLA films, as non-absorbent materials, require modification of the surface before the printing process in order to improve the wettability of the substrate and to obtain proper ink adhesion to the substrate. In this paper, the surfaces of two kinds of PLA films were modified using plasma activation with parameters enabling high surface free energy (SFE) values, and then the films were printed on using different kinds of flexographic inks. Two gases, oxygen and argon, were used for activation, as these make it possible to obtain good hydrophilicity and high SFE values while having different effects on the roughness, or the degree of surface etching. Plasma-activated films were subsequently subjected to the measurements of: contact angle with water, diiodomethane and three printing inks, roughness, weight change, strength properties, color and gloss change, and SFE was determined. Unmodified and activated films were flexographically printed in laboratory conditions and then the quality of obtained prints was analyzed. The results showed a strong effect of activation with both oxygen and argon plasma on the SFE value of the films and the contact angles of water and inks, with the gas used for plasma activation and the type of film significantly influencing the thickness of the fused ink layer and the resultant color. Moreover, plasma activation had a especially favorable and significant effect on the quality of prints made with water-based inks, while it had little effect when printing with solvent-based inks. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Surface Modification of the Materials)
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9 pages, 3189 KiB  
Article
Effect of Eigenmode Frequency on Loss Tangent Atomic Force Microscopy Measurements
by Babak Eslami and Dylan Caputo
Appl. Sci. 2021, 11(15), 6813; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/app11156813 - 24 Jul 2021
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2189
Abstract
Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) is no longer used as a nanotechnology tool responsible for topography imaging. However, it is widely used in different fields to measure various types of material properties, such as mechanical, electrical, magnetic, or chemical properties. One of the recently [...] Read more.
Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) is no longer used as a nanotechnology tool responsible for topography imaging. However, it is widely used in different fields to measure various types of material properties, such as mechanical, electrical, magnetic, or chemical properties. One of the recently developed characterization techniques is known as loss tangent. In loss tangent AFM, the AFM cantilever is excited, similar to amplitude modulation AFM (also known as tapping mode); however, the observable aspects are used to extract dissipative and conservative energies per cycle of oscillation. The ratio of dissipation to stored energy is defined as tanδ. This value can provide useful information about the sample under study, such as how viscoelastic or elastic the material is. One of the main advantages of the technique is the fact that it can be carried out by any AFM equipped with basic dynamic AFM characterization. However, this technique lacks some important experimental guidelines. Although there have been many studies in the past years on the effect of oscillation amplitude, tip radius, or environmental factors during the loss tangent measurements, there is still a need to investigate the effect of excitation frequency during measurements. In this paper, we studied four different sets of samples, performing loss tangent measurements with both first and second eigenmode frequencies. It is found that performing these measurements with higher eigenmode is advantageous, minimizing the tip penetration through the surface and therefore minimizing the error in loss tangent measurements due to humidity or artificial dissipations that are not dependent on the actual sample surface. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Surface Modification of the Materials)
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18 pages, 10699 KiB  
Article
EDEM Investigation and Experimental Evaluation of Abrasive Wear Resistance Performance of Bionic Micro-Thorn and Convex Hull Geometrically Coupled Structured Surface
by Qingzhu Zhang, Guobiao Zuo, Qinghui Lai, Jin Tong and Zhihong Zhang
Appl. Sci. 2021, 11(14), 6655; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/app11146655 - 20 Jul 2021
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2001
Abstract
Procambarus clarkii was found to have excellent anti-wear performance against abrasive materials. To improve the wear resistance performance of the soil-engaging component of agricultural machinery, in this study, the micro-thorn and convex hull coupled geometrical structured surfaces inspired from the cephalothorax exoskeleton of [...] Read more.
Procambarus clarkii was found to have excellent anti-wear performance against abrasive materials. To improve the wear resistance performance of the soil-engaging component of agricultural machinery, in this study, the micro-thorn and convex hull coupled geometrical structured surfaces inspired from the cephalothorax exoskeleton of the Procambarus clarkii was selected as the bionic prototype. By adopting bionic engineering techniques, three types of novel geometrical structured surfaces were proposed, which were bionic single, double and triple micro-thorn coupled convex hull surfaces (Bionic Type 2, 3 and 4, respectively). The anti-abrasive wear properties of these proposed geometrical surfaces were compared with a conventional bionic convex hull structured surface (Bionic Type 1) and a surface without any structures (smooth). Abrasive wear tests were conducted by using a rotational abrasive wear testing system. The accumulative test time was 80 h and the total wear distance was 6.09 × 105 m. By adopting the EDEM software (discrete element modeling), the Archard Wear model was selected to simulate the wear behavior of five different surfaces. In addition, the wear mechanisms of different surfaces were investigated. The results showed that the smooth surface suffered the most severe abrasive were, the abrasion loss reached 194.1 mg. The anti-abrasive properties of bionic geometric structured non-smooth surfaces were greatly improved; the reduction in terms of abrasion losses ranged between 20.4% and 94.1%, as compared with the smooth surface. The wear resistance property of micro-thorn and convex hull coupled structured surfaces were greatly improved as compared with convex hull and smooth surface. Bionic Type 3 was found to have the best anti-abrasive wear property: the abrasion loss was 11.5 mg. The wear morphology was observed by a scanning electron microscope. Smooth surface was characterized with wide, large size of grinding debris, while the bionic non-smooth surface featured narrow and small size abrasive dust. The results obtained from EDEM simulation agreed well with those of the aforementioned real scenario tests. It was revealed that the wear areas of the micro-thorn and convex hull coupled structured surface were mainly concentrated on the edge of convex hull and micro-thorn that faced the coming direction of particle flow. The geometric structure of the convex hull had beneficial effects on changing the movement behavior of particles, which means the stream of particle flow could be altered from a sliding to rolling state. Consequently, the ploughing and cutting phenomena of particles that act on the surfaces were greatly mitigated. Moreover, after being coupled with micro-thorns, the anti-abrasive wear preparty of the bionic convex hull geometrical structured surface was further improved. The rebound angle of particle flow that contacted the bionic micro-thorn coupled convex hull structured surface was greater than that of the conventional convex hull surface. Therefore, the dispersion effect of particle flow was further enhanced, since the movement behavior of the subsequent impact particle flow was altered. As a result, the wear of the bionic non-smooth surface was further reduced. This biconically inspired novel micro-thorn and convex hull coupled structured surface could provide theatrical and technical references to enhance the wear resistance performance of the soil-engaging component of agricultural machinery and mitigate the problem of abrasive wear failure. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Surface Modification of the Materials)
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11 pages, 2699 KiB  
Article
Influence of Thermochemical Treatment on the Surface Properties of Finish Turned Wire Arc Sprayed 17Cr Steel Coatings
by Pia Kutschmann, Thomas Lindner, Hendrik Liborius, Thomas Grund, Andreas Schubert and Thomas Lampke
Appl. Sci. 2021, 11(14), 6520; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/app11146520 - 15 Jul 2021
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1378
Abstract
Structural features of thermal spray coatings, e.g., porosity, can be beneficial as oil retention volumes in tribological systems in order to improve emergency running properties. While thermal spray coatings can already have a considerable degree of porosity depending on the coating conditions, the [...] Read more.
Structural features of thermal spray coatings, e.g., porosity, can be beneficial as oil retention volumes in tribological systems in order to improve emergency running properties. While thermal spray coatings can already have a considerable degree of porosity depending on the coating conditions, the finish machining, e.g., by turning, has a significant influence on the final surface properties. Effects like near-surface deformation and subsequent closing of pores during the machining process should be prevented. In the present study, the influence of thermochemical surface hardening on the surface topography of wire arc sprayed 17Cr steel layers after finish turning was investigated. Successful surface hardening by gas nitriding was shown by light microscopic and phase analyses. The surface properties after the various treatment steps were characterized by the surface roughness parameters Ra and Rz, the valley void volume Vvv, and the Abbott curves. A rise of the valley void volume can be beneficial in tribological applications in which a suitable oil retention volume is required. Accordingly, a thermochemical treatment combined with an appropriate subsequent finishing process is suitable to significantly influence the surface properties of thermal spray steel coatings. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Surface Modification of the Materials)
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8 pages, 4507 KiB  
Article
Quality Improvement of Laser-Induced Periodic Ripple Structures on Silicon Using a Bismuth-Indium Alloy Film
by Yao Chen, Yao Shan, Huatian Tu, Haotian Zhang, Rong He, Yuxiang Zheng, Rongjun Zhang, Songyou Wang, Jing Li and Liangyao Chen
Appl. Sci. 2021, 11(2), 632; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/app11020632 - 11 Jan 2021
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1475
Abstract
In this work, a new buffer layer material, a bismuth-indium (Bi-In) alloy, was utilized to improve the quality of large-area, laser-induced periodic ripple structures on silicon. Better-defined ripple structures and larger modification areas were obtained at different scanning speeds by pre-depositing a Bi-In [...] Read more.
In this work, a new buffer layer material, a bismuth-indium (Bi-In) alloy, was utilized to improve the quality of large-area, laser-induced periodic ripple structures on silicon. Better-defined ripple structures and larger modification areas were obtained at different scanning speeds by pre-depositing a Bi-In film. The single-spot investigations indicated that ripple structures were much easier to form on silicon coated with the Bi-In film under laser fluences of 2.04 and 2.55 J/cm2 at a fixed pulse number of 200 in comparison with on bare silicon. A physical model in terms of the excellent thermal conductivity contributed by the free electrons in the Bi-In film homogenizing the thermal distribution caused by the laser irradiation in the early stage of the formation of laser-induced periodic surface structures was proposed to explain the above phenomena. The results show that the Bi-In film enabled a wider range of laser fluences to generate periodic structures and helped to form regular ripple structures on the silicon. In addition, the modulation effects of the laser fluence and pulse number on surface structures were studied experimentally and are discussed in detail. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Surface Modification of the Materials)
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9 pages, 2908 KiB  
Article
Modification of Nanocrystalline Porous Cu2-xSe Films during Argon Plasma Treatment
by Sergey P. Zimin, Ildar I. Amirov, Sergey V. Vasilev, Ivan S. Fedorov, Leonid A. Mazaletskiy and Nam-Hoon Kim
Appl. Sci. 2021, 11(2), 612; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/app11020612 - 10 Jan 2021
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1739
Abstract
Cu2-xSe films were deposited on Corning glass substrates by radio frequency (RF) magnetron sputtering and annealed at 300 °C for 20 min under N2 gas ambient. The films had a thickness of 850–870 nm and a chemical composition of Cu [...] Read more.
Cu2-xSe films were deposited on Corning glass substrates by radio frequency (RF) magnetron sputtering and annealed at 300 °C for 20 min under N2 gas ambient. The films had a thickness of 850–870 nm and a chemical composition of Cu1.75Se. The initial structure of the films was nanocrystalline with a complex architecture and pores. The investigated films were plasma treated with RF (13.56 MHz) high-density low-pressure inductively coupled argon plasma. The plasma treatment was conducted at average ion energies of 25 and 200 eV for durations of 30, 60, and 90 s. Notably, changes are evident in the surface morphology, and the chemical composition of the films changed from x = 0.25 to x = 0.10 to x = 0.00, respectively, after plasma treatment at average ion energies of 25 and 200 eV, respectively. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Surface Modification of the Materials)
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11 pages, 5525 KiB  
Article
Analysis of Wear-Resistant Surface with Pangolin Scale Morphology by DEM Simulation
by Rui Zhang, Haibin Yu, Hao Pang, Guangming Chen and Weihsun Tai
Appl. Sci. 2020, 10(8), 2896; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/app10082896 - 22 Apr 2020
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1839
Abstract
Based on the Discrete Element Method (DEM), an abrasive wear system composed of pangolin scale models and abrasive sand was established. The wear morphology of pangolin scale models under different velocities were simulated by PFC2D®. Their wear behaviors were discussed with [...] Read more.
Based on the Discrete Element Method (DEM), an abrasive wear system composed of pangolin scale models and abrasive sand was established. The wear morphology of pangolin scale models under different velocities were simulated by PFC2D®. Their wear behaviors were discussed with regard to the contact bond fields, the contact force chains, the velocity fields and the displacement fields of the abrasive wear system. Moreover, the resistance of the pangolin scale models under different velocities were analyzed. In the DEM simulation, the fracture and debris locomotion on the scale model were observed at a meso-microscopic scale. The results show that the geometrical shape of the pangolin scale is helpful for decreasing the boundary stress, with the wear rate decreasing when the velocity is higher than 0.62 m·s−1. The wear rate is no more than 0.006 g/m under the abrasive sand, with a radius of 0.11–0.20 mm. The wear rates of the pangolin scale model agree with the experimental results, and the DEM provides a new way to study the abrasive wear behavior of this non-smooth biological surface. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Surface Modification of the Materials)
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13 pages, 4096 KiB  
Article
Antifungal Properties of Pure Silver Films with Nanoparticles Induced by Pulsed-Laser Dewetting Process
by Ying-Hong Lin, Jyun-Jhih Wang, Yung-Ting Wang, Hsuan-Kai Lin and Yi-Jia Lin
Appl. Sci. 2020, 10(7), 2260; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/app10072260 - 26 Mar 2020
Cited by 10 | Viewed by 2783
Abstract
Silver particles were prepared by dewetting Ag films coated on glass using a fiber laser. The size of the particles was controlled in the range of 92 nm–1.2 μm by adjusting the thickness of the Ag film. The structural properties and surface roughness [...] Read more.
Silver particles were prepared by dewetting Ag films coated on glass using a fiber laser. The size of the particles was controlled in the range of 92 nm–1.2 μm by adjusting the thickness of the Ag film. The structural properties and surface roughness of the particles were evaluated by means of scanning electron microscopy. In addition, the antifungal activity of the Ag particles was examined using spore suspensions of Colletotrichum gloeosporioides. It is shown that particles with a size of 1.2 μm achieved 100% inhibition of conidia growth of C. gloeosporioides after a contact time of just 5 min. Furthermore, the smaller particles also achieved good antifungal activity given a longer contact time. Similar results were observed for spore germination and pathogenicity tests performed on mango fruit and leaves. Overall, the results confirm that Ag particles have an excellent antifungal effect on C. gloeosporioides. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Surface Modification of the Materials)
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16 pages, 4589 KiB  
Article
Underwater In Situ Local Heat Treatment by Additional Stitches for Improving the Weldability of Steel
by Jacek Tomków and Anna Janeczek
Appl. Sci. 2020, 10(5), 1823; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/app10051823 - 06 Mar 2020
Cited by 24 | Viewed by 3196
Abstract
In this paper the influence of in situ local heat treatment performed by additional stitches on the weldability of high-strength low-alloy (HSLA) S355J2C+N steel was tested. The investigated steel is characterized by high susceptibility to cold cracking. It is necessary to find a [...] Read more.
In this paper the influence of in situ local heat treatment performed by additional stitches on the weldability of high-strength low-alloy (HSLA) S355J2C+N steel was tested. The investigated steel is characterized by high susceptibility to cold cracking. It is necessary to find a method to improve the quality of welded joints. The local heat treatment was applied as an effect of bead-on plate welding made on the face of a Tekken test joint. The specimens were made by the use of covered electrodes in the water environment. For testing weldability, Tekken test specimens were made. Then, the different number of the pad welds with different overlapping were laid on the face of the tested welds. Non-destructive (NDT) visual and penetrant tests were undertaken. During the NDT, imperfections like shape mistakes and spatters were found. Then, metallographic macro- and microscopic testing were performed. The macroscopic observations proved that water environment can generate imperfections like cracking and pores. However, for specimens with additional stitches the number of imperfections decreased. Microscopic tests proved that the proposed technique affected the structure of the heat-affected zone (HAZ). The specimens without the application of additional stitches are characterized by brittle bainitic and martensitic structure. Specimens, in which the additional stitches were applied, contain tempered martensite, fine ferrite and fine pearlite in their HAZ. It was also observed that the number of cracks decreased for in situ local heat-treatment specimens. The final step was Vickers HV10 hardness measurement. These measurements confirmed previous results. The heat from additional stitches affected the steel by significantly decreasing the hardness by 80–100 HV10. The results of experiments showed that the heat from pad welds provided microstructural changes in heat-affected zones and a decrease in the susceptibility to cold cracking, which results in improvement in the weldability of HSLA steel in wet welding conditions. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Surface Modification of the Materials)
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