High carbon bainitic steel plates could surpass quench and tempered martensitic counterparts for fabrication of ammunition- and blast-resistant armours. Mechanical properties, microstructure and reaction kinetics of a commercially available carbide-free nanoscale bainite alloy were characterized. Based on the initial characterization and a comprehensive review of the literature a new alloy with lower carbon, higher silicon and cobalt additions was designed and processed into hot-rolled plates (10x10mm and 300x300mm) using CanmetMATERIALS pilot-scale facilities. The heat treated plates achieved strength above 2 GPa with elongation of 14%. Thorough analysis with electron backscattered diffraction revealed that the microstructure consisted of bainitic ferrite laths, islands of retained austenite, areas of mixed martensite-austenite (MA). Transmission electron microscopy confirmed the fine scale of bainitic ferrite and the presence of thin films of retained austenite encompassing bainite laths. Dilatometric study of the new alloy revealed that forming bainite at higher transformation temperatures, 275°C versus 250°C and 225°C, led to faster overall reaction kinetics and higher final fractions of bainite within 18 hours of isothermal holding. Although it is expected that the fraction of bainite increases at lower temperatures, substantial prolonged holding time is required for completion of the reaction. Microstructural features and particularly bainite lath thickness depended on bainite formation temperature. Ausforming, deformation of austenite at 600°C for 25-45% strain prior to decomposition to bainite, however led to a decrease in reaction rate and final fraction of bainite. Tensile testing of austempered specimens showed that higher transformation temperature yielded a stronger microstructure, which was attributed to the formation of thinner bainitic ferrite laths. Higher transformation temperatures led to an increase in ductility. Tensile testing of the ausformed specimens showed a reduction in both strength and ductility. A negative correlation was seen between the amount of MA areas in the microstructure and total elongation. / Thesis / Master of Science in Materials Science and Engineering (MSMSE) / This project has adopted the science of bainite transformation to develop a suitable alloy and processing method for the fabrication of very strong armour plates at a lower cost compared to commercially available grades. The pilot-scale casting and processing facility at CanmetMATERIALS centre was used to produce full sized, 1ft (304.8mm) by 1ft (304.5mm), prototype armour plates. The plates were subsequently characterized using a variety of techniques to determine interplay between processing parameters, microstructure and the ensuing final performance. The optimized alloy, tailored processing parameters, and characterization information constitute the contribution of the present work to the current state of research.

Orientador: Sergio Tonini Button / Tese (doutorado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Faculdade de Engenharia Mecanica / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-09T12:42:48Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Caminaga_Celio_D.pdf: 45945732 bytes, checksum: 36b9f4a15a23ccd9e0ad12b26cfe5931 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2007 / Resumo: A exigência por parte das montadoras por produtos com maior qualidade, a preços mais baixos e com diminuição do prazo de entrega, faz com que as indústrias de autopeças concentrem esforços na busca de processos e materiais alternativos. Os processos de forjamento a quente aliados aos aços microligados, que também são conhecidos como aços de alta resistência e baixa liga (ARBL), tem uma extensa aplicação em componentes automotivos. A proposta deste trabalho é estudar o comportamento microestrutural e mecânico (resistência e tenacidade) do aço microligado 27MnSiVS6, quando empregado no processo ausforming, a fim de analisar-se o desempenho do processo e a qualidade dos produtos, comparando-o com os processos de forjamento a quente e a morno. Os produtos forjados proveniente do processo de ausforming que foram submetidos aos ensaios de tração unidirecional, dureza, fadiga em flexão rotativa e tenacidade a fratura apresentaram as melhores propriedades mecânicas. A microscopia óptica e microscopia eletrônica (varredura e transmissão) que foram utilizadas para caracterização microestrutural dos produtos forjados demonstraram o refino dos grãos ferríticos, a presença de inclusões não metálicas (MnS) e a contribuição dos mecanismos de endurecimento ao limite de escoamento. Os testes estatísticos aplicados aos resultados permitiram concluir, que os produtos obtidos pelo processo de forjamento ausforming apresentam a melhor combinação de resistência mecânica e qualidade superficial dos produtos forjados, sem aumentar a carga de forjamento / Abstract: The demand of the automotive industry for parts with high overall quality, low costs and reduced time to market, forced the suppliers to search alternative materials and manufacturing processes. Hot forgings with microalloyed steels, also known as HSLA (High Strength Low Alloy), represent an extensive application in automotive parts. The main objective of this work is to study the workability of a microalloyed steel deformed by ausforming and compare the products microstructures and forming loads to those obtained by hot and warm forging. Results from preliminary upsetting tests confirmed the viability of this study. Finally forgings tests were held to define the forming load and to analyze products microstructures for these three processes. Forgings were analyzed by tensile tests, fatigue under cyclic flexion tests, and fracture toughness tests. Optical and electronic microscopy (SEM and TEM) applied to evaluate the forgings microstructure showed the ferritic grain refinement, the presence of non-metallic inclusions (MnS) and confirmed the contribution of hardening mechanisms to increase the yield strength of forging products. The statistical analysis of the experimental results showed that ausforming is a suitable process to substitute hot and warm forging since ausforming presented lower loads when compared to warm forging, and ausformed forgings presented the best combination of mechanical strength and surface quality, without a significant increase of the forging loads / Doutorado / Materiais e Processos de Fabricação / Doutor em Engenharia Mecânica

Les aciers martensitiques revenus à 9%Cr sont actuellement employés dans les centrales thermiques conventionnelles et en pétrochimie. En raison d'une combinaison de propriétés et d'un coût de fabrication attractifs, ils sont également envisagés comme matériaux constitutifs de différents composants des réacteurs nucléaires du futur. Pour optimiser leurs propriétés mécaniques à haute température (~500-650°C), on envisage notamment d'appliquer un traitement thermomécanique de type « austéniformage » constitué d'une austénitisation, d'un laminage en phase austénitique métastable à 500-600°C, d'une trempe et d'un revenu. Ce travail de thèse vise à comprendre les influences respectives de chaque étape du traitement thermomécanique, notamment celle du laminage à tiède, sur la microstructure et les propriétés mécaniques résultantes.Pour différentes conditions de traitement, avec et sans laminage à tiède, les microstructures ont été systématiquement caractérisées à différentes échelles (MEB, MET, diffraction et diffusion centrale des neutrons). La martensite des états laminés à tiède présente des lattes plus fines et une densité de dislocations plus élevée par rapport aux états non laminés. Elle peut, dans certains cas, être partiellement recristallisée après revenu, signe d'un certain « héritage » de la déformation appliquée en phase austénitique métastable. Contrairement à ce qui pouvait être attendu, le laminage à tiède n'affecte pas significativement la précipitation, qui s'avère être gouvernée au premier ordre par les températures d'austénitisation et de revenu.Le laminage à tiède augmente significativement la résistance en traction et en fluage mais dégrade la ductilité. La température de transition ductile/fragile est fortement augmentée. Certains états laminés à tiède présentent une sensibilité à l'endommagement intergranulaire aussi bien à basse température (en résilience) qu'à haute température (en fluage). D'autre part, le laminage à tiède n'améliore pas, voire accentue l'adoucissement cyclique en fatigue-fluage. L'ensemble des caractéristiques microstructurales ont été quantitativement reliées aux propriétés mécaniques à 20°C par l'application d'un modèle de durcissement structural. La transposition de ce modèle permet également de prédire raisonnablement la limite d'élasticité et la résistance mécanique à 550°C et à 650°C. / 9%Cr tempered martensitic steels are currently used in fossil power and in petrochemical plants. Due to attractive properties and manufacturing costs, there are also potential candidates for structural components of new generation nuclear reactors. To optimize their high temperatures mechanical properties (~500-650°C), a thermal-mechanical treatment based on “ausforming” is being considered. It is composed of an austenitization step, followed by warm-rolling of metastable austenite at intermediate temperatures (500-600°C), then quenching and tempering. This study aims at understanding the effects of each of these steps, and particularly the warm-rolling of the metastable austenite, on the resulting microstructure and mechanical properties.After applying a variety of thermal-mechanical treatment conditions, with or without warm rolling, the microstructures were systematically characterized at various scales by SEM, TEM, SANS, and neutron diffraction. Martensite laths are finer and dislocations density is higher in warm-rolled samples compared to thermally treated samples. In some cases, warm-rolled + tempered microstructures were partially recrystallized, showing that tempered martensite keeps a “memory” of previous rolling of metastable austenite. Contrary to what was expected, warm-rolling did not affect precipitation, which is principally governed by austenitizing and tempering temperatures.Warm-rolling lead to a remarkable increase in tensile and creep strength but strongly impairs ductility and significantly increases the ductile-to-brittle transition temperature. Some of the warm-rolled materials are sensitive to intergranular failure at both low (Charpy impact tests) and high temperature (creep tests). Moreover, warm-rolling of metastable austenite does not improve, and even increases cyclic softening. All microstructural features have been quantitatively linked to mechanical properties at 20°C, by applying a structural hardening model that could be reasonably transposed to predict yield and tensile strength at higher temperatures (i.e., 550°C and 650°C).