Duplex stainless steels (DSS), with a ferritic-austenitic microstructure, are used ina wide range of applications thanks to their high corrosion resistance and excellent mechanical properties. However, efficient and successful production and joining of DSS require precise control of processes and an in-depth understanding o frelations between composition, processing thermal cycles, resulting microstructures and properties. In this study laser welding, laser reheating, and laser additive manufacturing using Laser Metal Deposition with Wire (LMDw) ofDSS and resulting weld and component microstructures and properties are explored. In the first part a lean FDX 27 duplex stainless steel, showing the transformation induced plasticity (TRIP) effect, was autogenously laser welded and laser reheated using pure argon or pure nitrogen as shielding gas. The weld metal austenite fraction was 22% for argon-shielding and 39% for nitrogen-shielding in as-welded conditions. Less nitrides were found with nitrogen-shielding compared to argonshielding. Laser reheating did not significantly affect nitride content or austenite fraction for argon-shielding. However, laser reheating of the nitrogen shieldedweld removed nitrides and increased the austenite fraction to 57% illustrating the effectiveness of this approach. Phase fraction analysis is important for DSS since the balance between ferrite and austenite affects properties. For TRIP steels the possibility of austenite tomartensite transformation during sample preparation also has to be considered. Phases in the laser welded and reheated FDX 27 DSS were identified and quantified using light optical microscopy (LOM) and electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) analysis. An optimized Beraha color etching procedure was developed for identification of martensite by LOM. A novel step-by-step EBSD methodology was also introduced, which successfully identified and quantified martensite as well as ferrite and austenite. It was found that mechanical polishing produced up to 26% strain-induced martensite, while no martensite was observed after electrolytic polishing.In the second part a systematic four-stage methodology was applied to develop procedures for additive manufacturing of standard 22% Cr duplex stainless steel components using LMDw combined with the hot wire technology. In the four stages, single-bead passes, a single-bead wall, a block, and finally a cylinder with an inner diameter of 160 mm, thickness of 30 mm, and height of 140 mm were produced. The as-deposited microstructure was inhomogeneous and repetitive including highly ferritic regions with nitrides and regions with high fractions ofaustenite. Heat treatment for 1 hour at 1100 ̊C homogenized the microstructure, removed nitrides, and produced an austenite fraction of about 50%. Strength, ductility, and toughness were at a high level for the cylinder, comparable to those of wrought type 2205 steel, both as-deposited and after heat treatment. The highest strength was achieved for the as-deposited condition with a yield strength of 765 MPa and a tensile strength of 865 MPa, while the highest elongation of 35% was found after heat treatment. Epitaxial growth of ferrite during solidification, giving elongated grains along the build direction, resulted in anisotropy of toughness properties. The highest impact toughness energies were measured for specimens with the notch perpendicular to the build direction after heat treatment with close to 300 J at -10oC. It was concluded that implementing a systematic methodology with a stepwise increase in the deposited volume and geometrical complexity can successfully be used when developing additive manufacturing procedures for significantly sized metallic components. This study has illustrated that a laser beam can successfully be used as heat source in processing of duplex stainless steel both for welding and additive manufacturing. However, challenges like nitrogen loss, low austenite fractions and nitride formation have to be handled by precise process control and/or heat treatment. / Duplexa rostfria stål (DSS) är viktiga konstruktionsmaterial tack vare derasutmärkta mekaniska egenskaper och goda korrosionsbeständighet. Vid svetsningoch additiv tillverkning krävs noggrann styrning av parametrar och kunskap om processernas inverkan på mikrostrukturen för att uppnå önskade egenskaper.Lasersvetsning, värmebehandling med laser och additiv tillverkning i form av lasermetalldeponering med tråd (LMDw) har därför studerats för DSS. Det duplexa stålet FDX 27 lasersvetsades utan tillsatsmaterial och med argon ellerkväve som skyddsgas. Kvävgasskydd gav mer austenit och färre nitrider änargonskydd. En efterföljande laservärmebehandling löste upp nitriderna då kväve användes som skyddsgas och austenithalten ökade till 57%. Austeniten i FDX 27kan vid deformation omvandlas till martensit. Två metoder för identifiering av martensit utvecklades därför: en färgetsmetod för ljusoptisk mikroskopi samt en metod som utnyttjar bakåtspridda elektroner (EBSD) vid elektronmikroskopi.Som mest bildades 26% martensit vid mekanisk provpreparering medan elektropolerade prover endast innehöll austenit och ferrit. Procedurer togs fram för additiv tillverkning av komponenter, i 22% krom duplexa rostfria stål, med LMDw kombinerat med varmtrådsteknik. Slutprodukten var en 140 mm hög cylinder med 160 mm inre diameter och tjocklek av 30 mm. Mikrostrukturen var inhomogen med periodiskt omväxlande ferritiska områden med nitrider, och områden med stor andel austenit.Värmebehandling under 1 timme vid 1100oC eliminerade nitriderna och gav en homogen struktur med ca. 50% austenit. De mekaniska egenskaperna var, både före och efter värmebehandling, jämförbara med de typiska för motsvarande stål. Högst hållfasthet uppmättes före värmebehandling med sträckgränsen 765 MPa och brottgränsen 865 MPa, medan den största förlängningen var 35% efter värmebehandling. Slagsegheten var upp till 300 J vid -10oC men varierade med hur provstavens brottanvisning var orienterad relativt byggriktningen.Laser är en lämplig energikälla vid svetsning och additiv tillverkning av duplexa rostfria stål. Utmaningar som kväveförlust, låga austenithalter och nitridbildning kan hanteras med noggrann processkontroll och/eller värmebehandling.

As competition in the car market increases, the techniques for car manufacturing are developed and becomes more advanced to be able to keep up with the pace. The development process of car body components has shifted over the years to involve more simulation driven testing than ever before to save time and money in the early stages of development. As the importance of reliable sheet metal forming simulations grows, inconsistencies between simulations and physical stamping can be detrimental to the development time if stamping dies need to be reworked because of poor correlation between physics and simulations.                        The aim of this study is to improve the coherence between physical stamping and the simulation software used by Volvo Cars. The coherence is determined by studying different properties of the result in simulations and comparing them to measurements taken on the corresponding physical stamped parts. A comparison was done between the current standard simulation software, Autoform Forming R8 and a beta version of Autoform Forming R10. The objectives of this study were to compare the sheet thickness, strain, draw-in and ability to predict material failure between the two simulation software to see which of them correlate best to the physical measured parts.                       The workflow consisted of initially setting up the simulations in Autoform Forming R8. Some of the simulations could begin testing right away, while others required needed some geometry rework as the physical tested parts had been stamped with modified stamping dies. When the simulation setups were completed copies of the simulations were taken and run on Autoform Forming R10 to compare with. The simulations were run with a varied Triboform friction models and some of the simulations were run using symmetry to reduce the simulation time. When data was compared Autoform Forming was used when possible and when additional tools were needed the simulated geometries were exported and compared in software such as SVIEW and GOM Correlate.                       The result showed relatively low differences in the comparisons of sheet thickness and major and minor strain as neither of the simulations seemed to give more accurate values compared to the measurements. A slight improvement in the draw-in comparison was found for the Autoform Forming R10 compared to the R8 simulation. In the material failure prediction a major difference was found where the Autoform Forming R10 simulations were better at determining splits than R8. However the splits were only discovered with 2 of the 4 tested friction models in the R10 simulations while the 1 of the 4 simulations indicated risks for a split in the R8 simulation.                       In conclusion the simulations run on Autoform Forming R10 seem to be better at predicting splits and draw-in dimensions while no major differences were found in the comparisons of strain and sheet thickness.

The acceptance of additive manufacturing (AM) depends on the quality of final parts and the process repeatability. Recently, many studies have been dedicated to the establishment of the relationship between the process behavior and material performance. Phenomena such as laser-material interaction, melt pool dynamics, ejecta formation and particle movement behavior on a powder bed are of a particular interest for the AM community as these events directly influence the outcome of the process. Another aspect, which hinders the adoption of AM, is the need for cost-efficient powder materials and their sustainable processing and subsequent recycling.  The research work presented in this thesis, to a certain degree, covers the above mentioned scientific aspects and focuses on the behavior of gas and water atomized steel powders in laser powder bed fusion (LPBF).  Paper I demonstrates a comparative study of dissimilarly-shaped gas and water atomized low alloy steel powders regarding their processability, packing capacities, particle movement behavior and powder performance in LPBF. The impact of chemical composition and morphology of the powders on the process behavior was revealed. Powder spattering and melt pool instabilities were discussed in detail.  Paper II explains the role of ejecta in the recycled powder and the changing behavior of the material due to ejecta pick-up. The impact of multiple powder recycling on the degradation of low alloy steel powder in laser powder bed fusion was studied. Oxygen content, particle size and ejecta occurrence gradually increased after each recycling step and were identified as the main contributors to the property alterations observed in the powder during recycling. In addition, a direct correlation between the increase in oxygen with repeated recycling and a more frequent spatter ejection after each recycle was established.  Paper III is a successor of Paper I and contains a research on the particle movement and denudation behavior on a powder bed when using near-spherical and non-spherical steel powders. The influence of particle morphology on the dynamics of arbitrary-shaped powder particles was studied by applying an analytical correlation formula to calculate the drag force exerted on powder particles of various shape. Particle entrainment of gas and water atomized powders in front of the laser beam was measured, revealing a significant difference in the powder transfer towards the melt pool.

High-temperature abrasion is an expensive issue in industrial fields such as glass and cement production or mining and processing industry. Yet its effects on steel are not well documented. This study investigates and analyses the behaviour of six different steel grades placed in hot abrasive conditions similar conditions encountered in the industry to enables better material selection.  Abrasion tests in a slurry pot were done at room temperature and at 500 °C. Impact and tensile tests were also performed at different temperatures. To complete the mechanical properties evaluation, hardness measurements were executed before and after tempering at 500  °C. Wear rates assessed at room temperature or at 500 °C, are independent of the mechanical properties of the material. At high temperature, it was shown that wear rates and performance of the steels were influenced by tempering and leading to a unique microstructures for all steel grades investigated and equalize their performances. To conclude, high temperature wear of the investigated grades does not depend on their mechanical properties, however, it can be influenced by their tempering resistance. As the temperature increase, steel tempers, its mechanical properties decrease and homogenise with other steel grades' performances, but some grades keep their properties longer at high temperature.

Syftet med denna studie är att undersöka hantverkskunnandet och metallens egenskaper vidarbetet med ciseleringsteknik på olika metallfolier. Genom studien besvaras frågorna: Hursvarar de olika metallfolier när de ciseleras? Hur ser hantverkskunnandet i ciselering ut?Studien kan beskrivas som en kvalitativ undersökning med inspiration av den experimenterandemetoden samt autoetnografiska metoden. Hantverket i studien har genomförts med ettexperimentellt arbetssätt genom bearbetning av koppar, mässing, tenn och aluminiummetallfolier. Den experimentella metoden genomförs genom en kontrollerad undersökning medhjälp av konstanta delar samt variabler med syfte att upptäcka materialens lämplighet iförhållandet till ciselering. Datainsamlingen har skett via observationer av det egna praktiskaarbetet. Dokumentationen består av bilder, skriftligt material i form av en processdagbok samten ifylld matris med förutbestämda kriterier angående materialets relevanta egenskaper.Varje metallfolie har sina speciella egenskaper, men det visar sig också att de metallfoliernasom jag har testat också har vissa gemensamma egenskaper. Alla inköpta metallfolier visade siglämpliga för ciseleringstekniken även om de hade olik hårdhet och stabilitets förmåga. Genommatrisen som producerades under studiens gång möjliggjordes val av lämpligt material för varjeändamål. Erfarenheter skapades genom experimenterandet med både tekniken och materialetmen också genom reflektioner som i sin tur leder till nya handlingar och djupare kunskap. Dettafenomen skedde under hela den undersökande processen och kan vara relevant förinlärningsprocesser även i andra sorts hantverk. I diskussionskapitlet diskuteras studiens resultatutifrån flera perspektiv, såsom tradition som inspiration, ciselering i skolslöjden och ciseleringutifrån ett hållbarhetsperspektiv.

Austenitization followed by quenching is a well-known conventional heat-treating procedure which is widely used on carbon steels with the aim to obtain high strength in as-quenched condition. Such quenching is usually done by immersing a steel product into the cooling medium which provides a uniform cooling of the surface. The cooling rate can be adjusted to a certain degree on a “component” length-scale by using different cooling mediums such as water, oil, polymer solution, etc. However, certain steel products such as beams, pillars in automobile industry or different machinery parts in agriculture require a proper and controllable cooling gradient and thus mechanical property gradient within the product. It is difficult to control the cooling rates locally on the length-scale smaller than the product only by replacing the quenching medium. In addition, quenching by immersing the product into the cooling medium is accompanied by thermal stresses due to the different cooling rates of the surface and the core, and also accompanied by transformation stresses due to the volume change during phase transformations. These stresses may lead to negative effects such as undesired residual stresses or even cracks. Therefore, cooling must be properly optimized and controlled to eliminate these drawbacks. Such a controllable cooling can be performed by several impingements of the water jets onto a hot austenitized surface at certain locations. By controlling the water flow, number of jets, their locations and other parameters, the global and the local cooling rates can be optimized for a specific industrial application later on.  This thesis demonstrates the potential and capability of the water Impinging Jet Quenching Technique (IJQT) to provide a flexible and controllable cooling for both differential and for uniform quenching cases. The test rig of IJQT was developed in the University of Gävle and was used to perform quenching experiments in this study: differential cooling of thick sheets and uniform quenching of bars to different depths. Differential cooling was performed on square-shaped carbon steel sheets with thickness of 15 mm, and the uniform quenching with different flow rates was performed on carbon steel cylindrical bars with 100 mm in diameter. Along with the physical experiments, Comsol Multiphysics 5.6 software was used to solve a 1D heat transfer problem to estimate the cooling rate profile along the radius of the bar. The experiments were verified by observations and characterization of the microstructure using light optical microscopy (LOM), and by examining the mechanical properties through tensile tests and hardness measurements. The results of the quenching experiments and verifications showed a high potential and flexibility of the IJQT in differential cooling case as well as in the uniform quenching case. / <p>Funding agencies: For financial support Sweden’s Innovation Agency Vinnova, SSAB,Väderstad Components, Swedish Knowledge Foundation and Universityof Gävle are acknowledged.</p>

Ferrosilicon containing 50-75% Si and 1.0-5.0% Zr is used as inoculant in the cast iron industry. Zr can be added to liquid ferrosilicon by use of Zr metal or zirconium ferroalloy (FeSiZr). Then the recovery of Zr, i.e. the fraction of Zr transferred from the additive to the ferrosilicon, as well as the hit rate on specification is high. The aim of this study was to investigate the recovery of Zr from zircon sand, ZrSiO4, and zirconia, ZrO2, in comparison to zirconium ferroalloy when added to liquid ferrosilicon with 75% Si at 1600⁰C.  Also the refining effect of the different additives on Al was investigated. The experiments were carried out by stirring samples of controlled amounts of ferrosilicon and Zr additive in a graphite crucible at 1600⁰C and under inert Ar atmosphere for certain amounts of time. The reaction between ferrosilicon and Zr additive was stopped by rapid cooling of the samples. ICP-OES provided the concentration of Zr and Al and LECO O/N the concentration of O. SEM-ESD was used to examine the microstructures of ferrosilicon and Zr additive after experiments. It was found that ZrO2 was reduced by Si at the particle surface to yield dissolved Zr and ZrSiO4. The ZrSiO4 additive decomposed via two simultaneous reactions, one yielding ZrO2, Si and O2 and the other Zr, Si and O2. The recovery of Zr from ZrO2 and ZrSiO4 was significantly lower than from FeSiZr. Of ZrO2 and ZrSiO4, ZrO2 yielded the highest Zr recovery; the difference was much bigger than predicted by thermodynamics. It was discussed if that could be due to a higher reaction rate of the ZrO2, caused by the smaller size (APS 1 µm compared to d50 91 µm) and larger surface area of this addition. It was also found that utilization of density differences to separate the ferrosilicon and Zr additive did not work for zirconia under the same conditions as it worked for zircon sand, although zirconia has a higher density than zircon sand. The reason was the smaller particle size of the ZrO2 powder. No refining of Al was observed.

The most widely used process to reduce iron ore and to produce pig iron is the blast furnace. The blast furnace is a large source of CO2 emissions since it is a coal based process and due to that the main energy source and reducing agent is coke, it is difficult to reduce these further. IRONARC is a new method used to produce pig iron by reducing iron ore and all the energy used for heating comes from electricity, which gives the opportunity to use renewable resources. The process uses plasma generators that inject gas at high temperature and velocity into a slag that consists of iron oxides. The iron oxides are reduced in two steps that appear by using gas as reduction agent in the first step and carbon in the second step.   It exists in a smaller pilot plant scale and this project was the first step in the future upscaling of the IRONARC process. Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) modelling was used and the goal was to determine the penetration depth of the IRONARC pilot plant process by numerical simulation in the software ANSYS FLUENT. The penetration depth is of importance because to be able to scale up the process it is important to know the flow pattern and the structure of the flow in the process, which is dependent on how far into the slag the gas reaches. Two numerical models were made. First an air-water model that described the initial penetration of air injected into water. The air-water simulation was made with parameters and data from an experiment found in literature. This was done to build an accurate CFD model for the penetration depth in FLUENT and validate the model with the results of the penetration depth from the experiment. The air-water simulation gave good and promising results and yielded the same result regarding the penetration depth as the experiment.  The model for the penetration depth was then used with the IRONARC geometry and parameters. After simulation the penetration depth of the IRONARC process was determined. For the future, the penetration depth of the pilot plant needs to be measured and compared with the simulated result for the penetration depth.

The process optimization of continuous annealing furnace, RHF 125, for recrystallization annealing of two steel grades, Sandvik 13C26 and Sandvik 20C has been carried out. To recreate the continuous annealing process carried out in the roller hearth furnace in the industry, samples with different cold reduction rates were chosen from ongoing production lines. An experimental heat treatment model was chosen by the ‘Design of Experiments’ approach from MODDE (from U-Metrics). The annealing temperature was chosen below the austenitization temperature for both steel grades and soaking time of 30 seconds to 240 seconds were chosen. Microscopic estimation of fraction recrystallized was performed with the help of Electron Back Scattered Diffraction, accompanied by mechanical testing methods to measure the hardness and yield strength of the steel strips. The experimental output was used to create a model to correlate between the different cold reduction rates and annealing parameters to achieve a higher degree of recrystallization along with desirable mechanical properties. Also, a modified Johnson-Mehl-Avrami-Kolomogrov model, based on hardness values, to determine the transformation kinetics by tracking the progress of recrystallization was developed. The model was verified with EBSD measurements for Sandvik 13C26 strip steels. For 20C, inhomogeneous recrystallization was observed, thus limiting the model’s adaptability to steels which exhibit homogeneous recrystallization behavior and negligible change in precipitation and/or coarsening of secondary phases. / Processoptimering av en kontinuerlig glödgningsugn, RHF 125, för rekristallisationsglödgning av två Sandvik-stål, Sandvik 13C26 och Sandvik 20C, har genomförts. För att återskapa den kontinuerliga glödgningsprocessen som utförs den verkilga processen i valdes prover och olika kallreduktionshastigheter från pågående produktionslinjer. En experimentell värmebehandlingsmodell valdes med metoden 'Design of Experiments' med MODDE (från U-Metrics). Glödgningstemperaturen valdes till en temperatur under austeniseringstemperaturen för båda stålen och hålltider varierade från 30 s till 240 s. Mikroskopisk uppskattning av fraktionen rekristalliserat material utfördes med hjälp av Electron Back Scatter Diffraktion (EBSD), åtföljd av mekaniska testmetoder för att mäta hårdheten och sträckgränsen för stålproverna. De experimentella resultaten användes för att skapa en modell för att korrelera mellan de olika reduktionshastigheterna och glödgningsparametrarna för att uppnå högre grad av rekristallisation tillsammans med önskvärda mekaniska egenskaper. Dessutom utvecklades en modifierad Johnson-Mehl-Avrami-Kolomogrov-modell, baserad på hårdhetsvärden, för att bestämma transformationskinetiken genom att spåra evolutionen för rekristallisation. Modellen verifierades genom jämförelse med EBSD-mätningarna för Sandvik 13C26 bandstål. För 20 °C observerades inhomogen rekristallisation, vilket begränsade modellens användbarhet till stål som uppvisade homogent rekristallisationsbeteende och försumbar förändring i utskiljning och/eller förgrovning av sekundära faser.

The automotive industry of today faces ever harder requirements from regulatory bodies to increase the fuel efficiency, reduce the carbon footprint and increase the safety of their vehicles. The problem is being tackled in different ways; one of them being the use of innovative materials to reduce the overall weight while improving the crash safety of the vehicle. One such material is 22MnB5, an ultra-high strength (UHS) boron-alloyed steel, capable of reaching tensile strength of 1900 MPa. The weldability is a vital factor for applying boron steel in an efficient way into a vehicle construction. Resistance spot welding (RSW) is, among the different welding methods, the primary joining methods used within the automotive industry. The main challenges with RSW of UHS boron steel is the narrow welding window and increased risk of expulsion compared to conventional automotive steel. The aim of this thesis was evaluating how the weldability of three-sheet UHS boron steel combinations could be improved by applying different innovative welding methods. The methods investigated where; three-pulsed welding, two-pulsed welding with force profile and using hollow-cone electrodes instead of regular electrodes. The different methods where evaluated with welding experiments and analysis of the nugget diameter, vicker hardness comparison and tensile strength test of welding nugget. The results from this thesis shows that the current window of three-sheet combinations with UHS boron steel can be significantly improved by using hollow-cone electrodes in RSW. The results also showed that the width of the current window varied depending on the depth of the hole in the electrode, a deeper hole improved the current window but also increased the oxide build-up. Applying a force profile with lowered electrode force during the welding sequence provided an improved process window compared to the constant electrode force when welding a three-sheet combination containing AlSi-coated boron steel. A three-pulse welding sequence performed better than the reference two-pulse welding schedule but still not good enough to meet VCC acceptance criteria. / Bilindustrin står idag inför allt hårdare krav från tillsynsmyndigheter förbättra bränsleeffektiviteten, minska koldioxidavtrycket och öka säkerheten på deras fordon. Problemet angrips från ett flertal olika vinklar. varav en ökad användning av innovativa material för att minska den totala vikten samtidigt som fordonets kraschsäkerhet bibehålls eller ens förbättras. Ett sådant material är 22MnB5, ett höghållfast (UHS) borstål, kapabelt att uppnå brottgränser på 1900 MPa.  Svetsbarheten är en vital faktor för att kunna applicera borstål på ett effektivt sätt i en fordonskonstruktion. Inom bilindustrin är motståndspunksvetsning (RSW) den dominanta svetsmetoden. De största utmaningarna med att punktsvetsa höghållfast AlSi-belagt borstål är det har ett generellt smalare svetsfönstren, samt den ökade risken för sprut under svetsprocessen, jämfört med konventionella stål. Målet med denna avhandling var att utvärdera hur svetsbarheten av tre-plåtskombinationer med höghållfast AlSi-belagt borstål kunde förbättras genom att applicera innovativa svetsmetoder. De utvärderade metoderna var; tre-pulsad svetsning, två-pulsad svetsning med applicerad kraftprofil, samt användning av ihåliga elektroder istället för vanliga elektroder. Metoderna utvärderades genom svetsexperiment och analys av svetslobens storlek, vicker hårdhets mätning samt brottgränsmätning av svetsloben. Resultaten från denna avhandling visar att svetsbarheten för tre-plåts kombinationer med UHS borstål kan förbättras avsevärt genom att använda ihåliga elektroder för punktsvetsning. Resultaten pekar också på att förbättringen beroende på hålets djup i elektroden. Ett djupare hål gav större förbättringar men ökade också uppbyggnaden av oxid och restmetall i elektroden.  Genom att applicera en kraftprofil, där elektrodkraften sänktes under svetsprocessen kunde svetsbarheten förbättras för två-puls svetsning, jämfört med att ha konstant elektrodkraft, vid svetsning av en tre-plåtskombination innehållande höghållfast AlSi-belagt borstål. En tre-puls svetssekvens utförde bättre än referenspulssvetsschemat men fortfarande inte tillräckligt bra för att uppfylla VCC-acceptkriterierna.