This thesis work is an experimental study of one type of Semi-Solid Metal casting (SSM) process which is called RheoMetalTM. This method is an efficient type of Rheocasting that creates a semi-solid slurry within 30 seconds that is used for a high pressure die casting machine. The purpose of using a slurry in a high pressure die casting machine is that the slurry has a higher viscosity due to its solid fraction. This makes the filling of the die cavity more laminar which reduces air entrapment in the casting. The difficulty with this type of casting is to control the process parameters to be able to insure a casting with desired properties. A few studies within RheoMetalTM has already been made but there is still a lack of knowledge of to what extent the process parameters affect the slurry. The goal in this work is to study how the different RheoMetalTM process parameters influence the primary α-Al solid fraction, shape and size. The process parameters that were studied in this work was the stirring rate, superheat and EEM amount. In this study, the so called growth layer has been removed to make more precise calculations of the primary α-Al. This work also aims to study how grain refinement affect the primary α-Al which is commonly used to improve the quality of castings. To be able to perform this study, both practical and theoretical work has been implemented. The casting process involved making of ladles and preparation of various equipment. The cast samples were then prepared by standard metallurgy procedure for optical analyse of the microstructure. A special etching reagent was used to analyse the microstructure in a microscope. The etching is called Weck’s reagent and its purpose is to differentiate the growth layer from the primary α-Al. The growth layer is formed during quenching and by excluding it, the calculation of the slurry’s primary α-Al becomes more precise. This is because the slurry is not quenched before it is inserted into the high pressure die casting machine, therefore no growth layer is formed. To analyse the cast samples, a special program was used to identify and to calculate the solid fraction, shape and size of the primary α-Al. The result from the calculations made by the program gave different tendencies when changing the EEM amount. The stirring rate showed a tendency to decrease the solid fraction and increase the shape factor. The superheat decreased the solid fraction and increased the shape factor. The grain refinement also decreased the solid fraction and increased the shape factor. There was no clear tendency showing that the equivalent circular diameter of the primary α-Al was affected by any of the parameters.

Atlas Copco Secoroc AB are searching after new bulk materials for drill heads that are used in percussive drilling in order to improve their strength and durability. The aim of this project is to assist Atlas Copco in this search and provide them with further information regarding material properties, alloying elements, suppliers, etc. A literary study was carried out in order to identify materials that had UTS and KIC more than or equal to 1700 MPa and 70 MPa*m^1/2, respectively. Materials that fulfilled these criteria were T250 grade maraging steel, Cobalt free maraging steel, High cobalt maraging steel, 300 grade maraging steel, AerMet 100, AF1410, S53, M54, 300M, 4340M and PremoMet. These were categorized into maraging steels, high alloy secondary hardened steels, and low alloy steels, and were then further researched. The material with the highest combination of UTS and KIC was M54 followed by AerMet 100; while AF1410 had the highest KIC but a low UTS, and PremoMet had the highest UTS but a low KIC. Maraging steels and HASH steels have a similar price range, while low alloy steels are much cheaper.

The use and knowledge of additive manufacturing technologies are rapidly growing. It is crucial to understand the processing-structure-property relationship, which is highly discussed when trying to understand the science of a material. One commonly used material in aerospace applications is titanium alloy, lately Ti-6Al-2Sn-4Zr-2Mo (Ti-6242). This work is addressed towards a laser metal deposition wire (LMD-w) manufactured Ti-6242 built on a Ti-6Al-4V (Ti-64) base plate.  The microstructure of titanium alloys, like all other alloys, are highly dependent on its thermal history. It is crucial to understand the microstructural change in order to optimize the material properties. The prediction of microstructure through simulation can be improved by obtaining experimental input. Since the microstructure of an LMD-w manufactured component is different from the subtractive manufactured, the change from heat treatments are different considering the different start structures. It is therefore of interest to analyse isothermal heat treatments effect on solution heat treated microstructure of LMD-w Ti-6242, from an industrial application point of view. The objective of this work is to analyse the effect of isothermal heat treatment on microstructural changes for LMD-w Ti-6242 wall.  The as received state was solution heat treated according to GKN standard, isothermal treatments were additionally performed and the change was analysed with microstructural characterization. The prior beta grain size, alpha lath thickness, phase fraction and hardness have been measured. Focus has been on the Ti-6242 wall for the measurements of alpha lath thickness and phase fraction. However, an analysis of the interface and heat affected zone (HAZ) has been made as well. MIPAR, an image analysis program was used for alpha lath thickness and phase distribution measurements. It has been concluded that the hardness of the material increases with increasing isothermal temperature during heat treatment and that the lath thickness increases with longer holding time. An equilibrium diagram has been obtained for Ti-6242 from a solution heat treated microstructure of LMD-w between the temperatures of 700°C and 1000°C and a time-temperature-transformation diagram (TTT-diagram), in the range of 700°C-1000°C and a holding time from 30 seconds to 2 hours. / Efterfrågan av samt kunskapen om additiva tillverkningsmetoder ökar kraftigt. Det är därför av stort intresse att förstå relationen mellan process-struktur-egenskaper, vilket ofta diskuteras för att förstå vetenskapen bakom ett material. Ti-6Al-2Sn-4Zr-2Mo (Ti-6242) har under den senaste tiden väckt stort ett intresse inom flygindustrin. I detta arbete har fokus lagts på laser metal deposition wire (LMD-w) tillverkat material bestående av en Ti-6242 vägg på en Ti-64 basplatta.  Titanlegeringars mikrostruktur är känslig mot den termiska historiken inom materialet. Det är därför av stort intresse att förstå hur mikrostrukturen ändras för att kunna optimera materialet. Förutberäkning genom simulering av mikrostrukturens förändring kan förbättras med hjälp av experimental indata. Eftersom mikrostrukturen av en LMD-w tillverkad komponent är annorlunda från traditionella tillverkningsmetoder, kommer förändringen av mikrostrukturen från värmebehandlingar vara olika, eftersom ursprungsstrukturen inte är densamma. Därför är det av intresse att analysera isotermiska värmebehandlingars påverkan på en upplösningsbehandlad mikrostruktur tillverkad med LMD-w, från en industriell synpunkt. Målet med detta arbete är att analysera effekten av isotermisk värmebehandling på mikrostrukturen av en LMD-w Ti-6242 vägg.  Startmaterialet bestod av ett upplösningsbehandlat tillstånd enligt GKN standard, isotermiska värmebehandlingar gjordes och förändringen analyserades genom mikrostrukturkarakterisering. Primära beta korn, alfaband, fasfraktion och hårdhet har mätts. Fokus har legat i Ti-6242 väggens mätningar av alfaband och fasfraktion, dock har en analys av den värmebehandlade zonen (HAZ) i basplattan gjorts. MIPAR, ett bildanalysprogram, har använts för att mäta alfaband och fasdistribution.  Det kan konstateras att hårdheten av materialet ökar med ökande isotermisk temperatur under värmebehandling, och att alfabandens tjocklek ökar med längre hålltider. Ett jämnviktsdiagram har framtagits för upplösningsbehandlad Ti-6242 LMD-w mellan temperaturerna 700°C och 1000°C. Ett tid-temperatur-transformations diagram (TTT-diagram) inom intervallet av 700°C-1000°C och från 30 sekunder till 2 timmar.

The constantly tightening emission regulations demand the engines to be moreefficient, to get more power out of smaller engines. Higher engine loads andcomponent temperatures are causing more stresses to engine components. Therefore,a company that produces engines wanted to study if it would be possible to increasethe capabilities of the components by optimising the used material. In this final project work, a cylinder head will be studied. The cylinder heads for theengines are made of ductile cast iron. The limits of that material are near safety limits,and therefore a better material is needed. In this work are some previous studiesanalysed and tried to find how to optimise the used material. The optimised materialshould have better thermal conductivity properties combined with sufficient strengthproperties. Previous studies were analysed to gather knowledge of the elements that affect thematerial parameters. Those studies showed that copper, silicon, pearlite fraction, andthe use of chills are the elements to be optimised. Silicon and pearlite fraction waschosen as optimisation parameters because of their effect on the thermal conductivityand strength properties. Copper was chosen as an optimisation variable due to its effecton the pearlite formation. Chills were used to affect the cooling rate and thereby thepearlite formation. The work was made using MAGMASOFT™ simulation software to simulate cylinderhead casting. The simulated cylinder head was divided into 4 parts for the simulations.For those sections were then set targets for pearlite fraction according to previousstudies. The silicon content was kept constant in the simulation, based on the studiespresented in this work. Copper content was simulated with variations from 0 to 0.7weight-%, and chill heights were simulated from 20 to 60 mm and without chills. After simulating the different variables, the results were analysed. Then the selectedcasting simulation result was mapped to finite element simulation mesh to include thelocal material parameters to finite element simulation. With the finite elementsimulation, the estimated lifetime of the component was simulated. By analysing the casting simulation results, an optimal combination was found. Theoptimal material parameters for a cylinder head casting would be copper 0.5weight-%, silicon 1.9 weight-% and chills thicker than 40 mm on the flame plate. Theoptimised material gives more possibilities to develop engines even further when thecomponent demands are growing.

As part of the global work towards reducing CO2 emissions, all vehicles needs to be electrified, or fueled by green fuels. Batteries have already revolutionised the car market, but fuel cells are believed to be a key energy conversion system to be able to electrify also heavy duty vehicles. The type of fuel cell commercially available for vehicles today is the polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell (PEMFC), but for it to be able to take a larger market share, the cost must be reduced while sufficient lifetime is ensured. The PEMFC is a system containing several components, made of different materials including the polymer membrane, noble metal catalyst particles, and metallic bipolar plate. The combination of different materials exposed to elevated temperature, high humidity and low pH make the PEMFC components susceptible to corrosion and degradation. The noble metal catalyst is one of the major contributors to the high cost. In this work, the latest research on new catalyst materials for PEMFCs are overviewed. Furthermore, electrodeposition as a simple synthesis route to test different Pt-alloys for the cathode catalyst in the fuel cell is explored by synthesis of PtNi and PtNiMo. The gas diffusion layer of the PEMFC is used as substrate to reduce the number of steps to form the membrane electrode assembly. In addition to cheaper and more durable materials, understanding of how the materials degrade, and how the degradation affects the other components is crucial to ensure a long lifetime. Finding reliable test methods to validate the lifetime of the final system is necessary to make fuel cell a trusted technology for vehicles, with predictable performance. In this work, commercial flow plates are studied, to see the effect of different load cycles and relative humidities on the corrosion of the plate. Defects originating from production is observed, and the effect of these defects on the corrosion is further analysed. Suggestions are given on how the design and production of bipolar plates should be made to reduce the risk of corrosion in the PEMFC. / Som en del av det globala arbetet med at reducera utsläppen av koldioxid måste alla fordon elektrifieras eller tankas med förnybart bränsle. Batterier har redan revolutionerat bilmarknaden, men bränsleceller är en viktig pusselbit för att också elektrifiera tunga fordon. Den typen av bränsleceller för fordon som finns tillgänglig på den kommersiella marknaden i dag är polymerelektrolytbränslecellen (PEMFC). För att PEMFC skall ta en större marknadsandel måste kostnaderna minskas och livslängden förlängas. PEMFC består av ett antal komponenter gjorda av olika material, bland annat polymer membran, ädelmetallkatalysator, och metalliska bipolära plattor. Kombinationen av olika material i tillägg till den höga temperaturen, hög fuktighet och låg pH gör att materialen i bränslecellen är utsatta för korrosion. Ädelmetallkatalysatorn är en av de kostdrivande komponenterna i bränslecellen. I denna studien presenteras en översikt över framstegen inom katalysatormaterial för PEM bränsleceller de senaste två åren. Sedan studeras elektroplätering som en enkel produktionsmetod för nanopartiklar av platina legeringar. Möjligheten att simultant plätera fler metaller, och att använda gasdiffutions-skiktet från bränslecellen som substrat för att reducera antal produktionsteg och därmed reducera kostnader, undersöks. Det möjliggör också snabb testning av olika legeringar för att identifiera den optimala sammansättningen med hög prestanda, lång livslängd och lite platina. I tillägg till att ta fram billigare och tåliga material är det viktigt att förstå hur materialen degraderar och hur degraderingen av ett material påverkar de andra komponenterna. Med den kunskapen kan man utveckla accelererade testmetoder för att bedöma livslängden av hela bränslecellen. Validerade testmetoder är viktigt för att styrka förtroendet till nya teknologier. I denna studien fokuseras det också på korrosion av bipolära plattor, och hur olika lastcykler och fuktnivåer som kan bli applicerad vid accelererad testning påverkar korrosionen. Också effekten av defekter från tillverkningen i den skyddande beläggningen analyseras med hänsyn till korrosion, för att ge mer insikt i hur bipolära plattor kan designas och produceras för att minska korrosionen.

The interest for additive manufacturing techniques have in recent years increased considerably because of their association to good printing resolution, unique design possibilities and microstructure. In this master project, 316L stainless steel was printed using metal laser powder bed fusion in an attempt to find process parameters which yield good productivity while maintaining as good material properties as possible. Laser powder bed fusion works by melting a powder bed locally with a laser. When one slice of the material is done, the powder bed is lowered, new powder is added on top, and the process is repeated, building the components layer by layer. In this thesis, samples produced with a powder layer thickness of 80 μm and 100 μm has been investigated. Process parameters like laser power, scanning speed and hatch spacing were investigated in order to establish clear processing windows where the highest productivity and lowest porosity are obtained. The most common defects in all sample batches were lack of fusion, gas pores, and spatter related pores. The best samples with regard to both porosity and build rate were obtained at normalized build rates between 1,3-1,6 and porosity-values in the 0,01-0,1 % range.

This thesis focuses on the tribological performance of tool surfaces in two steel working operations, namely wire drawing and hot rolling. In all forming operations dimensions and surface finish of the products are of utmost importance. Forming basically includes three parts – forming conditions excluded – that may be changed; work material, tool and (possibly) lubricant. In the interface between work material and tool, the conditions are very aggressive with – generally or locally – high temperatures and pressures. The surfaces will be worn in various ways and this will change the conditions in the process. Consequently, the surface finish as well as the dimensions of the formed product may change and in the end, the product will not fulfil the requirements of the customer. Therefore, research and development in regard to wear, and consequently tribology, of the forming tools is of great interest. The investigations of wire drawing dies focus on coating adhesion/cohesion, surface characteristics and material transfer onto the coated steel both in laboratory scale as well as in the wire drawing process. Results show that it in wire drawing is possible to enhance the tribological performance of drawing dies by using a lubricant together with a steel substrate coated by a polished, dual-layer coating containing both hard and friction-lowering layers. The investigations of hot rolling work rolls focus on microstructure and hardness as well as cracking- and surface characteristics in both laboratory scale and in the hot strip mill. Results show that an ideal hot work roll material should be made up of a matrix with high hardness and a large amount of complex, hard carbides evenly distributed in the microstructure. The surface failure mechanisms of work rolls are very complex involving plastic deformation, abrasive wear, adhesive wear, mechanical and thermal induced cracking, material transfer and oxidation. This knowledge may be used to develop new tools with higher wear resistance giving better performance, lower costs and lower environmental impact.

Nickel-based superalloys, an alloy system bases on nickel as the matrix element with the addition of up to 10 more alloying elements including chromium, aluminum, cobalt, tungsten, molybdenum, titanium, and so on. Through the development and improvement of nickel-based superalloys in the past century, they are well proved to show excellent performance at the elevated service temperature. Owing to the combination of extraordinary high-temperature mechanical properties, such as monotonic and cyclic deformation resistance, fatigue crack propagation resistance; and high-temperature chemical properties, such as corrosion and oxidation resistance, phase stability, nickel-based superalloys are widely used in the critical hot-section components in aerospace and energy generation industries. The success of nickel-based superalloy systems attributes to both the well-tailored microstructures with the assistance of carefully doped alloying elements, and the intently developed manufacturing processes. The microstructure of the modern nickel-based superalloys consists of a two-phase configuration: the intermetallic precipitates (Ni,Co)3(Al,Ti,Ta) known as γ′ phase dispersed into the austenite γ matrix, which is firstly introduced in the 1940s.  The recently developed additive manufacturing (AM) techniques, acting as the disruptive manufacturing process, offers a new avenue for producing the nickel-based superalloy components with complicated geometries. However, γ′ strengthened nickel-based superalloys always suffer from the micro-cracking during the AM process, which is barely eliminated by the process optimization. On this basis, the new compositions of γ′ strengthened nickel-based superalloy adapted to the AM process are of great interest and significance. This study sought to design novel γ′ strengthened nickel-based superalloys readily for AM process with limited cracking susceptibility, based on the understanding of the cracking mechanisms. A two-parameter model is developed to predict the additive manufacturability for any given composition of a nickel-based superalloy. One materials index is derived from the comparison of the deformation-resistant capacity between dendritic and interdendritic regions, while another index is derived from the difference of heat resistant capacity of these two spaces. By plotting the additive manufacturability diagram, the superalloys family can be categorized into the easy-to-weld, fairly-weldable, and non-weldable regime with the good agreement of the existed knowledge. To design a novel superalloy, a Cr-Co-Mo-W-Al-Ti-Ta-Nb-Fe-Ni alloy family is proposed containing 921,600 composition recipes in total. Through the examination of additive manufacturability, undesired phase formation propensity, and the precipitation fraction, one composition of superalloy, MAD542, out of the 921,600 candidates is selected. Validation of additive manufacturability of MAD542 is carried out by laser powder bed fusion (LPBF). By optimizing the LPBF process parameters, the crack-free MAD542 part is achieved. In addition, the MAD542 superalloy shows great resistance to the post-processing treatment-induced cracking. During the post-processing treatment, extensive annealing twins are promoted to achieve the recrystallization microstructure, ensuring the rapid reduction of stored energy. After ageing treatment, up to 60-65% volume fraction of γ′ precipitates are developed, indicating the huge potential of γ′ formation. Examined by the high-temperature slow strain rate tensile and constant loading creep testing, the MAD542 superalloy shows superior strength than the LPBF processed and hot isostatic pressed plus heat-treated IN738LC superalloy. While the low ductility of MAD542 is existed, which is expected to be improved by modifying the post-processing treatment scenarios and by the adjusting building direction in the following stages of the Ph.D. research. MAD542 superalloy so far shows both good additive manufacturability and mechanical potentials. Additionally, the results in this study will contribute to a novel paradigm for alloy design and encourage more γ′-strengthened nickel-based superalloys tailored for AM processes in the future. / <p>Additional funding agencies: Agora Materiae Graduate School for multidisiplinary PhD students at Linköping University, and Stiftelsen Axel Hultgren.</p>

Hot-pressed aluminium and silicon coated boron steel is used in the car industry where high tensile strength is of great importance, such as in the safety cage of a car where deformation has to be kept to a minimum in case of a collision. After hot-pressing the AlSi-boron steel shows excellent properties with high tensile strength, minimal spring back and also shows good protection against corrosion. A thickness of the AlSi coating of 150 [g/m2] for AlSi coated boron steel is typically used by the car industry today. However the coating thickness would be desirable to be minimized to 80 [g/m2]. Welding of this boron steel with 80 [g/m2]have shown difficulties; and it’s not clear why this occurs. In this report the metallurgical properties of the different coating layers will be investigated, simulations with Thermocalc module Dictra will be used, SEM/EDS will be used to characterize phases in coating layers and correlate to weldability. Resistance spot welding tests will also be performed where the welding parameters of pre-pulse, pulse time, time in between pulses and current will be varied to achieve desirable weld plug diameter without expulsion. Hardness testing in form of micro Vickers will executed. The Materials used will be USIBOR® 1500, AS80 with four different annealing times and one sample of AS150.

The flow pattern in the uphill teeming process has been found to be closely related to the quality of ingots and further to affect the yield of ingot production, which is crucial for the steel making process. The formation of non-metallic inclusion and entrapment of mold flux has been considered to be affected by the flow pattern in the gating system and molds by many previous researchers. The aim of this study is to investigate the flow pattern of steel in the gating system and molds during the initial filling stage. In addition, to study the utilization of swirl blade implemented at the bottom of the vertical runner on the improvement of initial filling condition in the mold. A three dimensional model of two molds gating system for 6.2 ton ingots from Scana Steel was adopted in the present work. A reduced geometry model including one mold and a runner, based on the method from previous researchers, was also used for comparison with the current more extensive model. Moreover, a reduced geometry model including one swirl blade and a runner was simulated to find effects of an increased-length vertical runner on the flow pattern improvement at the vertical runner outlet. Flow pattern, hump height and wall shear stress were respectively studied. A reduced geometry with homogenous inlet conditions fails to describe the fluctuating conditions present as the steel enters the mold. However, the trends are very similar when comparing the (hump height-surface height) evolution over time. The implementation of swirl blades gives a chaotic initial filling condition with a considerable amount of droplets being created when steel enters the molds during the first couple of seconds. However, a more calm filling condition with less fluctuation is achieved at the molds after a short while. Moreover, the orientation of the swirl blades affects he flow pattern of the steel. A proper placement of a swirl blade improves the initial filling conditions. The utilization of swirl blades might initially result in larger hump height. However, it gives fewer fluctuations as the casting proceeds. In the model without swirl blades, the maximum wall shear stress fluctuates with a descending trend as the filling proceeds. An implementation of swirl blades can decrease and stabilize the wall shear stress in the gating system. A special attention should be made in choosing refractory at the center stone, the horizontal runner near center stone and the vertical runner at the elbow. This is where the wall shear stress values are highest or where the exposure times are long. / QC 20120203