Showing papers on "Microstructure published in 2017"

Hydrocarbon-Based Polymer Electrolyte Membranes: Importance of Morphology on Ion Transport and Membrane Stability.

Abstract: A fundamental understanding of polymer microstructure is important in order to design novel polymer electrolyte membranes (PEMs) with excellent electrochemical performance and stabilities. Hydrocarbon-based polymers have distinct microstructure according to their chemical structure. The ionic clusters and/or channels play a critical role in PEMs, affecting ion conductivity and water transport, especially at medium temperature and low relative humidity (RH). In addition, physical properties such as water uptake and dimensional swelling behavior depend strongly on polymer morphology. Over the past few decades, much research has focused on the synthetic development and microstructural characterization of hydrocarbon-based PEM materials. Furthermore, blends, composites, pressing, shear field, electrical field, surface modification, and cross-linking have also been shown to be effective approaches to obtain/maintain well-defined PEM microstructure. This review summarizes recent work on developments in advanced...

Mechanical behavior of selective laser melted 316L stainless steel

Abstract: The tensile, fracture, and fatigue crack growth properties of 316L stainless steel (SS) produced using the selective laser melting (SLM) technique were evaluated and compared with those of conventionally manufactured (CM) austenitic SSs. For SLM, both single melt (SM) and checker board (CB) laser scanning strategies were employed, so as to examine the effect of scanning strategy on the mechanical properties. The experimental results show that the SLM alloys' yield strength is significantly higher than that of CM 316L SS, a result of the substantial refinement in the microstructure. In contrast, only a marginal improvement in the ultimate tensile strength and a marked reduction ductility, which are a result of the loss of work hardening ability, are attributed to the absence of stress induced martensitic transformation common in CM austenitic SSs. In spite of these, the fracture toughness, which ranges between 63 and 87 MPa m 0.5 , of the SLM alloys is good, which is a result of the mesostructure induced crack tortuousity. The SLM process was found to marginally reduce the threshold stress intensity factor range for fatigue crack growth initiation and enhance the Paris exponent within the steady state crack growth regime. Both tensile and toughness properties were found to be anisotropic in nature. SLM with CB scanning strategy improves both these properties. All these observations on the mechanical properties are rationalized by recourse to micro- and meso-structures seen these alloys.

Experimental characterization and micrography of 3D printed PLA and PLA reinforced with short carbon fibers

Abstract: The objective of this work is the mechanical characterization of materials produced by 3D printing based on fused filament fabrication (FFF, analogous to FDM ® ). The materials chosen are a polylactic acid (PLA) and a PLA reinforced with short carbon fibers in a weight fraction of 15 % (PLA+CF). In view of the FFF nature, which produces specimens layer by layer and following predefined orientations, the main assumption considered is that the materials behave like laminates formed by orthotropic layers. If the 3D printing is made in the 1 − 2 plane, where 1 is the deposition direction and 2 is a direction perpendicular to 1, the mechanical properties obtained are the tensile moduli E 1 and E 2 , the Poisson ratios ν 12 and ν 21 , the shear modulus G 12 and related strength properties. For this purpose, only unidirectional or specially oriented specimens are used. After tests up to material failure, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) is employed to observe fracture surfaces. It was noticed that, in the microstructure of the PLA+CF, the short carbon fibers stay highly oriented with the material deposition direction in the FFF specimens. This fact, and the also observed length of the fibers, explains differences in material properties encountered among the performed experiments.

Microstructure and hardness studies of Inconel 718 manufactured by selective laser melting before and after solution heat treatment

Abstract: The microstructure of Additive Manufactured (AM) Inconel 718 in general and Selective Laser Melting (SLM), in particular is different from the material produced by conventional methods due to the rapid solidification process associated with the former. As a result, the widely adapted standard solution heat treatment temperature (

Microstructure and mechanical properties of Inconel 718 produced by selective laser melting: Sample orientation dependence and effects of post heat treatments

Abstract: Inconel 718 produced by selective laser melting (SLM) has been characterized with focus on the microstructure, the dependence of sample orientation on the mechanical properties and the effects of post heat treatments. The as-manufactured IN718 has a very fine cellular-dendritic structure with fine Laves phases precipitating in the interdendritic region, and electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) analysis shows that both the vertically and horizontally built samples have relatively weak texture. The vertically built samples show lower tensile strength but higher ductility than the horizontally built samples, and the mechanism is shown to be partly due to the crystallographic feature but more importantly due to the different amount of residual stress and dislocations accumulated in these two kinds of samples. Applying heat treatments can significantly increase the strength while decrease the ductility correspondingly, and difference in yield strength between the vertically and horizontally built samples decreases with increasing the heat treatment temperatures, mainly due to the removal of residual stress and dislocations.

Change in microstructure of selectively laser melted AlSi10Mg alloy with heat treatments

Abstract: In the present study, we examined changes in the microstructure and mechanical properties of AlSi10Mg alloy, initially fabricated using selective laser melting (SLM) combined with a powder-bed system, by applying heat treatments at temperatures of either 300 or 530 °C. The as-fabricated samples exhibited a characteristic microstructural morphology and {001} texture. Melt pools corresponding to the locally melted and rapidly solidified regions were found to be composed of several columnar α-Al grains surrounded by fine eutectic Si particles. A fine dislocation substructure consisting of low-angle boundaries is present within the columnar α-Al grains. At elevated temperatures, fine Si phase precipitates within the columnar α-Al phase and coarsening of the eutectic Si particles occurs. These fine Si particles inhibit grain growth in the α-Al matrix, resulting in the microstructural morphology and [001] texture observed in the heat-treated samples. The dislocation substructure disappears in the columnar α-Al grains. Furthermore, the formation of a stable intermetallic phase occurs, reaching microstructural equilibrium after long-term exposure. The as-fabricated specimen exhibits a high tensile strength of approximately 480 MPa. The strength is independent of the tensile direction, that is, normal and parallel to the building direction. In contrast, the tensile ductility is found to be direction-dependent, and is therefore responsible for a fracture preferentially occurring at a melt pool boundary. The direction-dependence of the tensile ductility was not found in the specimen that had been heat-treated at 530 °C. The present results provide new insights into the control of the direction-dependence of the tensile properties of AlSi10Mg alloys fabricated by SLM.

On the Selective Laser Melting (SLM) of the AlSi10Mg Alloy: Process, Microstructure, and Mechanical Properties

Abstract: The aim of this review is to analyze and to summarize the state of the art of the processing of aluminum alloys, and in particular of the AlSi10Mg alloy, obtained by means of the Additive Manufacturing (AM) technique known as Selective Laser Melting (SLM). This process is gaining interest worldwide, thanks to the possibility of obtaining a freeform fabrication coupled with high mechanical properties related to a very fine microstructure. However, SLM is very complex, from a physical point of view, due to the interaction between a concentrated laser source and metallic powders, and to the extremely rapid melting and the subsequent fast solidification. The effects of the main process variables on the properties of the final parts are analyzed in this review: from the starting powder properties, such as shape and powder size distribution, to the main process parameters, such as laser power and speed, layer thickness, and scanning strategy. Furthermore, a detailed overview on the microstructure of the AlSi10Mg material, with the related tensile and fatigue properties of the final SLM parts, in some cases after different heat treatments, is presented.

Anisotropic tensile behavior of in situ precipitation strengthened Inconel 718 fabricated by additive manufacturing

Abstract: This study investigated the microstructure and anisotropic mechanical properties of selective laser melting (SLM) processed Inconel 718 (IN718) component. In as-fabricated alloys, ultrafine columnar grained microstructure with highly dispersed precipitates γ" phases at grains boundary and even-distributed γ' phases inside the grains were observed. It was demonstrated that the as-fabricated longitudinal samples showed lower ultimate tensile strength (UTS) of 1101 MPa but higher elongation of 24.5% compared to the transverse samples which showed UTS of 1167 MPa and elongation of 21.5%. The excellent mechanical properties of both the longitudinal and transverse samples can be ascribed to the refined microstructure of the SLM material resulting from the high cooling rate imposed by laser processing. The anisotropy in strength and ductility was attributed to the {100} fiber texture and columnar grain morphology. The {100} fiber texture of columnar grains leads to high strength in transverse direction, while the columnar grain boundaries also served as a path along which damage can preferentially accumulate, leading to fracture.

Effects of heat treatments on microstructure and properties of Ti-6Al-4V ELI alloy fabricated by electron beam melting (EBM)

Abstract: Electron beam melting (EBM) is a metal powder bed fusion additive manufacturing (AM) technology that is used to fabricate three-dimensional near-net-shaped parts directly from computer models. Ti-6Al-4V is the most widely used and studied alloy for this technology and is the focus of this work in its ELI (Extra Low Interstitial) variation. Microstructure evolution and its influence on the mechanical properties of the alloy in the as-fabricated condition have been documented by various researchers. In the present work, different heat treatments were performed based on three approaches in order to study the effects of heat treatments on the unique microstructure formed during the EBM fabrication process. In the first approach, the effect of various cooling rates after the solutionizing process was studied. In the second approach, a correlation between the variation of α lath thickness during aging and the subsequent effect on mechanical properties was established. Lastly, several combined solutionizing and aging experiments were conducted; the results will be systematically discussed in the context of structural performance and design.

Lead-free BaTiO3-Bi0.5Na0.5TiO3-Na0.73Bi0.09NbO3 relaxor ferroelectric ceramics for high energy storage

Abstract: A series of (1-x)(0.65BaTiO 3 -0.35Bi 0.5 Na 0.5 TiO 3 )-xNa 0.73 Bi 0.09 NbO 3 ((1-x)BBNT-xNBN) (x = 0–0.14) ceramics were designed and fabricated using the conventional solid-state sintering method. The microstructure, dielectric property, relaxor behavior and energy storage property were systematically investigated. X-ray diffraction results reveal a pure perovskite structure and dielectric measurements exhibit a relaxor behavior for the (1-x)BBNT-xNBN ceramics. The slim polarization electric field ( P-E ) loops were observed in the samples with x ≥ 0.02 and the addition of Na 0.73 Bi 0.09 NbO 3 (NBN) could decrease the remnant polarization ( P r ) of the (1-x)BBNT-xNBN ceramics obviously. The sample with x = 0.08 exhibits the highest energy storage density of 1.70 J/cm 3 and the energy storage efficiency of 82% at 172 kV/cm owing to its submicron grain size and high relative density. These results show that the (1-x)BBNT-xNBN ceramics may be promising lead-free materials for high energy storage density capacitors.

In-situ residual stress reduction, martensitic decomposition and mechanical properties enhancement through high temperature powder bed pre-heating of Selective Laser Melted Ti6Al4V

Abstract: During the Selective Laser Melting (SLM) process large temperature gradients can form, generating a mismatch in elastic deformation that can lead to high levels of residual stress within the additively manufactured metallic structure. Rapid melt pool solidification causes SLM processed Ti6Al4V to form a martensitic microstructure with a ductility generally lower than a hot working equivalent. Post-process heat treatments can be applied to SLM components to remove in-built residual stress and improve ductility. The use of high temperature pre-heating during an SLM build can assist in reducing thermal gradients, enable a more controlled cooling with the possibility to control/tailor as-built mechanical properties. In this work a high temperature SLM powder bed capable of pre-heating to 800 °C is used during processing of Ti6Al4V feedstock. The effect of powder bed temperature on residual stress formation, microstructure and mechanical properties was investigated. It was found that increasing the bed temperature to 570 °C significantly reduced residual stress formation within components and enhanced yield strength and ductility. This pre-heating temperature enabled the decomposition of α ′ martensitic microstructure into an equilibrium α+β microstructure. At 570 °C the yield strength and elongation of components was improved by 3.2% and 66.2% respectively.