Dual functions of TiC nanoparticles on tribological performance of Al/graphite composites

In this study, the effect of TiC nanoparticles as a reinforcement on the mechanical and tribological properties of Aluminum-based self lubricating composite was investigated. The microstructure, relative density, hardness, and tribological properties of Al/graphite and Al/TiC/graphite composites were examined as a function of graphite content. The tribo-surfaces of the samples were analyzed using SEM and EDS elemental mapping. The results indicated that the addition of TiC nanoparticles not only decreased the wear rate and coefficient of friction of the composites, but also facilitated the formation of a stable graphite layer at longer sliding distances and high sliding velocities by forming a durable graphite/TiC composite on the tribo-surface. Therefore, the stability of graphite layer can be considered as a possible cause for decrease in wear rate of the Al/TiC/graphite composite.     

Sonoprocessing of wetting of SiC by liquid Al: A thermodynamic and kinetic study

The sonoprocessing of droplet spreading during the wetting process of molten aluminum droplets on SiC ceramic substrates at 700 °C is investigated in this paper. When wetting is assisted by a 20 kHz frequency ultrasonic field, the wettability of liquid metal gets enhanced, which has been determined by the variations in thermodynamic energy and wetting kinetics. Wetting kinetic characteristics are divided into two stages according to pinning and depinning states of substrate/droplet contact lines. The droplet is static when the contact line is pinning, while it is forced to move when the contact line is depinning. When analyzing the pinning stage, high-speed photography reveals the evidence of oxide films being rapidly crushed outside the aluminum droplet. In this work, atomic models of spherical Al core being wrapped by alumina shell are tentatively built, whose dioxide microstructures are being transformed from face-centered cubic into liquid at the atomic scale. At the same time, the wetting experiment reveals that the oxide films show changes in the period of sonoprocessing from 3rd to 5th second.During the ultrasonic spreading behavior in the late stage, there is a trend of evident expansion of the base contact area. The entire ultrasonic process lasts for no longer than 10 s. With the aid of ultrasonic sinusoidal waves, the wettability of metal Al gets a rapid improvement. Both molecular dynamic (MD) investigations and the experiments results reveal that the precursor film phenomenon is never found unless wetting is assisted by ultrasonic treatments. However, the precursor film appears near the triple line after using ultrasonics in the droplet wetting process, whose formation is driven by ultrasonic oscillations. Due to the precursor film, the ultrasonic wetting contact angle is lower than the non-ultrasonic contact angle. In addition, the time-variant effective ultrasonic energy has been quantitatively evaluated. The numerical expressions of thermodynamic variables are well verified by former ultrasonic spreading test results, which altogether provide an intrinsic explanation of the fast-decreasing contact angle of Al/SiC.     

The effect of ultrasonic processing on solidification microstructure and heat transfer in stainless steel melt

The heat transfer in the ultrasonic processing of stainless steel melt is studied in this thesis. The temperature field is simulated when the metal melt is treated with and without ultrasound. In order to avoid the erosion of high temperature melt, ultrasound was introduced from the bottom of melt. It is found that the temperature of melt apparently increases when processed with ultrasound, and the greater the ultrasonic power is, the higher the melt temperature will be; ultrasonic processing can reduce the temperature gradient, leading to more uniform temperature distribution in the melt. The solidification speed is obviously brought down due to the introduction of ultrasound during solidification, with the increasing of ultrasonic power, the melt temperature rises and the solidification speed decreases; as without ultrasound, the interface of solid and mushy zone is arc-shaped, so is the interface of liquid and mushy zone, with ultrasound, the interface of solid and mushy zone is still arc-shaped, but the interface of liquid and mushy zone is almost flat. The simulation results of temperature field are verified in experiment, which also indicates that the dendrite growth direction is in accord with thermal flux direction. The effect of ultrasonic treatment, which improves with the increase of treating power, is in a limited area due to the attenuation of ultrasound.     

Grain boundary wetting in the Al-Mg system and synthesis of magnesium diboride in contact with melt

The interaction between a Mg-containing melt and B under conditions of partial and complete wetting of Al/Al grain boundaries by Al-Mg melt has been investigated. The study was performed on Al polycrystals with Mg contents of 5, 10, 15, 18, and 25 wt %. Correspondingly, the Mg content in the melt was determined by the liquidus line and was in the range from 5 to 30 wt %. The obtained metal-matrix composites were investigated by light and scanning electron microscopy, electron-probe microanalysis, and X-ray diffraction. The possibility of synthesizing MgB₂ in the contact with a melt having a relatively low Mg content (from 15 to 30 wt %) has been demonstrated.     

Synthesis of amorphous carbon nanoparticles and carbon encapsulated metal nanoparticles in liquid benzene by an electric plasma discharge in ultrasonic cavitation field

A newly-developed method permits an electric plasma discharge to occur with relatively low electric power in insulating organic solutions due to the presence of an ultrasonic cavitation. A stable electric plasma could be generated in an ultrasonic cavitation field containing a thousand tiny activated bubbles, in which the electric conductivity could be improved due to formed radicals and free electrons, using copper electrodes and a titanium ultrasonic horn. This method allowed us to synthesize pyrolytic amorphous carbon nanoparticles smaller than about 30 nm in diameter from benzene liquid. In addition, we synthesized TiC nanoparticles about 50-150 nm in size, and copper nanoparticles smaller than 10 nm, which were encapsulated in multilayered graphite cages. Finally, we used GC-MS and MALDI-TOF-MS to observe and analyze the polymerized compounds and the degree of polymerization of the benzene liquid after the plasma treatment.     

Interface interaction and wetting of Sc<Subscript>2</Subscript>O<Subscript>3</Subscript> exposed to Cu–Al and Cu–Ti melts

Scandia is a thermodynamically stable oxide and could be used as a structural material for a crucible in order to avoid a melt contamination. In the present study wetting experiments of Cu–Al and Cu–Ti melts on Scandia substrate were preformed at 1423 K by a sessile drop method. It was established that Al and Ti additions lead to the improved wetting and that the final contact angle decreases with increasing the additives concentration. For Al containing melts, the contact angle changes gradually with time, and a relatively thick interaction layer, which consists of Al₂O₃, Sc₂O₃, and metallic channels, was formed at the Sc₂O₃/Cu–Al interface. For Ti containing melts, the final contact angle is achieved already during heating, and an extremely thin layer based on a Ti–Sc–O compound was detected by AES at the Sc₂O₃/Cu–Ti interface. The results of a thermodynamic analysis, which takes into account the formation free energy of the oxides, involved in the systems, and the thermodynamic properties of the liquid solutions are in a good agreement with the experimental observations.     

Direct experimental confirmation of the critical behaviour of antiphase domain boundaries at the second order phase transition of Al-Fe binary alloys

The present work reports, for the first time, a direct experimental observation of the critical phenomenon associated with the B2-A2 order-disorder transition of Al-Fe binary alloys. Transmission electron microscopy and energy dispersion spectroscopy are employed to span the morphological changes through the transition line from the ordered B2 phase to the disordered A2 phase. Dark field images of the microstructure around the transition line for samples aged at 973 and 1073 K for various times show an interface roughening for the {100} antiphase domain boundaries in body-centered cubic binary alloys having the B2 structure. This observation confirms theory about the instability of the second-order transition in such alloys. This behaviour occurs for compositions with Al-content slightly higher (by ∼4 at.% Al) than that of the critical point of the equilibrium order-disorder transition. In addition, roughness-induced wetting transition is also observed for alloys having compositions ranging from 1.3 to 1.5 at.% Al above the transition line. The interface roughening transition is thought to be unstable second-order while the wetting transition is suggested to be a stable first-order one.     

Effect of annealing on field emission properties of nanodiamond coating

Field electron emission of detonation nanodiamond (ND) coated on a titanium substrate by electrophoretic deposition is investigated. It is found that thermal annealing can significantly improve the field emission properties of the ND layer, which can be mainly attributed to the formation of the TiC phase between diamond and Ti. The first-principles calculated results show that the formation of transition layers can lower the interface barrier and enhance the field electron emission of ND coating. Besides, the transformation of diamond to graphite after annealing has been revealed by Raman spectra. This transformation also benefits the electron emission enhancement.     

The effect of ultrasound on the wetting of graphite by molten aluminium

The effect of ultrasound on wetting of graphite by molten aluminium is described. It was shown that ultrasonic energy has a favourable effect on this process at low technological temperatures (1000 K). This was shown by the mechanical tests performed, as well as by electron scanning microscopy investigations.     

Simulation of ultrasound influence on melt convection for the growth of GaxIn1−xSb and Si single crystals by the Czochralski method

The flow simulation for Ga_xIn_1−xSb and Si melts was conducted for quasi-steady conditions. The maximum velocity was under the solid–liquid interface near periphery of the crystals. An introduction of ultrasound into the liquid formed a standing wave channel under the solid–liquid interface, which acted on melt particles. The calculations of convective and ultrasonic forces acting on the particles in the melt showed that the ultrasonic force is much higher than the convective force.     

Effect of binder melt flow on the leading edge flames of solid propellant sandwiches

This study reports the effect of binder melt flow on the burning behaviour, specifically the burning rate controlling sites referred to as the leading edge flames (LEFs), of different types of sandwich propellants, namely, pure, micro-aluminized and nano-aluminized binder. The distance between the LEFs anchored over the lamina interface edges of sandwiches is measured from the combustion images captured under high spatio-temporal resolution. Similarly, the extent of binder melt flow is also measured from the quenched surfaces of sandwiches. The burning rate experiments are performed as well on sandwiches with different middle lamina contents and thicknesses at pressures of 2, 4 and 7 MPa. Two different curing agents are considered to examine the melt flow behaviour of the binder. The curing agent significantly influences the inter-LEF distance mainly in the case of pure binder sandwiches, however, its effect is negligible in aluminized binder sandwiches because of the presence of Al particles that impedes the flow to appreciable extent. Substantial protrusion of the middle lamina relative to the lamina interfaces is observed in micro-aluminized binder sandwiches due to significant accumulation of Al particles on the burning surface. In the case of nano-aluminized binder sandwiches, such protrusion is relatively marginal since nano-Al particles burn quickly, which enables the gas phase flame to locate close to the burning surface, although the extent of Al accumulation is considerably more than in the former case. This causes the nano-aluminized binder sandwiches as a whole to burn significantly faster than the other two cases in the pressure range (<7 MPa) where the LEFs predominantly control the sandwich burning rates.     

Excess Volume of the Solid/Liquid Interface in Fe-6 at.%Si Bicrystals Wetted by Liquid Zinc

The pressure effect on grain boundary wetting in Fe-6 at.%Si bicrystals of different misorientation angles but constant misorientation axis has been studied. The wetting agent was liquid zinc. It was found that the pressure for the dewetting transition is higher for the near 5 boundary than for the other general boundaries, where is the inverse density of the coincidence sites in the two misoriented crystal lattices. This result was explained assuming a thinner liquid film wetting the near 5 boundary than in the case of nonperiodic grain boundaries. Furthermore, the wetting angle increased with increasing pressure. The wetting angle dependence on pressure could be understood assuming a excess surface volume of the solid/liquid (S/L) interface higher than 0.2 nm. This is considerably higher than the estimated excess volumes of grain boundaries based on computer simulations. To explain this result, it was postulated that in the system studied, where diffusion of Zn, Fe and Si perpendicular to the S/L interface takes place, the S/L interface is relatively thick and the interaction between the two crystals separated by the melt extends over more than 2 nm distance. This long-range interaction was rationalized in terms of clusters of several atoms, detaching from the solid and dissolving in the melt at some distance from the bulk.     

Interface adhesion properties of functional coatings on titanium alloy formed by microarc oxidation method

Three functional coatings (namely Al-C, Si-P-Al and P-F-Al coating) were fabricated by microarc oxidation method on Ti6Al4V alloy in different aqueous solutions. The microstructure, phase and chemical composition of coatings were investigated using scanning electron microscope, X-ray diffraction and energy dispersive spectroscopy. The interface adhesion failure mode of the coating is revealed by shear, tensile and thermal shock methods. The coatings exhibit high adhesion strength by the quantitative shearing test, registering as 110, 70, and 40 MPa for Al-C, Si-P-Al and P-F-Al coating, respectively. The tensile test of the coated samples shows that microarc oxidation treatment does not significantly deteriorate mechanical properties of substrate titanium alloy. The observations of the coating failure after subjected to the identical tensile elongation of 3.0% are well in agreement with those results of the shear test. The thermal cycle test indicates that all the coatings have good anti-thermal shocking properties.     

STUDY OF THE Al/GRAPHITE INTERFACE

Thin Al films with a thickness of 20－30nm were prepared by ultra-high vacuum deposition of Al onto a graphite surface parallel to a (0001) basal plane. The samples were annealed up to 1070K. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analysis has shown that for temperatures just higher than 770K, a little carbide occurs in the Al film and only an Al－C phase is present at the Al/graphite interface. After annealing at 970K, the Al₄C₃ phase can be observed, and the binding energy of the Al2p electrons increases continuously from 72.7 to 74.2eV with increasing temperature up to 1070K. Auger electron spectroscopy depth profiles are measured to investigate the phases existing in the Al film as well as at the Al/graphite interface. It is found that the Al₄C₃ phase at the interface is the final product of a series of Al carbides from the interfacial reaction between Al and graphite.     

In-situ TiC particle reinforced Ti–Al matrix composites: Powder preparation by mechanical alloying and Selective Laser Melting behavior

Mechanical alloying of Ti–Al–graphite elemental powder mixture was performed to synthesize nanocomposite powder with Ti(Al) solid solution matrix reinforced by in-situ formed TiC particles. The evolutions in phases, microstructures, and compositions of milled powders with the applied milling times were investigated. It showed that with increasing the milling time, the starting irregularly shaped powder underwent a successive change in its morphology from a flattened shape (10 h) to a highly coarsened spherical one (15 h) and, eventually, to a fine, equiaxed and uniform one (above 25 h). The prepared TiC/Ti(Al) composite powder was nanocrystalline, with the estimated average crystallite size of 12 nm and of 7 nm for Ti(Al) and TiC, respectively. Formation mechanisms behind the microstructural development of powders were elucidated. The Ti(Al) solid solution is formed through a gradual and progressive solution of Al into Ti lattice. The formation of TiC is through an abrupt, exothermic, and self-sustaining reaction between Ti and C elements. Selective Laser Melting (SLM) of as-prepared TiC/Ti(Al) composite powder was performed. The TiC particle reinforced TiAl₃ (a major phase) and Ti₃AlC₂ (a minor phase) matrix composite part was obtained after SLM. Although a slight grain growth occurred as relative to as-milled powder, the SLM processed composites still exhibited a refined microstructure.     

Rapid fabrication of surface-relief plastic diffusers by ultrasonic embossing

This paper discusses an innovative and effective ultrasonic embossing process, which enables the rapid fabrication of surface-relief plastic diffusers. The metallic mold bearing the microstructures is fabricated using a tungsten carbide turning machine. A 1500-W ultrasonic vibrator with an output frequency of 20 kHz was used to replicate the microstructure onto 1-mm-thick PMMA plates in the experiments. During ultrasonic embossing, the ultrasonic energy is converted into heat through intermolecular friction at the master mold/plastic plate interface due to asperities to melt the thermoplastic at the interface and thereby to replicate the microstructure. Under the proper processing conditions, high-performance plastic diffusers have been successfully fabricated. The cycle time required to successfully fabricate a diffuser is less than 2 s. The experimental results suggest that ultrasonic embossing could provide an effective way of fabricating high-performance plastic diffusers with a high throughput.     

Microstructural evolution of SiC joints soldered using Zn–Al filler metals with the assistance of ultrasound

SiC ceramics were successfully soldered with the assistance of ultrasound. Two kinds of filler metals, namely non-eutectic Zn–5Al–3Cu and eutectic Zn–5Al alloys, were used. The effects of ultrasonic action on the microstructure and mechanical properties of the soldered joints were investigated. The results showed that ultrasound could promote the wetting and bonding between the SiC ceramic and filler metals within tens of seconds. For the Zn–5Al–3Cu solder, a fully grain-refined structure in the bond layer was obtained as the ultrasonic action time increased. This may lead to a substantial enhancement in the strength of the soldered joints. For the Zn–5Al solder, the shear strength of the soldered joints was only ∼102 MPa when the ultrasonic action time was shorter, and fractures occurred in the brittle lamellar eutectic phases in the center of the bond layer. With increasing ultrasonic action time, the lamellar eutectic phase in the bond layer of SiC joints could be completely transformed to a fine non-lamellar eutectic structure. Meanwhile, the grains in the bond layer were obviously refined. Those results led to the remarkable enhancement of the shear strength of the joints (∼138 MPa) using the Zn–5Al solder, which had approached that enhancement using the Zn–5Al–3Cu solder. The enhanced mechanical properties of the joints were attributed to the significant refinement of the grains and the change in the eutectic structure in the bond layer. Prolonged enhanced heterogeneous nucleation triggered by ultrasonic cavitation is the predominant refinement mechanism of the bond metals of the SiC joints.     

Water irradiation by high-frequency ultrasonic wave: effects on properties of passive film formed on stainless steel

In this paper an aqueous solution was irradiated with a 1.63MHz ultrasonic wave. It is shown that if stainless steel can passivate under dynamic polarization in this medium, under static polarization, the latter does not show any repassivation behaviour with time. This is attributed to a diminution of the diffusion layer thickness that is developed at the electrode/electrolyte interface, which is associated with a production of H(2) species by sonolysis and which maintains reductive conditions at the interface. The oxide film formed under ultrasonic irradiation for 1h at a passive potential of+0.2V(SCE) shows an early stage of passivation and an increased disordered state, which implies a considerable decrease in the corrosion resistance behaviour of the sample. The polarization resistance of the stainless steel R(p) is divided by a value of 4.5 under ultrasonic conditions.     

高能超声制备碳纳米管增强AZ91D复合材料的声场模拟

建立了高能超声制备碳纳米管增强AZ91D复合材料的声场计算模型, 并采用有限元方法计算了20 kHz超声直接作用下AZ91D熔体的声场分布, 熔体声场呈辐射状分布, 距离声源越远, 声压幅值越低. 采用超声作用下单一气泡变化模型描述超声作用下AZ91D 熔体中的空化效应, 通过对Rayleigh-Plesset方程的求解, 得到了不同声压作用下气泡的变化规律, 获得了声压幅值与熔体空化效应的关系, 声压幅值越大, 气泡溃灭半径阈值越小, 熔体发生空化效应越容易. 计算了固定坩埚尺寸、不同超声探头没入熔体深度情况下的声场, 得到了超声探头最优没入深度为30 mm左右. 将声场计算结果以及AZ91D熔体中空化效应的发生规律进行综合分析, 得到了超声功率对有效空化区域的影响规律, 超声功率较大时, 有效空化区域体积随超声功率近似成线性增大. 最后, 通过甘油水溶液超声处理实验, 验证了模拟计算的准确性.     

Wetting and reaction promoted by ultrasound between sapphire and liquid Al–12Si alloy

Ultrasonic-assisted wetting between sapphire bulks and liquid Al–12Si alloy in an atmospheric environment at 620 °C is carried out in this study. Complete, rather than partial, wetting and joining can be achieved with the aid of ultrasound. Growth of epitaxial alumina on sapphire bulks is promoted dramatically during ultrasonic-assisted wetting comparing to that during hot-dipping without ultrasound. XRD results show that the epitaxial alumina is non-crystalline. This indicates that the temperature on the surface of the sapphire substrate is not more than 1200 °C even though the collapse of acoustic cavitation bubbles could theoretically produce extremely high temperature. The bonding force at the interface between the Al–Si alloy and sapphire is strengthened because of the epitaxial alumina. The interfacial shear strength of sapphire/Al–Si alloy can reach as high as 60–65 MPa. The fracture morphology shows that cracks initiated at the interface between Si grains and the epitaxial alumina on sapphire. This result is especially useful for the joining of metals and ceramics.