Grain Boundary and Mapping of Metals and Alloys

A special issue of Metals (ISSN 2075-4701). This special issue belongs to the section "Crystallography and Applications of Metallic Materials".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (28 February 2023) | Viewed by 10861

Special Issue Editor

Key Laboratory for Microstructures, Shanghai University, Shanghai 200444, China
Interests: grain boundaries; grain boundary engineering; nano precipitates; microstructure; atom probe tomography; materials science

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Grain boundary is an important defect in metals and alloys. Many metal and alloy failures are connected to aspects of the grain boundary, such as creep, intergranular corrosion, intergranular brittlement, etc.

The aim of this Special Issue is to demonstrate recent progress in the field with regard to the effect of the grain boundary and phase interface on the bulk properties of metals and alloys. Potential topics include (but are not limited to) the grain boundary and interface segregation, precipitation, grain boundary engineering, and their effects on the bulk properties of metals and alloys. Papers that discuss the thermal mechanical process tailoring the grain boundary and interface microstructure and other related topics are also welcome.

Dr. Hui Li
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • grain boundary
  • interface segregation
  • grain boundary precipitation
  • grain boundary engineering
  • intergranular attack

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Published Papers (6 papers)

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Research

11 pages, 3578 KiB  
Article
Effect of Rolling Reduction on Microstructures and Mechanical Properties of Sc-Containing Al-3.2Cu-1.5Li Alloy
by Jian Wang, Yun Kan, Wenting Xu, Yalin Lu, Dongshuai Zhou and Shenao Li
Metals 2023, 13(4), 770; https://doi.org/10.3390/met13040770 - 14 Apr 2023
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1363
Abstract
The effects of various rolling reductions (64.7%, 72.1%, 81.4% and 88.2%) on the microstructures and mechanical behaviors of Sc-containing Al-3.2Cu-1.5Li-based alloys were experimentally investigated through XRD, SEM (equipped with EBSD), TEM and the tensile test. The results showed that the grains of hot-rolled [...] Read more.
The effects of various rolling reductions (64.7%, 72.1%, 81.4% and 88.2%) on the microstructures and mechanical behaviors of Sc-containing Al-3.2Cu-1.5Li-based alloys were experimentally investigated through XRD, SEM (equipped with EBSD), TEM and the tensile test. The results showed that the grains of hot-rolled and T6-treated alloys are mainly dominated by substructure features, and the addition of the trace Sc element can obviously impede the static and dynamic recrystallization due to the formation of fine and stable nano-Al3(Sc, Zr) particles. Additionally, the combined effects of fine grains, dispersion, substructure and precipitation strengthening make the alloys with a rolling reduction of 81.4% possess higher tensile properties. With an increase in the rolling reduction, the tensile strength of the alloys increases first and then decreases, while the elongation gradually increases and then reaches a plateau, which was ascribed to the variation in the grain size and substructure features. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Grain Boundary and Mapping of Metals and Alloys)
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14 pages, 9269 KiB  
Article
The Effects of Cold Rolling and Annealing on the Microstructure Evolution of Ordered C-2000 Alloy during Metallic Wire Preparation
by Liang Yuan, Faqiang Gou, Deqiang Sun, Zhiqiang Li and Yunlong Xue
Metals 2023, 13(4), 651; https://doi.org/10.3390/met13040651 - 25 Mar 2023
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2270
Abstract
When using well-designed multiple-stage heavy-drawn processes, i.e., cold rolling, drawing and cluster drawing to fabricate a metallic wire or fiber in steps, cold rolling and annealing are critical steps due to their effect on the initial microstructure before the heavy-drawn process. Understanding the [...] Read more.
When using well-designed multiple-stage heavy-drawn processes, i.e., cold rolling, drawing and cluster drawing to fabricate a metallic wire or fiber in steps, cold rolling and annealing are critical steps due to their effect on the initial microstructure before the heavy-drawn process. Understanding the relationship between microstructure evolution and cold rolling followed by annealing is required for smoothly implementing the heavy-drawn process. In this work, the evolution behavior in terms of the microstructure during cold rolling followed by annealing was investigated in a novel C-2000 alloy that is a promising candidate material for the fabrication of high-performance metallicwire. The investigation encompassed parameters including the grain size, grain boundaries, recrystallization texture, and short-range ordered (SRO) structure. Results show that the grain size distribution of the cold-rolledC-2000 alloy followed by annealing at 900 °C is quite uneven. The low-angle grain boundaries induced by cold rolling are more frequently transformed into the Σ3 twin boundaries during recrystallization. At the initial stage of annealing at 900 °C after cold rolling, the contents of different texture components are significantly different, but the differences tend to decrease with the extension of the annealing time. In addition, cold rolling destroys SRO domains formed during solid solution water quenching, and the destruction of SRO affects the precipitation of the long-range ordered phase during annealing. Incoherent Σ3ic with curved grain boundaries play an important role in the recrystallization of nucleation sites in the process of static recrystallization by nucleation–growth. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Grain Boundary and Mapping of Metals and Alloys)
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10 pages, 3468 KiB  
Article
Effects of Rare Earth Elements on Microstructure and Corrosion Resistance of Low Alloy Steel Based on Ultra-Thin Cast Strip Process
by Xintong Lian, Hongshan Zhao, Long Chen, Tengshi Liu, Qingxiao Feng, Hualong Li, Yixin Shi and Han Dong
Metals 2023, 13(1), 66; https://doi.org/10.3390/met13010066 - 26 Dec 2022
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1953
Abstract
This laboratory study aimed to reveal the inner connects between the microstructure and corrosion properties of a RE microalloyed ultra-thin cast strip (UCS) steel. The microstructure mainly consisted of homogeneous polygonal ferrite (PF) with a small amount of pearlite (P), while adding multiple [...] Read more.
This laboratory study aimed to reveal the inner connects between the microstructure and corrosion properties of a RE microalloyed ultra-thin cast strip (UCS) steel. The microstructure mainly consisted of homogeneous polygonal ferrite (PF) with a small amount of pearlite (P), while adding multiple alloying elements led to the appearance of granular bainite (GB) and bainitic ferrite (BF). RE elements strongly promoted the homogenization and refinement of microstructure by segregating towards the solid–liquid interface. Potentiodynamic polarization, EIS, and weight loss curves under wet–dry immersion test confirmed that the corrosion behavior was significantly improved by RE, while the addition of RE had no obvious change on tensile strength. The corrosion resistance of the homogeneous single-phase microstructure was proved to be better than that of multiphase microstructure. Hence, RE had a remarkable influence on improving corrosion resistance when the experimental steels processed single-phase microstructures. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Grain Boundary and Mapping of Metals and Alloys)
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10 pages, 3653 KiB  
Article
Influence of Chromium Atoms on the Shear-Coupled Motion of [110] Symmetric Tilt Grain Boundary in α-Iron: Atomic Simulation
by Zhiwen Bai, Xiaohan Yan, Jian Yin and Huaiyu Hou
Metals 2022, 12(9), 1451; https://doi.org/10.3390/met12091451 - 30 Aug 2022
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1352
Abstract
Shear-coupled grain boundary motion (SCGBM) is an important mechanism of plastic deformation, especially in the cases of ultrafine-grained or nanocrystalline materials at low temperatures. Much research work has been focused on the geometric rules of coupling, the grain boundary migration mechanisms, or the [...] Read more.
Shear-coupled grain boundary motion (SCGBM) is an important mechanism of plastic deformation, especially in the cases of ultrafine-grained or nanocrystalline materials at low temperatures. Much research work has been focused on the geometric rules of coupling, the grain boundary migration mechanisms, or the temperature effect of SCGBM, but the effect of the alloy atoms is seldom involved. In this work, molecular dynamics (MD) simulations were carried out to examine the SCGBM of the Σ17[110](223) and Σ9[110](221) grain boundaries (GBs) in iron-chromium alloys containing from 1 at.% to 9 at.% Cr. A constant shear velocity corresponding to 10 m/s parallel to the boundary plane was applied to the models. Our simulation results indicate that the critical stress of GB migration reduces due to the addition of Cr atoms for the Σ17(223) GB. As for the Σ9(221) GB, sliding occurs simultaneously with coupling in the shear process when the atomic amount of Cr reaches 3%. This phenomenon was also observed in the Σ9(221) GB in pure Fe when the temperature was elevated to 300 K, which was studied in our previous simulation work. The existence of new structural units was demonstrated to be responsible for the sliding of the grain boundary. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Grain Boundary and Mapping of Metals and Alloys)
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7 pages, 1579 KiB  
Article
Effects of Element (Al, Mo, Sn and Fe) Doping on Phase Structure and Mechanical Properties of the Ti-Nb-Based Alloys
by Suyi Gu, Zhengcun Zhou and Na Min
Metals 2022, 12(8), 1249; https://doi.org/10.3390/met12081249 - 25 Jul 2022
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1408
Abstract
In the paper, Ti-18Nb-5X (X = Mo and Sn) and Ti-33Nb-2X (X = Al, Sn, Fe and Mo) alloys were investigated to evaluate the effects of Al, Mo, Sn and Fe doping and different heat treatments on the properties and microstructures of the [...] Read more.
In the paper, Ti-18Nb-5X (X = Mo and Sn) and Ti-33Nb-2X (X = Al, Sn, Fe and Mo) alloys were investigated to evaluate the effects of Al, Mo, Sn and Fe doping and different heat treatments on the properties and microstructures of the Ti-Nb-based alloys. The results show that Al decreased the volume of βM in the water-quenched Ti-33Nb-2Al alloy and promoted the formation of β phase in the furnace-cooled Ti-33Nb-2Al alloy. Fe-doping was proven to stabilize the β phase. Sn-doping plays a complicated role to promote the formation of α′′ phase in the water-quenched Ti-33Nb-2Sn alloys but increases the β phase in the furnace-cooled Ti-33Nb-2Sn alloys and Ti-18Nb-5Mo-5Sn. The alloys containing α′′ and βM phases show larger superelastic strains and lower Young’s moduli. In the water-quenched Ti-based alloys, the Young’s modulus decreases, and the superelastic strain is enhanced with the increasing volume of α′′. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Grain Boundary and Mapping of Metals and Alloys)
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11 pages, 53507 KiB  
Article
Microstructure, Inclusions, and Elemental Distribution of a Compacted Graphite Iron Alloyed by Ce and La Rare Earth (RE) Elements
by Zengwei Fan, Jianan Zhu, Xintong Lian, Tengshi Liu, Dexiang Xu, Xicheng Wei and Han Dong
Metals 2022, 12(5), 779; https://doi.org/10.3390/met12050779 - 30 Apr 2022
Viewed by 1865
Abstract
This work investigates the microstructure and inclusions of a compacted graphite iron (CGI) alloyed by Ce and La rare earth (RE) elements. In our study, alloying elemental distribution and solute segregation were characterized by methods of secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) and a [...] Read more.
This work investigates the microstructure and inclusions of a compacted graphite iron (CGI) alloyed by Ce and La rare earth (RE) elements. In our study, alloying elemental distribution and solute segregation were characterized by methods of secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) and a three-dimensional atom probe (3DAP) with high sensitivity and spatial resolution. RE sulfide, MgS, carbide, and composite inclusions formed during solidification and provided heterogeneous nucleation cores for the nucleation of the graphite. Significant solute clustering in the matrix, coupled with the segregation of solute to grain boundaries, was observed. C, Mn, Cr, and V were soluted in cementite and promoted the precipitation of cementite, while Si was found to be soluted in ferrite. Cu is usually distributed uniformly in ferrite, but some Cu-rich atom clusters were observed to segregate towards the interface between the ferrite and cementite, stabilizing the pearlite. In addition, P, as a segregation element, was enriched along the boundaries continuously. The RE elements participated in the formation of inclusions, consuming harmful elements such as As and P, and also promoted the heterogeneous nucleation of the graphite and segregated, in the form of solute atoms, at its interfaces. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Grain Boundary and Mapping of Metals and Alloys)
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