Author Correction: Additive manufacturing of ultrafine-grained high-strength titanium alloys.

An amendment to this paper has been published and can be accessed via a link at the top of the paper.

Additive manufacturing of ultrafine-grained high-strength titanium alloys.

Additive manufacturing, often known as three-dimensional (3D) printing, is a process in which a part is built layer-by-layer and is a promising approach for creating components close to their final (net) shape. This process is challenging the dominance of conventional manufacturing processes for products with high complexity and low material waste1. Titanium alloys made by additive manufacturing have been used in applications in various industries. However, the intrinsic high cooling rates and high thermal gradient of the fusion-based metal additive manufacturing process often leads to a very fine microstructure and a tendency towards almost exclusively columnar grains, particularly in titanium-based alloys1. (Columnar grains in additively manufactured titanium components can result in anisotropic mechanical properties and are therefore undesirable2.) Attempts to optimize the processing parameters of additive manufacturing have shown that it is difficult to alter the conditions to promote equiaxed growth of titanium grains3. In contrast with other common engineering alloys such as aluminium, there is no commercial grain refiner for titanium that is able to effectively refine the microstructure. To address this challenge, here we report on the development of titanium-copper alloys that have a high constitutional supercooling capacity as a result of partitioning of the alloying element during solidification, which can override the negative effect of a high thermal gradient in the laser-melted region during additive manufacturing. Without any special process control or additional treatment, our as-printed titanium-copper alloy specimens have a fully equiaxed fine-grained microstructure. They also display promising mechanical properties, such as high yield strength and uniform elongation, compared to conventional alloys under similar processing conditions, owing to the formation of an ultrafine eutectoid microstructure that appears as a result of exploiting the high cooling rates and multiple thermal cycles of the manufacturing process. We anticipate that this approach will be applicable to other eutectoid-forming alloy systems, and that it will have applications in the aerospace and biomedical industries.

Characterisation of Fe Distribution in the Liquid-Solid Boundary of Al-Zn-Mg-Si Alloy Using Synchrotron X-ray Fluorescence Microscopy.

Al-Zn-Mg-Si alloy coatings have been developed to inhibit the corrosion of cold-rolled steel sheets by offering galvanic and barrier protection to the substrate steel. It is known that Fe deposited from the steel strip modifies the microstructure of the alloy. We cast samples of Al-Zn-Mg-Si coating alloys containing 0.4 wt% Fe and directionally solidified them using a Bridgman furnace to quantify the effect of this Fe addition between 600 °C and 240 °C. By applying a temperature gradient, growth is encouraged, and by then quenching the sample in coolant, the microstructure may be frozen. These samples were analysed using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) to determine the morphological effects of the Fe distribution across the experimental temperature range. However, due to the sub 1 wt% concentration of Fe, synchrotron X-ray fluorescence microscopy (XFM) was applied to quantitatively confirm the Fe distribution. Directionally solidified samples were scanned at 7.05 keV and 18.5 keV using X-ray fluorescence at the Australian Synchrotron using the Maia array detector. It was found that a mass nucleation event of the Fe-based τ6 phase occurred at 495 °C following the nucleation of the primary α-Al phase as a result of a peritectic reaction with remaining liquid.

Ultrauniform, strong, and ductile 3D-printed titanium alloy through bifunctional alloy design.

Coarse columnar grains and heterogeneously distributed phases commonly form in metallic alloys produced by three-dimensional (3D) printing and are often considered undesirable because they can impart nonuniform and inferior mechanical properties. We demonstrate a design strategy to unlock consistent and enhanced properties directly from 3D printing. Using Ti-5Al-5Mo-5V-3Cr as a model alloy, we show that adding molybdenum (Mo) nanoparticles promotes grain refinement during solidification and suppresses the formation of phase heterogeneities during solid-state thermal cycling. The microstructural change because of the bifunctional additive results in uniform mechanical properties and simultaneous enhancement of both strength and ductility. We demonstrate how this alloy can be modified by a single component to address unfavorable microstructures, providing a pathway to achieve desirable mechanical characteristics directly from 3D printing.

Phase Stability of Dross Particles in Hot-Dip Zn-55wt%Al-1.6wt%Si Galvanizing Bath.

Dross in a Zn-55wt%Al-1.6wt%Si metal coating bath is a mixture of bath metal and the quaternary intermetallic phase τ5c-Al20Fe5Si2(+Zn). Understanding the properties and formation of dross in a hot-dip Al-Zn galvanizing bath at the processing temperature (~600 °C) is critical for improving the production quality of steel sheet coating. However, dross analysis is usually conducted at room temperature with dross samples taken from the hot-dip bath and it is not known how representative these samples are of the phase(s) existing at high temperature. Using in-situ synchrotron X-ray diffraction (XRD), the crystal lattice and the coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) of the intermetallic phase have been determined in the temperature range of 30 °C to 660 °C. Phase formation and phase stability of the intermetallic phase in the dross powder have been determined, providing fundamental knowledge for optimizing the production and quality of steel sheet coating.

An overview and critical assessment of the mechanisms of microstructural refinement during ultrasonic solidification of metals.

A refined, equiaxed grain structure and the formation of finer primary intermetallic phases are some of the notable benefits of ultrasonic processing of liquid/solidifying melts. Ultrasonic treatment (UST) has been widely explored in Al and Mg-based alloys due to its operational versatility and scalability. During UST, the refinement of grain and primary intermetallic phases occurs via cavitation-induced fragmentation mechanisms. In addition, UST improves the efficiency (activation of particles) of the conventional grain refinement process when potent particles are added through master alloys. Though the UST's ability to produce refined as-cast structures is well recognized, the understanding of the refinement mechanisms is still debated and unresolved. Significant efforts have been devoted to understanding these mechanisms through the use of sophisticated techniques such as in-situ/ real-time observation, lab-scale and commercial-scale casting processes. All these studies aim to demonstrate the significance of cavitation, fragmentation modes, and alloy chemistry in microstructure refinement. Although the physical effects of cavitation and acoustic streaming (fluid flow) are primary factors influencing the refinement, the dominant grain refinement mechanisms are affected by several solidification variables and casting conditions. Some of these include melt volume, solute, cooling rate, potent particles, grain growth (equiaxed, columnar or dendritic), and the cold zones of the casting where the onset of nucleation occurs. This review aims to provide a better insight into solidification variables emphasizing the importance of cold zones in generating fine structures for small- and large-volume (direct chill) castings. Another important highlight of this review is to present the relatively less explored mechanism of (acoustic) vibration-induced crystallization and discuss the role of cavitation in achieving a refined ingot structure.

Ultrasonic Processing for Structure Refinement: An Overview of Mechanisms and Application of the Interdependence Theory.

Research on ultrasonic treatment (UST) of aluminium, magnesium and zinc undertaken by the authors and their collaborators was stimulated by renewed interest internationally in this technology and the establishment of the ExoMet program of which The University of Queensland (UQ) was a partner. The direction for our research was driven by a desire to understand the UST parameters that need to be controlled to achieve a fine equiaxed grain structure throughout a casting. Previous work highlighted that increasing the growth restriction factor Q can lead to significant refinement when UST is applied. We extended this approach to using the Interdependence model as a framework for identifying some of the factors (e.g., solute and temperature gradient) that could be optimised in order to achieve the best refinement from UST for a range of alloy compositions. This work confirmed established knowledge on the benefits of both liquid-only treatment and the additional refinement when UST is applied during the nucleation stage of solidification. The importance of acoustic streaming, treatment time and settling of grains were revealed as critical factors in achieving a fully equiaxed structure. The Interdependence model also explained the limit to refinement obtained when nanoparticle composites are treated. This overview presents the key results and mechanisms arising from our research and considers directions for future research.

Ultrasonic Processing of Aluminum⁻Magnesium Alloys.

This study evaluated the effect of UltraSonic Treatment (UST) on a range of Al⁻Mg alloys. Previous research was carried out on single magnesium compositions. However, the amount and type of the alloy addition are known to affect the grain size even under UST, and the aim of this study was to determine whether or not alloy composition plays a similar role in the case of Al⁻Mg alloys. By testing binary Al⁻Mg alloys cast under regular casting conditions and under the presence of an ultrasonic field, it was found that while the addition of Mg solute is important, the amount of solute has little effect when UST is applied. It was observed that the grain size was barely affected by extra solute additions in this condition. This is due to the application of UST during solidification, which resulted in a dramatic reduction in the size of the nucleation free zone thus promoting many more successful nucleation events. Acoustic streaming is proposed as the main cause of this reduction in grain size.

Porous Titanium Scaffolds Fabricated by Metal Injection Moulding for Biomedical Applications.

Biocompatible titanium scaffolds with up to 40% interconnected porosity were manufactured through the metal injection moulding process and the space holder technique. The mechanical properties of the manufactured scaffold showed a high level of compatibility with those of the cortical human bone. Sintering at 1250 °C produced scaffolds with 36% porosity and more than 90% interconnected pores, a compressive yield stress of 220 MPa and a Young's modulus of 7.80 GPa, all suitable for bone tissue engineering. Increasing the sintering temperature to 1300 °C increased the Young's modulus to 22.0 GPa due to reduced porosity, while reducing the sintering temperature to 1150 °C lowered the yield stress to 120 MPa, indicative of insufficient sintering. Electrochemical studies revealed that samples sintered at 1150 °C have a higher corrosion rate compared with those at a sintering temperature of 1250 °C. Overall, it was concluded that sintering at 1250 °C yielded the most desirable results.

The cold-rolling behaviour of AZ31 tubes for fabrication of biodegradable stents.

Mg alloys are receiving considerable attention for biomedical stents due to their combination of good mechanical properties and high biodegradability. Cold rolling is necessary to process Mg alloy tubes before final drawing and fabrication of the magnesium stents. In this paper, cold-rolled tubes were subjected to a cross-sectional reduction rate (ε) of up to 19.7%, and were further processed at various ratios of wall-thickness to diameter reduction (Q) from 0 to 2.24 with a constant ε of 19.7%. The results show that the cold-rolled tubes exhibited a rise in ultimate tensile strength (UTS), yield strength (YS), and a reduction in elongation as ε increased from 5.5% to 19.7%. UTS, YS and elongation decreased when Q was increased from 0 to 2.24. Mechanical twinning was observed and analysed. Extension twins increased with increasing ε and were almost saturated at a ε of 16.5%. Extension twins play an important role in determining the evolution of mechanical behaviour in the case of increasing ε, whilst contraction/double twins and secondary extension twins have a large effect on mechanical behaviour in the case of varying Q. The results indicate that the proportions and types of twins play a major role in determining the mechanical behaviour of the AZ31 tubes.