The purpose of this study is to evaluate the degree of microstructural change of materials using ultrasonic nonlinear parameters. For microstructure change, isothermal heat-treated ferritic 2.25Cr steel and low-cycle fatigue-damage copper alloy were prepared. The variation in ultrasonic nonlinearity was analyzed and evaluated through changes in hardness, ductile-brittle transition temperature, electron microscopy, and X-ray diffraction tests. Ultrasonic nonlinearity of 2.25Cr steel increased rapidly during the first 1,000 hours of deterioration and then gradually increased thereafter. The variation in non-linear parameters was shown to be coarsening of carbides and an increase in the volume fraction of stable M6C carbides during heat treatment. Due to the low-cycle fatigue deformation of oxygen-free copper, the dislocation that causes lattice deformation developed in the material, distorting the propagating ultrasonic waves, and causing an increase in the ultrasonic nonlinear parameters.

The high-temperature oxidation behavior of Cr-Mo steel AISI 4115 in air at different temperatures (600, 850, 950℃) for 120 min was studied by mass gain analysis, phase analysis (optical microscopy, electron probe micro-analysis, x-ray diffraction) and hardness measurement of each iron oxide-phase. The oxidation scales that formed on oxidation process consisted outer layer (Hematite), middle layer (Magnetite) and the inner layer (Chromite). In the case of 850 and 950℃, the oxidation mass gain per unit area of AISI 4115 steel increased according to the logarithmic rate as atmospheric pressure increased. Especially, It has been observed that with an increase in the atmospheric pressure at 600℃, the oxidation mass gain per unit area changed from a linear to logarithmic relationship.

In this work, the strain-amplitude independent and strain-amplitude dependent damping capacities of Mg-5%Sn alloy have been investigated as a function of its age-hardening response. The hardness increased with an increase in aging time, reached a peak value after 48 h, and then it gradually decreased. The damping capacities of the Mg-5%Sn alloy exhibited a decreasing tendency in the order of solution-treated, under-aged, peakaged, and over-aged states in the strain-amplitude dependent region, whereas they increased continuously with aging time in the strain-amplitude independent region. The microstructural examination during aging revealed that the lower concentration of Sn solutes in the α-(Mg) matrix and the lower density of the Mg₂Sn precipitate particles may well be the crucial factors for better damping values in the strain-amplitude independent and strain-amplitude dependent regions, respectively.

In order to process materials such as engineering plastics, which are difficult to mold due to their high strength compared to conventional polymer materials, it is necessary to improve the hardness and strength of parts such as screws and barrels of injection equipment in extrusion system. High-velocity oxygen fuel (HVOF) process is well known for its contribution on enhancement of surface properties. Thus in this study, using the HVOF process, WC coating layers of different thicknesses were bonded to the surface of S30C substrate by controlling the movement speed of the spray nozzle and each property was evaluated to decide the optimization condition. Through the results, the thickness of WC coating layer increased from 0 to 200 ㎛ maximum, along with the decrement of nozzle movement speed and the surface hardness get increased. Especially, the coated layer with the thickness over 180 ㎛ under the nozzle speed 500 mm/s had high hardness than thinner layer. In addition, the amount of wear consumed per unit time was also significantly reduced due to the formation of the coating layer.