• Transactions of the Korean Society of Mechanical Engineers A
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• v.38 no.12
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• pp.1367-1372
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• 2014

As the awareness of the environmental crisis has recently increased around the world, numerous studies in the transport industry have been conducted to solve this problem through lightweight car bodies. The hot-stamping process has been presented as solution to achieve a light weight. Hot-stamping is a method that is used to obtain ultra-high strength steel (1,500 MPa or greater) by simultaneously forming and cooling boron steel in a press die after heating it to a temperature of $900^{\circ}C$ or above. This study involved a, fundamental examination of laser parameters to investigate the laser weldability of boron steel. As a result, the following optimum parameters for the shielding gas were found: Q = 20 l/min, ${\alpha}=40^{\circ}$, d = 20mm, and l = 0 mm. The hardness of butt weldment increasesed sharply as a result of martensite formation at the fusion zone.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Heat Treatment
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• v.12 no.2
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• pp.136-144
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• 1999

The study on the wear characteristics of compound layers formed during gaseous nitrocarburising in the medium carbon boron steels and the plain carbon steel has been carried out by using a pin-on-disc type wear test machine under the oil lubricating condition at room temperature and by varying applied loads, sliding speeds and wear distances. Values of friction coefficient measured at the sliding speed of 0.4m/sec under the oil lubricating condition have been shown to decrease considerably with increasing applied load and become gradually a constant value as load is increased to a higher value, showing that the transition load for friction coefficient appears at an applied load of 247.2N. The length and volume wear rates of compound layer have been revealed to relatively constantly increase, also showing that the wear life per unit thickness of compound layer turns out to be superior as porous layer has a denser and thinner appearance. As the sliding speed increases during wear test performed by varying sliding speed at a load of 63.2N under the oil lubricating condition for medium carbon boron steel nitrocarburised in gas atmosphere, the wear rate has been found to increase, the friction coefficient to decrease and the wear life per unit thickness of compound layer to decrease considerably.

• Analytical Science and Technology
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• v.22 no.4
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• pp.302-306
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• 2009

A trace amount of boron in steel significantly influences its mechanical and physical properties. A prompt gamma ray activation analysis (PGAA) method is used to measure boron in low alloy steel samples of KRISS 101-01-C21~C26. NIST SRMs of 362, 364, 1761 and 1767 serve as the control standards to validate the measurement method. The measured values of the NIST SRMs are consistent with their certified values within the expected uncertainties, except for that of NIST SRM 362. Experimental uncertainties are evaluated according to the guidelines given by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). The expanded uncertainties are calculated with a coverage factor of 2, at approximately 95% confidence level. The calculated relative expanded uncertainties of boron mass fractions are between 3% and 7% at the mg/kg level. The results are compared with the results measured by the solvent extraction-inductively coupled optical emission spectrometry (ICP/OES) method.

• International Journal of Korean Welding Society
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• v.3 no.2
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• pp.40-45
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• 2003

A series of experiments has been carried out to investigate the effect of titanium, boron and nitrogen on the microstructure and toughness of simulated heat affected zone (HAZ) in quenched and tempered (QT) type 490MPa yield strength steels. For acquiring the same strength level, the carbon content and carbon equivalent could be lowered remarkably with a small titanium and boron addition due to the hardenability effect of boron during quenching process. Following the thermal cycle of large heat input, the coarsened grain HAZ (CGHAZ) of conventional quenched and tempered (QT) type 490MPa yield strength steels exhibited a coarse bainitic or ferrite side plate structure with large prior austenite grains. While, titanium and boron bearing QT type 490MPa yield strength steels were characterized by the microstructure in the CGHAZ, consisting mainly of the fine intragranular ferrite microstructure. Toughness of the simulated HAZ was mainly controlled by the proper Ceq level, and the ratio of Ti/N rather than titanium and nitrogen contents themselves. In the titanium­boron added QT steels, the optimum Ti/N ratio for excellent HAZ toughness was around 2.0, which was much lower than the known Ti/N stoichiometric ratio, 3.4. With reducing Ti/N ratio from the stoichiometric ratio, austenite grain size in the coarse grained HAZ became finer, indicating that the effective fine precipitates could be sufficiently obtained even with lower Ti/N level by adding boron simultaneously. Along with typical titanium carbo­nitrides, various forms of complex titanium­ and boron­based precipitates, like TiN­MnS­BN, were often observed in the simulated CGHAZ, which may act as stable nuclei for ferrite during cooling of weld thermal cycles

• Transactions of Materials Processing
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• v.20 no.8
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• pp.540-547
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• 2011

Recent years have seen advent of hot stamped parts made from laser-welded blanks of boron steels for structures requiring high crash energy absorption. However, the presence of Al-Si coating interfered with satisfactory mechanical characterizations after laser butt welding. In this study, laser ablation technology was considered in order to facilitate adequate mechanical characterization of the final hot-stamped panels.

• Transactions of Materials Processing
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• v.19 no.4
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• pp.203-209
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• 2010

In the hot press forming process (HPF), a martensitic structure is obtained by controlling the cooling rate when cooling a boron sheet that is heated up to over $900^{\circ}C$. The HPF process has various advantages such as the improvement in formability and material properties and minimal spring back of the deformed materials. The factors related to the cooling rate depend on the heat transfer characteristics between heated materials and dies. Therefore, in this study, the cooling rate is controlled by adjusting the heat transfer coefficient of the material at the pressing process. And, the mechanical properties and microstructure of the deformed material is demonstrated during the HPF process where cold dies are used to form the heated steel plate. This is achieved by varying the major forming conditions that control the cooling rate regarded as the most important process parameter.

• Laser Solutions
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• v.16 no.3
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• pp.1-10
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• 2013

In this study, Al-Si coated boron steel(1.2 mm) were laser welded by $CO_2$ laser and hot-stamping was applied to the laser joints. Tensile properties and microstructures of the joints were investigated before and after hot-stamping. Tensile and yield strengths of the as welded specimen similar with base metal and fracture occurred base metal of boron steel. Although, in case of heat treated specimen, fracture occurred fusion zone that Al segregated zone near the bond line. These could be explained by the existence of ferrite, in the Al segregated zone near the bond line and base metal of boron steel. Before hot-stamping, hardness of base metal is lower than fusion zone and heat affected zone in spite of exist Al segregation zone($Fe_3$(Al,Si)). So fracture occurred base metal. Although, after hot-stamping, microstructure of base metal and welds zone transformed to martensite and bainite except in Al segregation zone near the bond line that $Fe_3$(Al,Si) transformed to a-ferrite. So fracture occurred Al segregation zone near the bond line.

• Laser Solutions
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• v.15 no.1
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• pp.1-5
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• 2012

Recently ultra high strength steels(UHSS) has been widely applied to the structural or safety components in the automotive industry. Specially, hot stamping boron steel 22MnB5 has shown the crash-resistant characteristics when applying to bumpers and pillars. Lap joint Laser welding of the hot stamped and die quenched sheets of Boron steel was carried out using 3kW Nd/YAG laser. The appropriate Lap joint laser welding conditions were founded separately for four lap joint combinations. The lower sheest is a hot stamped sheet in common and the upper sheet is selected among the hot stamped steel and high strength steels such as SPCC, 370MPa, and 590MPa grade high strength steels. Cross bead sections and local hardening and softening were observed as well as tensile-shear test results.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Precision Engineering Conference
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• 2011.06a
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• pp.221-222
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• 2011

• Proceedings of the Materials Research Society of Korea Conference
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• 2011.05a
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• pp.15-15
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• 2011

As you know, boron compounds, borax ($Na_2B_4O_5(OH)_4{\cdot}8H_2O$) etc. were known thousands of years ago. As for natural boron, it has two naturally occurring and stable isotopes, boron 11 ($^{11}B$) and boron 10 ($^{10}B$). The neutron absorption $^{10}B$ is included about 19~20% with 80~81% $^{11}B$. Boron is similar to carbon in its capability to form stable covalently bonded molecular networks. The mass difference results in a wide range of ${\beta}$ values between the $^{11}B$ and $^{10}B$. The $^{10}B$ isotope, stable with 5 neutrons is excellent at capturing thermal neutrons. For example, it is possible to decrease a thermal neutron required for the nuclear reaction of uranium 235 ($^{235}U$). If $^{10}B$ absorbs a neutron ($^1n$), it will change to $^7Li+^1{\alpha}$ (${\alpha}$ ray, like $^4He$) with prompt ${\gamma}$ ray from $^{11}B$ $^{11}B$ (equation 1). $$^{10}B+^1n\;{\rightarrow}\;^{11}B\;{\rightarrow}\; prompt \;{\gamma}\;ray (478 keV), \;^7Li+4{\alpha}\;(4He)\;\;\;\;{\cdots}\; (1)$$ If about 1% boron is added to stainless steel, it is known that a neutron shielding effect will be 3 times the boron free steel. Enriched boron or $^{10}B$ is used in both radiation shielding and in boron neutron capture therapy. Then, $^{10}B$ is used for reactivity control and in emergency shutdown systems in nuclear reactors. Furthermore, boron carbide, $B_4C$, is used as the charge of a nuclear fission reaction control rod material and neutron cover material for nuclear reactors. The $B_4C$ powder of natural B composition is used as a charge of a control material of a boiling water reactor (BWR) which occupies commercial power reactors in nuclear power generation. The $B_4C$ sintered body which adjusted $^{10}B$ concentration is used as a charge of a control material of the fast breeder reactor (FBR) currently developed aiming at establishment of a nuclear fuel cycle. In this study for new boron compound, silicon boride ceramics for capturing thermal neutrons, preparation and characterization of both silicon tetraboride ($SiB_4$) and silicon hexaboride ($SiB_6$) and ceramics produced by sintering were investigated in order to determine the suitability of this material for nuclear power generation. The relative density increased with increasing sintering temperature. With a sintering temperature of 1,923 K, a sintered body having a relative density of more than 99% was obtained. The Vickers hardness increased with increasing sintering temperature. The best result was a Vickers hardness of 28 GPa for the $SiB_6$ sintered at 1,923K for 1 h. The high temperature Vickers hardness of the $SiB_6$ sintered body changed from 28 to 12 GPa in the temperature range of room temperature to 1,273 K. The thermal conductivity of the SiB6 sintered body changed from 9.1 to 2.4 W/mK in the range of room temperature to 1,273 K.