• Journal of Powder Materials
• /
• v.16 no.6
• /
• pp.431-437
• /
• 2009

Various inorganic fillers improve the thermal conductivity and physical properties of organic products. Alumina has been used a representative filler in the heat radiation sheet for the heat radiation of electric device. The high filling rate of alumina increases the thermal conductivity and properties of products. We successfully developed the spherical alumina by flame fusion process using the oxygen burner with LPG fuel. In the high temperature flame (2500$\sim$3000$^{\circ}C$) of oxygen burner, sprayed powders were melting and then rotated by carrier gas. This surface melting and rotation process made spherical alumina. Especially effects of chemical composition and particle size of stating materials on the melting behavior of starting materials in the flame and spheroidization ratio were investigated. As a result, spheroidization ratio of boehmite and aluminum hydroxide with endothermic reaction of dehydration process was lower than that of the sintered alumina without dehydration reaction.

• Transactions of Materials Processing
• /
• v.23 no.6
• /
• pp.345-350
• /
• 2014

The current study elucidates the effects of cementite spheroidization and pro-eutectoid ferrite on the sliding wear resistance in medium carbon (0.45wt%C) and high carbon (1wt%C) steels. Both steels were initially heat treated to obtain a fully pearlite or ferrite + pearlite microstructure. Spheroidizing heat treatments were performed on both steels to spheroidize the pearlitic cementite. Sliding wear tests were conducted using a pin-on-disk wear tester with the steel specimens as the disk and an alumina ($Al_2O_3$) ball as the pin. The sliding wear tests were carried out at room temperature in air with humidity of $40{\pm}2%$. Adapted sliding distance and applied load was 300m and 100N, respectively. Sliding speed was 0.1m/s and the wear-track radius was 9 mm. Worn surfaces and cross-sections of the wear track were examined using an SEM. Micro Vickers hardness of the wear-track subsurface was measured as a function of depth from the worn surface. Hardness and sliding-wear resistance of both steel decreased with increased spheroidization of the cementite. The decrease was more significant in the fully pearlitic steel (1wt%C steel). The steel with the pro-eutectoid ferrite showed relatively higher wear resistance compared to the spheroidized pearlitic steel.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Heat Treatment
• /
• v.8 no.4
• /
• pp.302-317
• /
• 1995

After initial structure of AISI 9260 steel is changed into pearlite and martensite, one is isothermally annealed at $700^{\circ}C$ below of $A_1$ transformation point and the other is isothermally annealed at the same condition after 3 cycles of heating and cooling between $680^{\circ}C$ and $780^{\circ}C$ of $A_1$ transformation point. Analyzing the changes of microstructure, mechanical properties and fractography of tension test, we obtained result as follows. The fastest spheroidization rate by changes of initial structure and heat treatment cycles is appeared at the heat treatment cycle which is isothermally annealed after 3 cycles of heating and cooling at below and above $A_1$ transformation point for martensite. At the above condition, the perfect spheroidization structure is appeared after 60hrs and after then, globular carbide is being coarsened. The mean diameter of globular carbide is $2.4{\times}10^{-3}mm$ after 90hrs. The changes of tension strength during spheroidization heat treatment follows Orwan function, ${\sigma}_o={\sigma}_i+Gb/l$, where l is interspacing of carbide particles and at the above condition, ${\sigma}_o=70.48+2.5{\times}10^{-3}/l(kg/mm^2)$. Fractography of fracture of spheroidization structure in tension test is appeared as dimple which is ductile rupture type by nucleation and growth of void, size of dimple is larger and deeper with increasing of heat treatment time.

• Korean Journal of Materials Research
• /
• v.24 no.10
• /
• pp.538-542
• /
• 2014

Microstructural and mechanical characteristics of Al-6Si-2Cu alloy for lightweight automotive parts were investigated. The test specimens were prepared by gravity casting process. Solution heat treatments were applied to as-cast alloys to improve mechanical properties. The microstructure of the gravity casting specimen presents a typical dendrite structure, having a secondary dendrite arm spacing (SDAS) of $37{\mu}m$. In addition to the Al matrix, a large amount of coarsened eutectic Si, $Al_2Cu$ intermetallic phase, and Fe-rich phases were identified. After solution heat treatment, single-step solution heat treatments were found to considerably improve the spheroidization of the eutectic Si phase. Two-step solution treatments gave rise to a much improved spheroidization. The mechanical properties of the two-step solution heat treated alloy have been shown to lead to higher values of properties such as tensile strength and microhardness. Consequentially, the microstructural and mechanical characteristics of Al alloy have been successfully characterized and are available for use with other basic data for the development of lightweight automotive parts.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society for Technology of Plasticity Conference
• /
• 2009.10a
• /
• pp.350-353
• /
• 2009

In the present study, the effect of initial microstructure, cold reduction ratio, and annealing temperature on the spherodization rate of SK85 high carbon steel sheet was investigated. High carbon steel sheet fabricated by POSCO was soaked at $800^{\circ}C$ for 2 hr in a box furnace and then treated at $570^{\circ}C$ for 5 min in a salt bath furnace followed by water quenching to obtain a fine pearlite structure. Cold rolling was conducted on the sheets of fine pearlite by reduction ratios of 20, 30, and 40% and heat treatment for spheroidization was carried out at 600 and $720^{\circ}C$ for the various time intervals from 0.1 to 32 hrs. Area fraction of spheroidized cementite was measured with an image analyzer as a function of cold reduction ratios and duration times.

• 연구논문집
• /
• s.27
• /
• pp.183-200
• /
• 1997

We have calculated the energy of three distinct grain configurations, namely completely connected, partially connected and unconnected configurations, evolving during a spheroidization of polycrystalline thin film by extending a geometrical model due to Miller et al. to the case of spheroidization at both the surface and film-substrate interface. "Stabilitl" diagram defining a stable region of each grain configuration has been established in terms of the ratio of grain size to film thickness vs. equilibrium wetting or dihedral angles at various interface energy conditions. The occurrence of spheroidization at the film-substrate interface significantly enlarges the stable region of unconnected grain configuration thereby greatly facilitating the occurrence of agglomeration. Complete separation of grain boundary is increasingly difficult with a reduction of equilibrium wetting angle. The condition for the occurrence of agglomeration differs depending on the equilibrium wetting or dihedral angles. The agglomeration occurs, at low equilibrium angles, via partially connected configuration containing stable holes centered at grain boundary vertices, whereas it occurs directly via completely connected configuration at large equilibrium angles except for the case having small surface and/or film-substrate interface energy. The initiation condition of agglomeration is defined by the equilibrium boundary condition between the partially connected and unconnected configurations for the former case, whereas it can, for the latter case, largely deviate from the equilibrium boundary condition between the completely connected and unconnected configurations because of the presence of a finite energy barrier to overcome to reach the unconnected grain configuration.

• Journal of Powder Materials
• /
• v.27 no.5
• /
• pp.388-393
• /
• 2020

The enamel powders used traditionally in Korea are produced by a ball-milling process. Because of their irregular shapes, enamel powders exhibit poor flowability. Therefore, polygonal enamel powders are only used for handmade cloisonné crafts. In order to industrialize or automate the process of cloisonné crafts, it is essential to control the size and shape of the powder. In this study, the flowability of the enamel powders was improved using the spheroidization process, which employs the RF plasma treatment. In addition, a simple grid structure and logo were successfully produced using the additive manufacturing process (powder bed fusion), which utilizes spherical enamel powders. The additive manufacturing technology of spherical enamel powders is expected to be widely used in the field of cloisonné crafting in the future.

• Journal of Powder Materials
• /
• v.26 no.4
• /
• pp.305-310
• /
• 2019

In the present work, spheroidization of angular vanadium powders using a radio frequency (RF) thermal plasma process is investigated. Initially, angular vanadium powders are spheroidized successfully at an average particle size of $100{\mu}m$ using the RF-plasma process. It is difficult to avoid oxide layer formation on the surface of vanadium powder during the RF-plasma process. Titanium/vanadium/stainless steel functionally graded materials are manufactured with vanadium as the interlayer. Vanadium intermediate layers are deposited using both angular and spheroidized vanadium powders. Then, 17-4PH stainless steel is successfully deposited on the vanadium interlayer made from the angular powder. However, on the surface of the vanadium interlayer made from the spheroidized powder, delamination of 17-4PH occurs during deposition. The main cause of this phenomenon is presumed to be the high thickness of the vanadium interlayer and the relatively high level of surface oxidation of the interlayer.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Heat Treatment
• /
• v.36 no.4
• /
• pp.230-236
• /
• 2023

The current study deals with the effect of cooling rate and temperature for annealing on medium-carbon Cr-Mo alloy steel, especially for cold heading quality wire rod, to derive the optimum micro-structures for plastic deformation. This is to optimize the spheroidization heat treatment conditions for softening the material. Heat treatment was performed under seven different conditions at a temperature between A_c1 and A_c3, mostly within 720℃ to 760℃, and the main variables at this time were temperature, retention time and cooling rate. Microstructure and phase changes were observed for each test condition, and it was confirmed that they were greatly affected by the cooling rate. It was also confirmed that the cooling rate was changed in the range of 0.1℃/min to 5℃/min and affected by phase deformation and spheroidization fraction. The larger the spheroidization fraction, the lower the hardness, which is associated with the increasing connection of ferrite phases.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society for Technology of Plasticity Conference
• /
• 2009.10a
• /
• pp.137-138
• /
• 2009

There is a growing interest to replace the commercial steels with non-heat treated steels, which does not involve the spheroidization and quenching-tempering treatment in the steel-wire industry production. However, non-heat treated steels should satisfy high strength and good formability without performing heat treatment. Therefore, it is important to investigate optimum materials showing a good combination of strength and formability after the cold drawing process. In this presentation, non-heat treated steel wire rod produced by POSCO will be introduced and discussed on detail technical concepts.