• Journal of Korea Foundry Society
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• v.43 no.5
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• pp.223-229
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• 2023

In this study, STS316L produced by a double-melting process involving vacuum induction melting (VIM) and vacuum arc remelting (VAR) was subjected to extrusion and drawing to form a tube and was subsequently electrolytic polished (EP). The grain size of the obtained STS316L without EP was approximately 55 ㎛, with no difference found after EP. The thickness of the EP layer was measured by AES and TEM, showing values of approximately 10 nm and 15 nm, respectively. After EP, the Cr/Fe and CrO/FeO ratios of the passive layer increased from 1.48 to 1.62 and from 2.15 to 2.26, respectively, while the surface roughness decreased significantly from 0.255 to 0.024 ㎛. Consequently, the corrosion rate decreased in both NaCl and HCl solutions after the EP process. Additionally, the amounts of eluted Cr and Fe ions were reduced from 1.2 to 0.8 ppb and 10.3 to 0.8 ppb, respectively. Furthermore, polarization tests revealed that STS316L treated with EP required a lower current density to reach a passive state, indicating that corrosion behavior was retarded.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.13 no.1
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• pp.8-13
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• 2012

Ti-3Al-2.5V ingot was produced, processed into a titanium alloy wire of 9mm diameter, and the characteristics were studied in comparison with imported material. The ingot satisfied ASTM Grade 9 standard showing oxygen content of 0.11wt% and iron content of 0.085wt%. The hardness of the 9mm diameter titanium alloy was similar to that of the imported material showing values between 225 and 250Hv, and the tensile strength of the imported material was 804MPa while that of the domestic development was 734MPa. The elongation of the imported material was 12% while that of the domestic development was 22%. A new process of manufacturing 9.0mm diameter titanium alloy wire through forging and multi-step hot rolling process out of 400mm diameter ingot was developed.

• Korean Journal of Materials Research
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• v.29 no.1
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• pp.7-10
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• 2019

Cr-Al alloys are attracting attention as oxidation resistant coating materials for high temperature metallic materials due to their excellent high temperature stability. However, the mechanical properties and oxidation resistance of Cr-Al alloys can be further enhanced, and such attempts are made in this study. To improve the properties of Cr-Al alloys, Si is added up to 5 wt%. Casting specimens with different amounts of Si content are prepared by a vacuum arc remelting method and isothermally heated under steam conditions at $1,100^{\circ}C$ for 1 hour. The as-cast microstructure of low Si alloys is mainly composed of only a Cr phase, while $Al_8Cr_5$ and $Cr_3Si$ phases are also observed in the 5 % Si alloy. In the high Si alloy, only Cr and $Cr_3Si$ phases remain after the isothermal heating at $1,100^{\circ}C$. It is found that Si additions slightly decrease the oxidation resistance of the Cr-Al alloy. However, the microhardness of the Cr-Al alloy is observed to increase with an increasing Si content.

• Archives of Metallurgy and Materials
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• v.65 no.4
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• pp.1303-1306
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• 2020

TiNi alloys have excellent shape memory properties and corrosion resistance as well as high biocompatibility. This study investigated the effects of copper addition on the phase transitions and electrochemical corrosion behaviors of Ti₅₀Ni_50-xCu_x alloys. TiNi, Ti₅₀Ni₄₇Cu₃, Ti₅₀Ni₄₄Cu₆, and Ti₅₀Ni₄₁Cu₉ alloys were prepared using vacuum arc remelting followed by 4 h homogenization at 950℃. Differential scanning calorimetry and X-ray diffraction analyses were conducted. The corrosion behaviors of the alloys were evaluated using potentiodynamic polarization test in Hank's balanced salt solution at a temperature of 36.5 ± 1℃. The TiNi alloy showed phase transitions from the cubic B2 phase to the monoclinic B19' phase when the alloy was thermally cycled. The addition of copper to the TiNi alloy played a major role in stabilizing the orthorhombic B19 phases during the phase transitions of Ti₅₀Ni_50-xCu_x alloys. The shifts in the corrosion potential toward the positive zone and the low corrosion current density were affected by the amount of Cu added. The corrosion resistance of the TiNi alloy increased with increasing copper content.

• Archives of Metallurgy and Materials
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• v.65 no.4
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• pp.1297-1301
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• 2020

The purpose of this study was to investigate the mechanical properties of beta type aged Ti-4Mo-4Cr-X (X = V, Sn, Zr) quaternary alloy for use as a cardiovascular stent. Titanium (Ti) alloys were fabricated using a vacuum arc remelting furnace process. To homogenize the specimens of each composition and remove the micro segregation, all cast specimens were subjected to homogenization at 850℃ for 4 h, which was 100℃ higher than the β-transus temperature of 750℃. The tensile strength and elongation of the aged Ti-4Mo-4Cr-X (X = V, Sn, Zr) alloys were increased as compared to the homogenized alloys. In addition, many α/β interface boundaries formed after aging treatment at 450℃, which acted as inhibitors of strain and caused an increase in tensile strength. The elongation of Ti-4Mo-4Cr-X alloys consisting of α + β phases after aging treatment was improved by greater than 30%. Results of a potentiodynamic polarization test showed that the lowest current density of Ti-4Mo-4Cr-4Sn with 1.05 × 10^-8 A/cm² was obtained. The present Ti-4Mo-4Cr-X alloys showed better corrosion characteristics as compared to the 316L stainless steel and L605 (Co-Cr alloy) cardiovascular stent alloys.

• Archives of Metallurgy and Materials
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• v.65 no.4
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• pp.1317-1322
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• 2020

The present study investigated various thermodynamic parameters, microstructures and electrochemical behaviors of TiMoVCrZr and Ti-rich TiMoVCrZr high-entropy alloys (HEAs) prepared by vacuum arc remelting. The microstructures of the alloys were analyzed using X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis, field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), and potentiodynamic polarization tests. The determined thermodynamic values of the Ω-parameter and the atomic size difference (δ) for the HEAs were determined to be in the range of Ω ≥ 1.1, and δ ≤ 6.6% with valance electron configuration (VEC) ≤ 5.0, suggesting the HEAs were effective at forming solid solutions. XRD patterns of the equiatomic Ti₂₀Mo₂₀V₂₀Cr₂₀Zr₂₀ HEA revealed four phases consisting of the body centered cubic1 (BCC₁), BCC₂, hexagonal close-packed (HCP), and intermetallic compound Cr₂Zr phases. Three phases were observed in the XRD patterns of Ti-rich Ti₄₀Mo₁₅V₁₅Cr₁₅Zr₁₅ (BCC, HCP, and Cr₂Zr) and a single BCC phase was observed in Ti-rich Ti₆₀Mo₁₀V₁₀Cr₁₀Zr₁₀ HEAs. The backscattered-electron (BSE) images on the equiatomic Ti₂₀Mo₂₀V₂₀Cr₂₀Zr₂₀ HEA revealed BCC and HCP phases with Cr₂Zr precipitates, suggesting precipitation from the HCP solid solution during the cooling. The micro-segregation of Ti-rich Ti₆₀Mo₁₀V₁₀C₁₀Zr₁₀ HEAs appeared to decrease remarkably. The alloying elements in the HEAs were locally present and no phase changes occurred even after additional HIP treatment. The lowest current density obtained in the polarization potential test of Ti-rich Ti₄₀Mo₁₅V₁₅Cr₁₅Zr₁₅ HEA was 7.12×10^-4 mA/cm² was obtained. The studied TiMoVCrZr HEAs showed improved corrosion characteristics as compared to currently available joint replacement material such as ASTM F75 alloy.