Nikolaj Ganev

This study investigates the evolution of strain-induced martensite (SIM) and its effect on magnetic Barkhausen noise (MBN) in AISI 321 austenitic stainless steel subjected to uniaxial tensile testing. Using X-ray diffraction and the Barkhausen noise technique, the formation and distribution of SIM were analysed as functions of plastic strain and strain rate. The results show that MBN is primarily governed by plastic deformation and strain rate rather than residual stress. The martensite fraction increases from 10% at low strains to 42.5% at high strains; however, accelerated strain rates significantly reduce martensite formation to approximately 25%. The increase in martensite density enhances the magnetic exchange interactions among neighbouring islands, resulting in stronger and more numerous MBN pulses. The anisotropy of MBN is also influenced by the initial crystallographic texture of the austenite. These findings highlight the strong correlation between MBN and SIM evolution, establishing MBN as a sensitive, non-destructive tool for assessing martensitic transformation and optimising deformation parameters in austenitic steels.

Additive manufacturing (AM) technologies, particularly Selective Laser Melting (SLM), enable the production of complex metallic parts directly from powder. SLM, a powder bed fusion process, builds components layer-by-layer using a focused laser source. However, the inherent thermal complexity of the process, characterized by rapid heating and cooling cycles, leads to the formation of significant residual stresses (RS). The magnitude and distribution of these stresses are highly sensitive to process parameters such as laser power, scanning speed, and scanning strategy. Within the context of AM, the most critical of these are macroscopic residual stresses, which can severely impact the structural integrity and fatigue life of as-built components. This work investigates the reduction of these stresses by applying the yield surface tracking technique, an approach traditionally used for studying plastic anisotropy, implemented on an axial-torsional testing machine.

This paper deals with Barkhausen noise in Trip steel RAK 40/70+Z1000MBO subjected to uniaxial plastic straining under variable strain rates. Barkhausen noise is investigated especially with respect to microstructure alterations expressed in terms of phase composition and dislocation density. The effects of sample heating and the corresponding Taylor–Quinney coefficient are considered as well. Barkhausen noise of the tensile test is measured in situ as well as after unloading of the samples. In this way, the contribution of external and residual stresses on Barkhausen noise can be distinguished in the direction of tensile loading, as well as in the transversal direction. It was found that the in situ-measured Barkhausen noise grows in both directions as a result of tensile stresses and the realignment of domain walls. The post situ-measured Barkhausen noise drops down in the direction of tensile load due to the high opposition of dislocation density at the expense of the growing transversal direction due to the prevailing effect of the realignment of domain walls. The temperature of the sample remarkably grows along with the increasing strain rate which corresponds with the increasing Taylor–Quinney coefficient. However, this effect plays only a minor role, and the density of the lattice imperfection expressed especially in terms of dislocation density prevails.

Railway wheels are usually attached to axles by press-fitting; therefore, the mechanical processes taking place during operation can result in failure, with fatal consequences for the axle seats. This manuscript describes the effect of laser hardening on the residual stress state, microstructural parameters (lattice defects—dislocations, crystallites, microstrains, etc.), and mechanical properties of laser-hardened EA1N steel railway axles under fatigue life conditions. Differences were found between ground, single-track, and multi-track hardened surfaces. Tensile residual stresses, low dislocation densities and hardnesses, and different microstructures (tempered cubic martensite) were found at the overlapped tracks and at the boundary of the heat-affected zone and bulk surface compared with the hardened zone. As a result, the surface treatment of axle seats by laser hardening improved the fatigue failure resistance compared with untreated seats. Optimal properties of the integrity of the axle seat surface were achieved, including fatigue resistance, which seems to be positively influenced mainly by sufficient hardness and the appropriate microstructure. The influence of the other investigated parameters was not evident, and was reduced by the presence of fretting corrosion and press-fitting.

This study deals with two different aspects of the high-strength low-alloyed 1100 MC steel. The first is associated with the remarkable heterogeneity (linked with surface decarburization) in the surface state produced during sheet rolling with respect to the sheet width. The variable thickness surface layer exhibits a microstructure different from that of the deeper bulk. Variation in the thickness of the thermally softened near-surface region strongly affects Barkhausen noise as well. This technique can be considered a reliable tool for monitoring the aforementioned heterogeneity. It can also be reported that the opposite sides of the sheet are different with respect to the surface state, the heterogeneity distribution, and the corresponding Barkhausen noise. These aspects indicate different conditions during hot rolling followed by rapid quenching on the upper and lower rollers. Furthermore, it was found that the degree of decarburizing and the corresponding surface heterogeneity is also a function of C content, and steels with lower C content exhibit less pronounced surface heterogeneity. The second aspect is related to the remarkable asymmetry in Barkhausen noise emission with respect to two consecutive bursts. This asymmetry is due to the presence of remnant magnetization in the sheet produced during manufacturing. The remnant magnetization is coupled to the magnetic field produced by the excitation coil of the Barkhausen noise sensor and strongly contributes to the aforementioned asymmetry. The remnant magnetization attenuates the domain wall mobility, which results in weaker Barkhausen noise. Moreover, the Barkhausen noise envelopes and the extracted features such as the position of the envelope maximum and its width are strongly affected by the remnant magnetization. Insufficient demagnetization makes the body magnetically softer and makes a wider range of magnetic fields in which Barkhausen noise emission can be detected. As soon as sufficient removal of this remnant magnetization is carried out in the vanishing magnetic field (demagnetization), the aforementioned remarkable asymmetry is fully lost.

This study deals with two different aspects of the high-strength low-alloyed 1100 MC steel. The first is associated with the remarkable heterogeneity in the surface state produced during sheet rolling with respect to the sheet width. The variable-thickness surface layer exhibits a microstructure different from that of the deeper bulk. Variation of the thickness of the thermally softened near-surface region strongly affects Barkhausen noise, as well. This technique can be considered a reliable tool for monitoring the aforementioned heterogeneity. It can also be reported that the opposite sides of the sheet are different with respect to the surface state, heterogeneity distribution, and corresponding Barkhausen noise. These aspects indicate the different conditions during hot rolling followed by rapid quenching on the upper and lower rollers. The second aspect is related to the remarkable asymmetry of Barkhausen noise emission with respect to two consecutive bursts. This asymmetry is due to the presence of remnant magnetisation in the sheet produced during manufacturing. The remnant magnetisation is coupled to the magnetic field produced by the excitation coil of the Barkhausen noise sensor and strongly contributes to the aforementioned asymmetry. As soon as sufficient removal of this remnant magnetisation is carried out in the vanishing magnetic field (demagnetisation), the aforementioned remarkable asymmetry is fully lost.

This paper investigates the influence of cutting speed and flank wear on the depth profile of residual stresses, as well as the fraction of retained austenite after hard turning of quenched bearing steel 100Cr6. Residual stress and retained austenite profiles were studied for the white layer, heat-affected zone thickness, and XRD sensing depth. It was found that the influence of flank wear on the white layer and heat-affected zone thickness predominates. On the other hand, residual stresses are affected the cutting speed and the superimposing contribution of flank wear. Moreover, these aspects also alter microhardness in the affected regions. The study also demonstrates that information concerning residual stresses and the austenite fraction is integrated into the white layer, and the heat-affected zone in the surface is produced by the insert of low flank wear since the XRD sensing depth is more than the thickness of the white layer. On the other hand, the pure contribution of the white layer or the heat-affected zone to residual stress and the austenite fraction can be investigated when the affected surface region is thick enough.

Most power plants use the Rankine cycle, where the heat supplied to water and steam is converted into mechanical work; therefore, most components have to be made of heat-resistant steel. Sufficient mechanical properties must be ensured for welded pipes to meet stringent requirements. Therefore, laser-welded 5 mm thick heat-resistant pressure vessel steel plates were subjected to various mechanical tests, including high-cycle fatigue tests. The microstructural notches were determined using X-ray diffraction too to determine critical areas that are susceptible to crack initialization and affect the service life. Finally, a functional model of the pressure vessel subsequently verified the results and assumptions. The presented results ensure the transferability of the results to real-life applications and outline the promising application potential of laser welding for producing vessels and pipes from heat-resistant steel in the industry.

Hot working tool steel (AISI H13) is one of the most common die materials used in casting industries. A die suffers from damage due to friction and wear during its lifetime. Therefore, various methods have been developed for its repair to save costs to manufacture a new one. A great benefit of laser additive manufacturing (cladding) is the 3D high production rate with minimal influence of thermal stresses in comparison with conventional arc methods. Residual stresses are important factors that influence the performance of the product, especially fatigue life. Therefore, the aim of this contribution is to correlate the wide range of results for multilayer cladding of H13 tool steel. X-ray and neutron diffraction experiments were performed to fully describe the residual stresses generated during cladding. Additionally, in-situ tensile testing experiments inside a scanning electron microscope were performed to observe microstructural changes during deformation. The results were compared with local hardness and wear measurements. Because laser cladding does not achieve adequate accuracy, the effect of necessary post-grinding was investigated. According to the findings, the overlapping of beads and their mutual tempering significantly affect the mechanical properties. Further, the outer surface layer, which showed tensile surface residual stresses and cracks, was removed by grinding and surface compressive residual stresses were described on the ground surface.

The authors would like to correct the sentence in the “Materials and Methods” section of their article