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Steels and their heat treatment are still very important in modern industry because most industrial components are made from these materials. The proper choice of steel grades along with their suitable processing makes it possible to reduce the weight of the components, which is closely related to energy and fuel savings. This has decisive importance in branches such as the automotive, transport, consumer industries. A great number of novel heat- and surface-treatment techniques have been developed over the past three decades. These techniques involve, for example, vacuum treatment, sub-zero treatment, laser/electron beam surface hardening and alloying, low-pressure carburizing and nitriding, and physical vapour deposition. This Special Issue contains a collection of original research articles on not only advanced heat-treatment techniques—carburizing and sub-zero treatments—but also on the microstructure–property relationships in different ferrous alloys.

History of engineering & technology --- Vanadis 6 die steel --- surface finish --- nitriding --- PVD coating --- toughness --- fractography --- cryogenic treatment --- cryo-treatment --- mechanical properties --- microstructure --- cryo-processing --- 20Cr2Ni4A --- vacuum carburizing --- ion implantation --- rare earths --- catalysis --- carbon diffusion --- vanadis 6 steel --- sub-zero treatment at −75 °C --- hardness --- fracture toughness --- grade 92 steel weldment --- post-welding heat treatment --- tensile straining --- hydrogen embrittlement --- metallography and fractography --- ledeburitic tool steels --- carburizing --- rare-earth element pre-implantation --- sub-zero treatments

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Semi-solid metal (SSM) processing, as a viable alternative manufacturing route to those of conventional casting and forging, has not yet been fully exploited despite nearly half a century since its introduction to the metal industry. The slow pace of adopting SSM routes may be due to various reasons, including capital costs, profit margins, and, most importantly, the lack of detailed analysis of various SSM processes in open literature to confidently establish their advantages over more conventional routes. Therefore, the SSM community must disseminate their findings more effectively to generate increased confidence in SSM processes in the eyes of our industrial leaders. As such, we have embarked on the task to invite the leaders in SSM research to share their findings in a Special Issue dedicated to semi-solid processing of metals and composites. SSM processing takes advantage of both forming and shaping characteristics usually employed for liquid and solid materials. In the absence of shear forces, the semi-solid metal has similar characteristics to solids, i.e., easily transferred and shaped; by applying a defined force, the viscosity is reduced and the material flows like a liquid. These unique dual characteristics have made SSM routes attractive alternatives to conventional casting on an industrial scale. With the intention of taking full advantage of SSM characteristics, it is crucial to understand SSM processing, including topics such as solidification and structural evolution, flow behavior through modelling and rheology, new processes and process control, alloy development, and properties in general. This Special Issue focuses on the recent research and findings in the field with the aim of filling the gap between industry and academia, and to shed light on some of the fundamentals of science and technology of semi-solid processing.

History of engineering & technology --- 7075 aluminum alloy --- thixoforming --- post-welding-heat treatment --- electron beam welding (EBW) --- nano-sized SiC particle --- wear rate --- friction coefficient --- rheoformed --- thixoformed --- semi-solid --- microstructure --- mechanical properties --- wear --- corrosion --- Al-Si alloys --- rheocasting --- HPDC --- electrochemical evaluation --- rheological model --- semi-solid state --- Mg alloys --- high-temperature rheology --- rheological properties --- rheology --- semi-solid alloys --- thixotropy --- rheometer --- compression test --- viscosity --- semi-solid material --- A356 alloy --- electromagnetic stirring --- compression --- primary α-Al particle --- enclosed cooling slope channel --- ZCuSn10P1 --- microstructure refinement --- properties --- thixowelding --- thixojoining --- semisolid joining --- cold-work tool steel --- semisolid processing --- thixoformability --- Fe-rich Al-Si-Cu alloy --- 2024 aluminum matrix composites --- Al2O3 nanoparticles --- polarized light microscopy --- anodic etching --- EBSD --- grain --- globule --- Al-Si alloy --- semi-solid metal processing --- EMS --- thixocasting --- 7075 aluminum alloy --- thixoforming --- post-welding-heat treatment --- electron beam welding (EBW) --- nano-sized SiC particle --- wear rate --- friction coefficient --- rheoformed --- thixoformed --- semi-solid --- microstructure --- mechanical properties --- wear --- corrosion --- Al-Si alloys --- rheocasting --- HPDC --- electrochemical evaluation --- rheological model --- semi-solid state --- Mg alloys --- high-temperature rheology --- rheological properties --- rheology --- semi-solid alloys --- thixotropy --- rheometer --- compression test --- viscosity --- semi-solid material --- A356 alloy --- electromagnetic stirring --- compression --- primary α-Al particle --- enclosed cooling slope channel --- ZCuSn10P1 --- microstructure refinement --- properties --- thixowelding --- thixojoining --- semisolid joining --- cold-work tool steel --- semisolid processing --- thixoformability --- Fe-rich Al-Si-Cu alloy --- 2024 aluminum matrix composites --- Al2O3 nanoparticles --- polarized light microscopy --- anodic etching --- EBSD --- grain --- globule --- Al-Si alloy --- semi-solid metal processing --- EMS --- thixocasting

Choose an application

• Reference Manager
• EndNote
• RefWorks (Direct export to RefWorks)

Semi-solid metal (SSM) processing, as a viable alternative manufacturing route to those of conventional casting and forging, has not yet been fully exploited despite nearly half a century since its introduction to the metal industry. The slow pace of adopting SSM routes may be due to various reasons, including capital costs, profit margins, and, most importantly, the lack of detailed analysis of various SSM processes in open literature to confidently establish their advantages over more conventional routes. Therefore, the SSM community must disseminate their findings more effectively to generate increased confidence in SSM processes in the eyes of our industrial leaders. As such, we have embarked on the task to invite the leaders in SSM research to share their findings in a Special Issue dedicated to semi-solid processing of metals and composites. SSM processing takes advantage of both forming and shaping characteristics usually employed for liquid and solid materials. In the absence of shear forces, the semi-solid metal has similar characteristics to solids, i.e., easily transferred and shaped; by applying a defined force, the viscosity is reduced and the material flows like a liquid. These unique dual characteristics have made SSM routes attractive alternatives to conventional casting on an industrial scale. With the intention of taking full advantage of SSM characteristics, it is crucial to understand SSM processing, including topics such as solidification and structural evolution, flow behavior through modelling and rheology, new processes and process control, alloy development, and properties in general. This Special Issue focuses on the recent research and findings in the field with the aim of filling the gap between industry and academia, and to shed light on some of the fundamentals of science and technology of semi-solid processing.

7075 aluminum alloy --- thixoforming --- post-welding-heat treatment --- electron beam welding (EBW) --- nano-sized SiC particle --- wear rate --- friction coefficient --- rheoformed --- thixoformed --- semi-solid --- microstructure --- mechanical properties --- wear --- corrosion --- Al–Si alloys --- rheocasting --- HPDC --- electrochemical evaluation --- rheological model --- semi-solid state --- Mg alloys --- high-temperature rheology --- rheological properties --- rheology --- semi-solid alloys --- thixotropy --- rheometer --- compression test --- viscosity --- semi-solid material --- A356 alloy --- electromagnetic stirring --- compression --- primary α-Al particle --- enclosed cooling slope channel --- ZCuSn10P1 --- microstructure refinement --- properties --- thixowelding --- thixojoining --- semisolid joining --- cold-work tool steel --- semisolid processing --- thixoformability --- Fe-rich Al-Si-Cu alloy --- 2024 aluminum matrix composites --- Al2O3 nanoparticles --- polarized light microscopy --- anodic etching --- EBSD --- grain --- globule --- Al-Si alloy --- semi-solid metal processing --- EMS --- thixocasting --- n/a --- Al-Si alloys