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Advanced Crystalline Materials, Mechanical Properties and Innovative Production Systems (2nd Edition)

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A special issue of Crystals (ISSN 2073-4352). This special issue belongs to the section "Crystalline Metals and Alloys".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 21 July 2024 | Viewed by 5791

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Special Issue Editors

Dr. Daniel Medyński

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Guest Editor

Faculty of Technical and Economic Sciences, Witelon Collegium State University, Sejmowa 5A, 59-220 Legnica, Poland
Interests: foundry; material engineering; metals; composites; mechanical properties; corrosion; wear; heat treatment; management and production engineering
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Dr. Grzegorz Lesiuk

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Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Department of Mechanics, Material Science and Engineering, Wrocław University of Science and Technology, Smoluchowskiego 25, 50-370 Wrocław, Poland
Interests: fatigue damage; reliability analysis; fatigue crack growth theory; failure analysis of metal materials; micromechanics of materials; multiscale materials modeling
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Dr. Anna Burduk

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Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Wroclaw University of Science and Technology, Wybrzeże Wyspiańskiego 27, 50-370 Wroclaw, Poland
Interests: production process management
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Crystalline materials are the most commonly used materials. Thanks to their crystalline structure, they are characterized by a number of beneficial properties, including mechanical and functional properties. In recent years, many discoveries and advances have been made in materials engineering, which materials scientists are using to create countless novel materials through the use of modern modeling and simulation systems, technologies, and manufacturing techniques that enable obtaining advanced materials. These materials include high-quality construction materials, composites, and nanomaterials. For many of the emerging material solutions today, the main focus is on the mechanical properties of the materials. As a result, they are used on a large scale in land and water construction, automotive, aviation, and space engineering, as well as in the power industry.

Mechanical properties are an extremely important metric for evaluating materials, as they determine which areas the materials can be used in. Hardness and strength are the main mechanical properties. The values of these quantities are usually correlated. In order to obtain high hardness/strength, treatments are used to strengthen the structure, and they consist of the appropriate selection of chemical composition and technological processes. These activities must guarantee that a structure is obtained that ensures high hardness and strength. The obtained materials are usually hard and statically strong, but most often also brittle. Because they are not plastic, they have poor impact strength and are not resistant to abrasive wear, considering dynamic factors. Therefore, achieving a high synergy between strength and ductility is a major challenge and has become a topic of general interest.

From the perspective of the exploitation of structural elements, machines, and devices, factors reducing their ability to transfer external loads are also important. These factors include corrosion and wear.

Simulation and modeling processes play a key role in facilitating the rapid dissemination of advanced materials and reaping the benefits they offer. This is of great importance for production processes in terms of costs and product quality. The modeling and simulation of production processes are the best and most cost-effective methods of testing and evaluating the properties of advanced materials in terms of their usability and the quality of the resulting product. Modeling and simulations also enable an easier and cheaper assessment of the effectiveness of production processes and systems, also from the point of view of their management.

In the proposed Special Issue, we are seeking original research articles, perspectives, and reviews on technology, microstructure, mechanical properties, and various applications of crystalline materials. We invite you to submit works that include modeling and simulation of production processes and systems and their management in production, as well as forecasts of the future development of materials and production systems. Potential topics include, but are not limited to, the following:

Alloy design and manufacturing of crystalline materials;
Crystalline nanomaterials and composites;
Mechanical properties and fracture mechanics;
Crystalline materials for power engineering;
Casting, welding, and additive manufacturing;
Advanced heat treatment techniques;
Materials design and modeling, applications in production processes, and their management.

Dr. Daniel Medyński
Dr. Anna Burduk
Dr. Grzegorz Lesiuk
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Crystals is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

metals and alloys
nanomaterials
composites
solidification and crystallization
phase transformations
materials modelling
casting and welding
additive manufacturing
heat treatment
corrosion
mechanical properties
fracture mechanics
production management
production processes and systems

Related Special Issue

Advances in Alloys and Intermetallic Compounds in Crystals (4 articles)

Published Papers (10 papers)

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Research

14 pages, 672 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Research on Fe Removal, Regeneration Process, and Mechanical Properties of Mg Alloy AM50A

by Zhao Chen, Changfa Zhou, Wenbo Liu, Sanxing Chen, Cong Gao, Shaowei Jia, Xiaowen Yu, Wang Zhou, Bolin Luo and Qingshuang Zhang

Crystals 2024, 14(5), 407; https://doi.org/10.3390/cryst14050407 - 26 Apr 2024

Viewed by 204

Abstract

In recent years, the widespread application of Mg alloy casting and Mg alloy products has generated a large amount of Mg alloy waste. This experiment used a single factor experimental analysis method to study the optimal process for removing Fe from Mg alloy AM50A waste, and developed an efficient Fe removal and regeneration process for Mg alloy AM50A. It was found that the optimal refining temperature for removing Fe ions was 670 °C, the optimal refining (RJ-2) agent mass ratio was 1.5%, and the optimal refining time was 40 min. Regenerated J40-1.5-AM50A Mg alloy was prepared using the best refining process, and its composition and mechanical properties were tested and analyzed. The experimental results show that the composition of the regenerated J40-1.5-AM50A Mg alloy prepared by this method is consistent with AM50A, with an Fe removal rate of 96.2%. The mechanical properties were improved compared to the original AM50A sample, with a maximum tensile strength increase of 1.611 KN and a tensile strength increase of 26.333 MPa. The elongation after fracture is 2.25 times that of the original sample. Research has shown that the RJ-2 refining agent can provide mechanical properties of magnesium alloys during the refining process. By analyzing the composition, XRD, SEM, and EDS of AM50A (Fe) and J40-1.5-AM50A, it was found that the refining process accelerates the removal of Fe in the form of Fe deposition. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced Crystalline Materials, Mechanical Properties and Innovative Production Systems (2nd Edition))

11 pages, 3784 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Crystallization of Secondary Phase on Super-Duplex Stainless Steel SAF2507: Advanced Li-Ion Battery Case Materials

by Byung-Hyun Shin, Dohyung Kim and Jang-Hee Yoon

Crystals 2024, 14(4), 378; https://doi.org/10.3390/cryst14040378 - 18 Apr 2024

Viewed by 407

Abstract

The demand for Li-ion batteries has increased because of their extensive use in vehicles and portable electronic devices. This increasing demand implies greater interaction between batteries and humans, making safety a paramount concern. Although traditional batteries are fabricated using Al, recent efforts to enhance safety have led to the adoption of AISI304. The strength and corrosion resistance of AISI304 are greater than those of Al; however, issues such as stress-induced phase transformation and low high-temperature strength have been observed during processing. Duplex stainless steel SAF2507, which is characterized by a dual-phase structure consisting of austenite and ferrite, exhibits excellent strength and corrosion resistance. Although SAF2507 demonstrated outstanding high-temperature strength up to 700 °C, it precipitated a secondary phase. The precipitation of this secondary phase, believed to be caused by the precipitation of the carbides of Cr and Mo, has been extensively studied. Research on the precipitation of the secondary phase near 1000 °C has been conducted owing to the annealing temperature (1100 °C) of the SAF2507 solution. The secondary phase precipitates at approximately 1000 °C because of slow cooling rates. However, few studies have been conducted on the precipitation of the secondary phase at approximately 700 °C. This study analyzed the precipitation behavior of the secondary phase at 700 °C when SAF2507 was applied and assessed its safety during heat generation in Li-ion batteries. The precipitation behavior was analyzed using field emission scanning electron microscopy for morphology, energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy for composition, and X-ray diffraction for phase identification. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced Crystalline Materials, Mechanical Properties and Innovative Production Systems (2nd Edition))

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14 pages, 4725 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Improved Joint Formation and Ductility during Electron-Beam Welding of Ti6Al4V and Al6082-T6 Dissimilar Alloys

by Georgi Kotlarski, Darina Kaisheva, Maria Ormanova, Borislav Stoyanov, Vladimir Dunchev, Angel Anchev and Stefan Valkov

Crystals 2024, 14(4), 373; https://doi.org/10.3390/cryst14040373 - 16 Apr 2024

Viewed by 355

Abstract

The current work is based on investigating the influence of different technological conditions of electron-beam welding on the microstructure and mechanical properties of joints between Ti6Al4V and Al6082-T6 dissimilar alloys. The plates were in all cases preheated to 300 °C. Different strategies of welding were investigated such as varying the electron-beam current/welding speed ratio (I_b/v_w) and applying a beam offset towards the aluminum side. The heat input during the experiments was varied in order to guarantee full penetration of the electron beam. The macrostructure of the samples was studied, and the results indicated that using a high beam power and a high welding speed leads to an increased formation of defects within the structure of the weld seam. Utilizing a lower beam current along with a lower welding speed leads to the stabilization of the electron-beam welding process and thus to the formation of an even weld seam with next to no defects and high ductility. Using this approach gave the highest ultimate tensile strength (UTS) of 165 MPa along with a yield strength (YS) of 80 MPa and an elongation (ε) figure of 18.4%. During the investigation, improved technological conditions of electron-beam welding of Ti6Al4V and Al6082-T6 dissimilar alloys were obtained, and the results were discussed regarding possible practical applications of the suggested approach along with its scientific contribution to developing further strategies for electron-beam welding of other dissimilar alloys. The downsides and the economic effect of the presented method for welding Ti6Al4V and Al6082-T6 were also discussed. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced Crystalline Materials, Mechanical Properties and Innovative Production Systems (2nd Edition))

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11 pages, 733 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Machine Learning-Based Predictions of Power Factor for Half-Heusler Phases

by Kaja Bilińska and Maciej J. Winiarski

Crystals 2024, 14(4), 354; https://doi.org/10.3390/cryst14040354 - 09 Apr 2024

Viewed by 496

Abstract

A support vector regression model for predictions of the thermoelectric power factor of half-Heusler phases was implemented based on elemental features of ions. The training subset was composed of 53 hH phases with 18 valence electrons. The target values were calculated within the density functional theory and Boltzmann equation. The best predictors out of over 2000 combinations regarded for the p-type power factor at room temperature are: electronegativity, the first ionization energy, and the valence electron count of constituent ions. The final results of support vector regression for 70 hH phases are compared with data available in the literature, revealing good ability to determine favorable thermoelectric materials, i.e., VRhGe, TaRhGe, VRuSb, NbRuAs, NbRuBi, LuNiAs, LuNiBi, TaFeBi, YNiAs, YNiBi, TaRuSb and NbFeSb. The results and discussion presented in this work should encourage further fusion of ab initio investigations and machine learning support, in which the elemental features of ions may be a sufficient input for reasonable predictions of intermetallics with promising thermoelectric performance. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced Crystalline Materials, Mechanical Properties and Innovative Production Systems (2nd Edition))

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Graphical abstract

17 pages, 7742 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Cavitation Erosion of the Austenitic Manganese Layers Deposited by Pulsed Current Electric Arc Welding on Duplex Stainless Steel Substrates

by Ion Mitelea, Daniel Mutașcu, Ion-Dragoș Uțu, Corneliu Marius Crăciunescu and Ilare Bordeașu

Crystals 2024, 14(4), 315; https://doi.org/10.3390/cryst14040315 - 28 Mar 2024

Viewed by 522

Abstract

Fe-Mn-Cr-Ni alloys like Citomangan, delivered in the form of powders, tubular wires, and coated electrodes, are intended for welding deposition operations to create wear-resistant layers. Their main characteristic is their high capacity for surface mechanical work-hardening under high shock loads, along with high toughness and wear resistance. In order to increase the resistance to cavitation erosion, hardfacing of Duplex stainless steel X2CrNiMoN22-5-3 with Citomangan alloy was performed using a new welding technique, namely one that uses a universal TIG source adapted for manual welding with a coated electrode in pulsed current. Cavitation tests were conducted in accordance with the requirements of ASTM G32—2016 standard. Comparing the characteristic cavitation erosion parameters of the manganese austenitic layer, deposited by this new welding technique, with those of the reference steel, highlights an 8–11 times increase in its resistance to cavitation erosion. Metallographic investigations by optical microscopy and scanning electron microscopy (SEM), as well as hardness measurements, were carried out to understand the cavitation phenomena. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced Crystalline Materials, Mechanical Properties and Innovative Production Systems (2nd Edition))

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13 pages, 14003 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Effects of Si Addition on Interfacial Microstructure and Corrosion Resistance of Hot-Dip Zn–Al–Mg–Si Alloy-Coated Steel

by Seong-Min So, Srinivasulu Grandhi, Eui-Pyo Kwon and Min-Suk Oh

Crystals 2024, 14(4), 294; https://doi.org/10.3390/cryst14040294 - 22 Mar 2024

Viewed by 529

Abstract

Alloy coatings protect steel from corrosion in various applications. We investigated the effects of Si addition on the microstructure, electrochemical behavior, and corrosion resistance of steel sheets coated with a hot-dip Zn–Mg–Al–Si alloy using a batch-type galvanization process. Microstructural analysis revealed that the Zn–Al–Mg alloy coating layer contained a significant amount of Fe that diffused from the substrate, leading to delamination due to the formation of brittle Fe–Zn intermetallic compounds. However, the introduction of Si resulted in the formation of a stable Fe₂Al₃Si inhibition layer at the substrate–coating interface; this layer prevented interdiffusion of Fe as well as enhanced the coating adhesion. Additionally, the formation of acicular Mg₂Si phases on the coating surface improved the surface roughness. As the Si content increased, the corrosion resistance of the coating improved. Specifically, the Zn–Al–Mg coating layer with 0.5 wt.% Si exhibited excellent anti-corrosion performance, without red rust formation on its surface even after 2600 h, during a salt spray test. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced Crystalline Materials, Mechanical Properties and Innovative Production Systems (2nd Edition))

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14 pages, 2234 KiB

Open AccessArticle

CaH₂-Assisted Molten Salt Synthesis of Zinc-Rich Intermetallic Compounds of RhZn₁₃ and Pt₃Zn₁₀ for Catalytic Selective Hydrogenation Application

by Yasukazu Kobayashi, Koharu Yamamoto and Ryo Shoji

Crystals 2024, 14(3), 278; https://doi.org/10.3390/cryst14030278 - 15 Mar 2024

Viewed by 755

Abstract

Zinc-included intermetallic compound catalysts of RhZn, PtZn, and PdZn with a molar ration of Zn/metal = 1/1, which are generally prepared using a hydrogen reduction approach, are known to show excellent catalytic performance in some selective hydrogenations of organic compounds. In this study, in order to reduce the incorporated mounts of the expensive noble metals, we attempted to prepare zinc-rich intermetallic compounds via a CaH₂-assisted molten salt synthesis method with a stronger reduction capacity than the common hydrogen reduction method. X-ray diffraction results indicated the formation of RhZn₁₃ and Pt₃Zn₁₀ in the samples prepared by the reduction of ZnO-supported metal precursors. In a hydrogenation reaction of p-nitrophenol to p-aminophenol, the ZnO-supported RhZn₁₃ and Pt₃Zn₁₀ catalysts showed a higher selectivity than the RhZn/ZnO and PtZn/ZnO catalysts with the almost similar conversions. Thus, it was demonstrated that the zinc-rich intermetallic compounds of RhZn₁₃ and Pt₃Zn₁₀ could be superior selective hydrogenation catalysts compared to the conventional intermetallic compound catalysts of RhZn and PtZn. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced Crystalline Materials, Mechanical Properties and Innovative Production Systems (2nd Edition))

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13 pages, 16522 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Effect of Oxygen in Mo-TM (TM = Ti, Zr, Hf) Solid Solutions as Studied with Density Functional Theory Calculations

by Rachid Stefan Touzani, Rostyslav Nizinkovskyi and Manja Krüger

Crystals 2024, 14(3), 213; https://doi.org/10.3390/cryst14030213 - 23 Feb 2024

Viewed by 713

Abstract

Mo-Ti-Si, Mo-Zr-B, and Mo-Hf-B are promising alloy systems for high-temperature applications as they show higher toughness and higher creep resistance than other Mo-based alloys. Regarding ductility and toughness, the chemical composition of the Mo solid-solution phase is the main parameter with which to tweak these properties of multiphase Mo-based alloys. Besides the common solid-solution hardening, one goal is to minimize embrittlement by decreasing the detrimental effects of interstitials like oxygen atoms in Mo alloys, which might be present in the bulk material due to trapping. For a better understanding of the trapping mechanisms and behavior of Mo solid solutions, the bonding situation and interaction of Mo atoms with the atoms of the alloying partners, as well as oxygen atoms, is worthwhile to investigate. For this, an in-depth analysis of the chemical bonding situation with calculations based on density functional theory in selected Mo-TM(-O) (TM = Ti, Zr, Hf) solid solutions is conducted in this work. It is shown that Ti atoms in a Mo solid solution are strong traps for oxygen atoms, while Hf and, even more clearly, Zr atoms are not. It is pointed out that the ionic and covalent interactions are the primary influence on the trapping behavior, as the change in ionic and covalent interactions between trapping and nontrapping models follows the trend Mo-1Ti > Mo-1Hf > Mo-1Zr, which resembles the trend of the trapping energy. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced Crystalline Materials, Mechanical Properties and Innovative Production Systems (2nd Edition))

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12 pages, 7029 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Cast Microstructure and Crystallographic Features of Al₃Sc Dendrites in High Sc-Contained Al-Sc Alloys

by Jinjiang He, Qian Jia, Zhaochong Ding, Xingquan Wang, Xiaomeng Cao, Ziqi Cao and Xinfu Gu

Crystals 2024, 14(2), 200; https://doi.org/10.3390/cryst14020200 - 19 Feb 2024

Viewed by 734

Abstract

Al-Sc alloys containing high Sc content are employed as sputtering targets for the fabrication of high-performance piezoelectric films during magnetic sputtering. Due to the high proportion of the Al₃Sc phase, their workability is quite limited, and they are often used in the as-cast state. In this study, the crystallography of Al₃Sc dendrites in as-casted Al-10at.%Sc and Al-20at.%Sc samples is examined using electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD). With increasing Sc content, the fraction of Al₃Sc also increases. The Al₃Sc dendrites exhibit a cubic relationship with the Al matrix in both alloys. However, in Al-10%Sc alloys, the facets of the Al₃Sc dendrites are parallel to {001} planes, while twinning is observed in Al-20at.%. The twinning plane is parallel to the {111} plane, and the dendrite growth direction aligns with the <110> directions. The different morphologies of the dendrite structures in these two alloys are discussed in relation to thermodynamic and kinetic considerations based on the phase diagram and nucleation rate. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced Crystalline Materials, Mechanical Properties and Innovative Production Systems (2nd Edition))

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13 pages, 19810 KiB

Open AccessArticle

High-Temperature Phase Transformations in Al-Li-Cu-Mg-Zr-Sc Alloy Studied via In Situ Electron Microscopy

by Rostislav Králík, Lucia Bajtošová, Barbora Kihoulou, Dalibor Preisler and Miroslav Cieslar

Crystals 2024, 14(2), 136; https://doi.org/10.3390/cryst14020136 - 29 Jan 2024

Viewed by 752

Abstract

A homogenization of billets from Al-Cu-Li-Mg-Sc-Zr alloys should be accomplished at high annealing temperatures exceeding 500 °C. This type of aluminum alloy is susceptible to the depletion of surface layers from Li. Therefore, choosing a suitable homogenization temperature and duration is a crucial step in assuring a homogeneous distribution of alloying elements and optimal exploitation of the potential of the alloy. In situ heating in an electron microscope was performed on a twin-roll-cast Al-Cu-Li-Mg-Sc-Zr alloy to understand the peculiarities of the homogenization process. Four types of primary phase particles rich in Cu, Li, Mg, and Fe were identified in the as-cast material. They appear as coarse particles at the boundaries of eutectic cells. Their partial dissolution occurs at temperatures above 450 °C. They are almost fully dissolved at 550 °C, except for complex phases containing Fe and Cu. Small dimensions of eutectic cells in the range of 10 µm assure a homogeneous distribution of the main alloying elements within the matrix after 20 min of annealing at 530 °C. Direct comparison with the same material prepared by mold casting indicates that such short annealing times result in the dissolution of the main primary phase particles but do not assure a homogeneous distribution of the alloying elements in the whole volume of the specimen. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced Crystalline Materials, Mechanical Properties and Innovative Production Systems (2nd Edition))

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