Effects of thermal-cold cycling on the dimensional stability of TiC reinforced steel matrix composite

• Published in: Materials letters 2020-11, Vol.279, p.128483, Article 128483
• Main Authors: Tu, X.X., Xiao, L.R., Zhao, X.J., Cai, Z.Y., Peng, Z.W., Wei, D.M.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Cold treatment; Composite materials; Cycles; Diamond pyramid hardness; Dimensional changes; Dimensional stability; Heat treatment; Martensite; Martensitic transformations; Materials science; Metal matrix composites; Microstructure; Residual stress; Retained austenite; Thermal-cold cycling; Titanium carbide
• ISSN: 0167-577X; 1873-4979
• DOI: 10.1016/j.matlet.2020.128483

[Display omitted] •The influence of thermal-cold cycling on dimensional stability of composite.•The microstructure, dimensional change, magnetic property, hardness were analyzed.•The underlying dimensional stabilizing mechanisms of the composite were revealed.•An optimal improvement of dimensional stability of the composite was achieved. Thermal-cold cycling (TCC) treatment was applied to improve the dimensional stability of TiC reinforced steel matrix composite materials in this study. Also, the microstructure, related properties and potential stability mechanisms were investigated. When the TCC cycles were 3, Vickers hardness reached the peak value of 1051.7 HV and relative dimensional change was only 0.012% in a natural service for 30 days. Besides, the retained austenite disappeared and residual stress dramatically decreased from −740 MPa to −357 MPa. It demonstrated that the TiC reinforced steel matrix composite possessed the best dimensional stability after 3 TCC cycles. A variety of stabilizing mechanisms, including martensitic refinement, retained austenite-martensite transformation, carbides precipitation, and residual stress release were observed, hence resulting in a significantly improvement of the dimensional stability of the composite.