Akira Sugiyama

The microstructure evolution in ductile cast iron with magnesium addition was observed in situ by using X-ray radiography (two-dimensional observation) and time-resolved tomography (three-dimensional observation) in the BL20XU of a synchrotron radiation facility, SPring-8 (Hyogo, Japan). In the two-dimensional observation, graphite nodules nucleated in the melt and floated up immediately after nucleation. The floating was terminated by engulfment of graphite nodules into austenite dendrites. The radiography indicated that the average floating distance was shorter than the dendrite arm spacings in the 100-μm-thick specimen. Because the short distance could be influenced by the sample confinement, time-resolved tomography was performed by using a pink X-ray beam in the BL28B2 of SPring-8. Graphite nodules that nucleated in the melt (probably on magnesium–oxygen–sulfur inclusions in the melt) floated and were engulfed by austenite dendrites within several seconds, even in the bulk specimen. Although the average distance in the bulk specimen was approximately twice as large as that in the 100-μm-thick specimen, floating after nucleation and engulfment into austenite dendrites within a short duration were observed commonly from both techniques. The sequence of nucleation and engulfment had a critical effect on the number and size of the graphite nodules.

Synchrotron X-ray radiography was used to study tensile and compressive deformations of semi solid Al-Cu and/or Fe-C alloys. In the case of tensile deformation of globular Al-Cu sample at similar to 60% solid, relatively high strain regions were formed even at mean strain of 0.005. The normal strain rate at the regions was 10 times as high as mean normal strain rate (3.45x10(-3) s(-1)). At mean strain of 0.04, tensile deformation was localized in the high strain region, resulting in the formation of internal cracking in the plane normal to the tensile axis. On the other hand, in the case of compressive deformations of globular Al-Cu sample at similar to 55% solid and polygonal Fe-C sample at similar to 73% solid, shear bands with decreased solid fraction were formed at the domains tilted by approximately 45 degrees with respect to compressive plane. Rearrangement of solid particles including translation and rotation caused the shear induced dilation at the shear domains. Shear strain was localized at the shear domain with decreased solid fraction. Deformation of the polygonal solid particle of Fe-C sample caused a force to transmit over a longer distance than for the globular Al-Cu sample. Shear fracture finally occurred due to inadequate liquid flow into the expanding spaces between solid particles caused by shear-induced dilation. The solid/solid interaction including impingement between solid particles and rearrangement has significant role in the compressive deformation. These observations demonstrated that the mechanism of cracking formations induced by compressive deformation was totally different from that in the tensile deformation.