QuesTek’s Ferrium M54 Steel included in aerospace industry MMPDS Handbook

January 13, 2014
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QuesTek Innovations LLC, Evanston, Ill., announces that its ultra high-strength, high-toughness Ferrium  M54 steel has been approved for inclusion in the aerospace industry's Metallic Materials Properties Development & Standardization (MMPDS) Handbook. QuesTek accelerated M54 steel from a clean sheet design to a precise chemical composition in less than one year, and produced the first 10-ton ingot the following year.

SAE International issued an Aerospace Material Specification (AMS 6516) two years later. With this MMPDS approval, M54 steel has reached full flight qualification from clean sheet design in less than six years.

This marks QuesTek's second fully qualified alloy, following the 2008 MMPDS approval of its ultra high strength, high toughness, corrosion resistant Ferrium  S53 alloy, which is being used without toxic cadmium plating in landing gear and other corrosion-sensitive applications.

Integrated Computational Materials Engineering methodology and its Materials by Design technology have enabled QuesTek to design and develop M54 steel to be a cost-effective, drop-in replacement for AerMet 100. The alloy design project was funded under two Small Business Innovation Research contracts sponsored by the U.S. Navy Naval Air Systems Command.

The MMPDS Handbook provides standardized design values for alloys in aerospace structures, and is accepted by the Federal Aviation Administration, the Department of Defense, and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. The A- and B-Basis design minima for M54 steel will first be published in MMPDS-09, allowing engineers to design components of M54 steel for flight safety critical components such as landing gear and helicopter rotor shafts. M54 steel is also an upgrade from 4340 and Maraging steel grades, and is being used in demanding oil and gas and other industry applications.

http://www.questek.com/ferrium-m54.html

ThyssenKrupp to convert process gases from steel production into base chemicals

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ThyssenKrupp AG, Germany, in collaboration with partners from research and industry, is initiating a cross-sector technology transfer project focused on converting process gases from steel production into valuable chemicals. The goal for this collaboration between the steel and chemical industries is to permit cost-effective carbon recycling into fertilizers or fuel.

According to Professor Robert Schlögl, Director of the Max Planck Institute for Chemical Energy Conversion in Mülheim, "The mission of our institute is to research the fundamental chemical processes involved in energy conversion and thus contribute to the development of new and more efficient catalysts."

With its subsidiaries ThyssenKrupp Steel Europe, Germany's biggest steelmaker, and ThyssenKrupp Uhde, a world leading engineering company for chemical, refinery and other industrial plants, and with the Max Planck Institute for Chemical Energy Conversion in Mülheim, ThyssenKrupp AG has already carried out planning and preliminary research in a joint preparatory project.

Interest from potential partners is high: Around 40 representatives from research organizations, universities and companies gathered in Duisburg in December 2013 to launch the project. In addition to the Fraunhofer and Max Planck societies, the group includes Ruhr University Bochum, the University of Duisburg-Essen, and the Duisburg-based Fuel Cell Research Center ZBT. Alongside ThyssenKrupp, the industrial partners involved from the start are BASF, Bayer, RWE and Siemens. The group is open to further members.

www.thyssenkrupp.com

Prof. Zi-Kui Liu, FASM, Receives 2014 J. Willard Gibbs Phase Equilibria Award

January 9, 2014
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ASM is pleased to announce that Zi-Kui Liu, FASM, Professor of Materials Science and Engineering, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, is the 2014 J. Williard Gibbs Phase Equilibria Award recipient.  He is cited "For his contributions in computational thermodynamics through integrated first-principles caluclations and the CALPHAD method and for the advancement of phase-equilibria theory, database development, materials design and promotion of thermodynamics."

The Gibbs Award was established in 2007 to recognize outstanding contributions to the field of phase equilibria.  The award honors J. Willard Gibbs, one of America's greatest theoretical scientists.

In addition to many other contributions, Gibbs laid the thermodynamics foundations of phase equilibria with his brilliant essay, "On the Equilibrium of Heterogeneous Substances," published in 1876 and in 1878 in the Transactions of the Connecticut Academy. 

Prof. Liu will receive his award at MS&T'14 in October 2014 in Pittsburgh, Pa.

Direct reduced iron facility begins production at Nucor Louisiana

January 6, 2014
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Nucor Corp., Charlotte, N.C., announces the successful start-up of production at its direct reduced iron (DRI) facility in St. James Parish, Louisiana.  Production began on Tuesday, December 24, and has continued at planned ramp-up levels since that time.  Within the first 24 hours of operation, output quality began matching the best-in-class levels routinely achieved at the DRI plant in Trinidad.

"We are very pleased to announce this important step in executing our raw materials strategy," said John Ferriola, Nucor's President and CEO.  "I want to personally thank our team in St. James Parish for their commitment and perseverance working right through the holiday season in achieving this important success."

Nucor and affiliates are manufacturers of steel products, with operating facilities primarily in the U.S. and Canada. Products produced include: carbon and alloy steel -- in bars, beams, sheet  and  plate; steel  piling; steel  joists and  joist  girders;  steel  deck;  fabricated concrete reinforcing steel; cold finished steel; steel fasteners; metal building systems; steel grating and expanded metal; and wire and wire mesh. Nucor, through The David J. Joseph Company, also brokers ferrous and nonferrous metals, pig iron and HBI/DRI; supplies ferro-alloys; and processes ferrous and nonferrous scrap.

View press release.

Digital image correlation system optically detects strain

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Instron, Norwood, Mass., announces digital image correlation (DIC) hardware and software designed to optically detect strain and displacement. The DIC system enables users to visualize these changes in real-time on a computer screen, so that they can be traced over the entire duration of the test.

Image and calibration data are supplied by an Instron Advanced Video Extensometer (AVE). The associated DIC-software provides visualization and also saves the data at an adjustable rate of up to 50 Hz in the form of individual images for subsequent analysis in post-processing mode. The software runs independently of other programs, and leverages the graphical layout and tabbed style of Instrons Bluehill materials testing software – making the user interface familiar and easy to use.

The DIC technology provides numerous benefits compared to traditional strain measurement, including, for example, the documentation of phenomena such as discontinuous strain, localized necking, and more. DIC enables the detection of strains and displacements in cases where conventional extensometers are impractical, and enables the visualization of the side profile of flat bending or compression specimens.

The system also reveals cracks that are not visible to the naked eye. Finally, the DIC technology helps with standard compliance, as it identifies local strain that falls outside the standard gauge length of conventional extensometers.

The DIC software comes with a large number of standard functions. These include the generation of surface maps containing information on local axial and transverse strains and displacements, shear strain, and maximum and minimum normal strain. Further standard features include saving of processing parameters, graphical processing and the capability of synchronization with Bluehill® test data such as load, crosshead position etc.

Learn more.

Compact modular furnace reduces heat loss by two thirds

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Granta announces advances from additive manufacturing projects

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Granta Design, U.K., announces Granta MI—Version 7, which includes its latest advances in simulation and materials information management for additive manufacturers to improve research, design, testing, and simulation. These developments are the result of Granta's involvement in two European Framework Seven (NanoMicro and AMAZE) projects focused on the field of additive manufacturing.

During the four-year NanoMicro project, ten partners have been developing a layer-wise manufacturing approach using highly focused powder/heat fluxes (with dimensions in the microns range) for metals and cermets. Granta's collaboration with the University of Cambridge enabled simulation work that informed the choice of build parameters in the additive manufacturing process, leading to a shorter production development time and fewer part failures. The work tested and validated Granta software as a means to apply materials models and analyze their results.

Granta is also a partner in the ongoing project "Additive Manufacturing Aiming Towards Zero Waste & Efficient Production of High-Tech Metal Products" (AMAZE). Led by the European Space Agency, this 30-partner project seeks to rapidly produce large defect-free additively-manufactured metallic components up to two meters in size for aeronautics, space, nuclear fusion, automotive, and tooling. The goal is a 50% reduction in power, consumables, raw materials, machining, and cost for finished parts, compared to traditional processing.

Read the complete release.

EOS and 3D-Micromac form corporation for micro laser sintering technology

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3D-Micromac AG, a leading provider of laser micromachining systems, and EOS GmbH, a leader in additive manufacturing, both of Germany, are joining to form a new corporation called 3D MicroPrint GmbH. Its goal is to advance the development and commercialization of micro laser sintering (MLS) technology, and to identify and establish more solutions in the field of micro technology.

MLS enables the production of parts with complex 3D structures where conventional manufacturing processes reach their limits. Even a lot size of one can be produced at reasonable cost. The technology offers a high degree of design freedom, as well as the capacity to integrate and optimize functionality. Individualization of products even in series production processes can be accomplished without difficulty.

Target applications include nozzles for the automotive industry, components for medical devices, and the individualization of jewelry. In addition, demand is growing for micro-parts in the areas of mold-making and aerospace technology.

According to Dr. Hans J. Langer, founder and CEO of EOS GmbH, "Micro Laser Sintering provides solutions for three major trends: individualization, functional integration, and miniaturization." Adds Joachim Göbner of 3D MicroPrint, "Working with layer thicknesses of ≤5 µm, focus diameters of ≤30 µm and powder particle size of ≤5 µm, the MLS technology opens up new dimensions. With MLS it is even possible to produce movable component assemblies."

Joachim Göbner, formerly project head MLS at EOS and head of the technical center at Chemnitz, and Tino Petsch, CEO of 3D-Micromac, were appointed business managers of 3D MicroPrint. The company's headquarters is located in Chemnitz.

Read the complete release.

ThyssenKrupp to sell Alabama plant to consortium of ArcelorMittal and Nippon Steel & Sumitomo Metal

December 9, 2013
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ThyssenKrupp AG, Germany, reports that it will sell its ThyssenKrupp Steel USA rolling and coating plant in Calvert, Alabama, to a consortium of ArcelorMittal and Nippon Steel & Sumitomo Metal Corp. A long-term slab supply contract will secure the value of ThyssenKrupp CSA in Brazil. Upon closing, ThyssenKrupp will receive a purchase price of $1.55 billion.

In addition, the consortium will purchase two million tons of slabs per year from ThyssenKrupp CSA up to 2019. The plant in Brazil has an annual production capacity of around five million tons of slabs. The agreement now reached will reliably secure at least 40% capacity utilization of the plant for several years. In addition, stronger penetration of the slab markets in South and North America will further increase the plant's capacity utilization. The transaction is subject to the approval of regulatory authorities in the USA and a number of other countries.

Dr. Heinrich Hiesinger, Chief Executive of ThyssenKrupp AG, said: "We have found a sustainable solution for Steel Americas. The slab supply contract is a first important step in the decoupling of the two steel plants." He continued: "The supply contract reduces our risks and creates the conditions to move CSA into profit in the medium term. This is the best available solution for Steel Americas at present. All other options were not financially viable."

ThyssenKrupp will now concentrate on operating improvements at the Brazilian plant. Over the past fiscal year technical performance has been further optimized and plant efficiency improved. The combination of the sale of ThyssenKrupp Steel USA and the slab supply contract for ThyssenKrupp CSA in Brazil will help ThyssenKrupp improve its cash flow profile and key financials in the future.

www.thyssenkrupp.com