The use of color etching to study the microstructure of laser welded steel used in the automotive industry

Daniel Dobras; Małgorzata Rutkowska-Gorczyca

doi:10.3139/120.111424

Article

The use of color etching to study the microstructure of laser welded steel used in the automotive industry

Daniel Dobras and Małgorzata Rutkowska-Gorczyca

Published/Copyright: October 30, 2019

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From the journal Materials Testing Volume 61 Issue 11

Abstract

In the present article the results of a microstructure study of dual phase, multiphase (with transformation induced plasticity effect) and manganese-boron steel have been presented in the as-delivered state and after laser fusion by means of color metallography, which, up to now, has not been applied in those types of joints. In order to reveal the components of the microstructure of the steel types studied, five reagents were applied: nital, pikral, Klemm, LePera and sodium metabisulfite, in different combinations. Various phases were revealed in the material in the as-delivered state and after fusion, and this would not have been possible using standard procedures by means of a light microscope. In the as-delivered state all basic phases were observed. In the state after laser remelting, the observed microstructures were completely different than in the received state giving bainite and martensite an advantage. Measurements of the hardness of the as-received material and the welds of the tested steels were performed, showing a significant increase in weld hardness.

*Correspondence Address, Daniel Dobras, Wrocław University of Science and Technology, Department of Metal Forming and Metrology, Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, 7−9 I. Łukasiewicza Street, 50−371 Wrocław, Poland, E-mail: daniel.dobras@pwr.edu.pl

M. Sc. Eng. Daniel Dobras, born 1993, is a PhD student at Wrocław University of Science and Technology, Poland, Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, in the discipline Construction and Operation of Machines. From October 2018 to February 2019 he was had a research internship in the Department of Industrial Engineering at University of Padova, Italy.

Dr Eng. Małgorzata Rutkowska-Gorczyca, born 1981, has been employed as a Teaching and Research Adjunct at the Wroclaw University of Science and Technology, Poland, since 2009, with a specialization in the field of Mechanical Engineering and Material Science research. She received her Master's Degree at Wrocław University of Technology, Faculty of Fundamental Problems of Technology in 2007. This was followed by a PhD from the same university, Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, in the discipline Construction and Operation of Machines, in 2012

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Published Online: 2019-10-30

Published in Print: 2019-11-04

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https://doi.org/10.3139/120.111424