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brandon_a_boyer
brandon_a_boyer
New Project at work.
May 14 2012, 10:53 PM EDT | Post edited: May 14 2012, 10:53 PM EDT
Just got assigned my big summer project at work. We are developing test methods and weld schedules for spot welding Hot-Pressed boron steel.

Interesting material. They add 15-30 ppm of boron to a steel and it helps with the formation of martensite. The material gets heat treated while it is being stamped so it comes out of the die at around 50 HRC with a tensile strength of around 200,000 psi. Potentially useful for armor applications. Do you find this valuable?    
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BigLoki
BigLoki
1. RE: New Project at work.
May 14 2012, 11:30 PM EDT | Post edited: May 14 2012, 11:30 PM EDT
I have little, to no idea what 3/4 of what you said is... but it does sound interesting, hope all goes well. 1  out of 1 found this valuable. Do you?    
Sharpie41
Sharpie41
2. RE: New Project at work.
May 15 2012, 12:03 AM EDT | Post edited: May 15 2012, 12:03 AM EDT
"I have little, to no idea what 3/4 of what you said is... but it does sound interesting, hope all goes well."
I got that 15-30 PPM of something to metal, making it stronger.

Bottom line, awesome project Do you find this valuable?    
ItsMrManCub
ItsMrManCub
3. RE: New Project at work.
May 15 2012, 1:02 AM EDT | Post edited: May 15 2012, 1:02 AM EDT
I'm the mut#afackin dovahkiin. Do you find this valuable?    
Vito12
Vito12
4. RE: New Project at work.
May 15 2012, 2:32 AM EDT | Post edited: May 15 2012, 2:32 AM EDT
if i was looking to make some armour plate, on existing sheet metal, would it be possible to use one of the noble gasses and heat (torch), to also form a type of martensite?
or would it be better to make from scratch?
do you actually work for an armour plate manufacturer? Do you find this valuable?    
Zee-Man
Zee-Man
5. RE: New Project at work.
May 15 2012, 7:54 AM EDT | Post edited: May 15 2012, 7:54 AM EDT
That is cool Brandon! Or Hot! as the case may be.

I don't get the hardness ratings. How does 50 HRC apply to real life? Tool steel is what HRC? A shovel blade might be X HRC?

200K psi is pretty dang strong. Might give us some common comparisons for that rating also.
 Do you find this valuable?    
Zombot
Zombot
6. RE: New Project at work.
May 15 2012, 7:26 PM EDT | Post edited: May 15 2012, 7:26 PM EDT
Well, in TSR, 50 Hardness means it ignores the first 50 damage applied to it, so that would take a lot of gd damage to hurt it...

*nerd giggle*

In all seriousness, this does sound awesome. Not just for armor, but maybe blunt weapons? Do you find this valuable?    
brandon_a_boyer
brandon_a_boyer
7. RE: New Project at work.
May 15 2012, 8:14 PM EDT | Post edited: May 15 2012, 8:21 PM EDT
Thanks guys, it really is a fantastic opportunity. I found out today that my boss is on a committee that writes resistance welding codes for the AWS, so I don't think I could have found a better mentor.

To answer your questions.

Vito: Martensite formation depends on the ratio of carbon to iron in steel as well as rapid cooling. Without getting too technical basically you need at least .3% carbon content to heat treat a steel. You heat it to around roughly 800 *C and then cool it as rapidly as possible. Noble gases would not have an effect on steel as they are nonreactive (hence "noble").

Currently I work for a contact engineering firm that deals primarily with resistance welding and implementation of robotic welding equipment.

Zee-man : Typically most tool and knife steels fall into 50 to 60 HRC (hardness rockwell C-scale) once they have been heat treated. Steels as far as I am aware cannot be harder than 63 HRC.

To answer your tensile question here's a chart.

http://www.engineersedge.com/materials/carbon-steel-properties.htm Do you find this valuable?    
nightcreeper78
nightcreeper78
8. RE: New Project at work.
May 15 2012, 10:21 PM EDT | Post edited: May 15 2012, 10:21 PM EDT
Fascinating. Does it come in sheets and/or bar stock? How available is it and how pricey is it? Does it require special tools and equipment to manipulate it? Do you find this valuable?    
brandon_a_boyer
brandon_a_boyer
9. RE: New Project at work.
May 15 2012, 10:38 PM EDT | Post edited: May 15 2012, 10:38 PM EDT
"Fascinating. Does it come in sheets and/or bar stock? How available is it and how pricey is it? Does it require special tools and equipment to manipulate it? "
Both i've seen up to 80mm thick. Honestly this isn't something you are going to be picking up from your local hardware store. I haven't seen anything for sale online outside of a 20 ton roll. Typical Prices are $700/tonne.

This is a hot formed material, it's heated to a specific temperature, then formed in a die-set. Which simultaneously quenches it while forming it. In it's hardened state it's very difficult to work with. The material we are experimenting on has to be treated offsite so that it's properly hardened before we attempt to weld it.

Because we will receive it in it's hardened state we will end up having to have it laser cut at a local shop instead of using our shear.

As I learn more about the material i'll post more. Right now I'm just doing preliminary paperwork so that we are ready when we receive it. Do you find this valuable?    
epic_epicness
epic_epicness
10. RE: New Project at work.
May 15 2012, 11:33 PM EDT | Post edited: May 15 2012, 11:33 PM EDT
"Both i've seen up to 80mm thick. Honestly this isn't something you are going to be picking up from your local hardware store. I haven't seen anything for sale online outside of a 20 ton roll. Typical Prices are $700/tonne.

This is a hot formed material, it's heated to a specific temperature, then formed in a die-set. Which simultaneously quenches it while forming it. In it's hardened state it's very difficult to work with. The material we are experimenting on has to be treated offsite so that it's properly hardened before we attempt to weld it.

Because we will receive it in it's hardened state we will end up having to have it laser cut at a local shop instead of using our shear.

As I learn more about the material i'll post more. Right now I'm just doing preliminary paperwork so that we are ready when we receive it."
interesting idea to impregnate steel with boron. I'm guessing the melting point is through the roof. Do you find this valuable?    
brandon_a_boyer
brandon_a_boyer
11. RE: New Project at work.
May 16 2012, 4:07 PM EDT | Post edited: May 16 2012, 4:07 PM EDT
"interesting idea to impregnate steel with boron. I'm guessing the melting point is through the roof."
Surprisingly not substantially. Do you find this valuable?    
epic_epicness
epic_epicness
12. RE: New Project at work.
May 16 2012, 7:36 PM EDT | Post edited: May 16 2012, 7:36 PM EDT
"Surprisingly not substantially."
interesting.... how does it react to traditional welding methods? Do you find this valuable?    
brandon_a_boyer
brandon_a_boyer
13. RE: New Project at work.
May 16 2012, 7:38 PM EDT | Post edited: May 16 2012, 7:38 PM EDT
"interesting.... how does it react to traditional welding methods? "
Weldability is good but you loose strength and hardness in the heat affected zones. Do you find this valuable?    
epic_epicness
epic_epicness
14. RE: New Project at work.
May 16 2012, 7:53 PM EDT | Post edited: May 16 2012, 7:53 PM EDT
"Weldability is good but you loose strength and hardness in the heat affected zones."
no odd oxidation or pitting? Do you find this valuable?    
brandon_a_boyer
brandon_a_boyer
15. RE: New Project at work.
May 16 2012, 8:46 PM EDT | Post edited: May 16 2012, 8:46 PM EDT
"no odd oxidation or pitting?"
None provided proper procedure and technique is followed. Do you find this valuable?