We study the effect of high-pressure torsion on the microstructure, phase composition, microhardness, and strengthening mechanisms of high-nitrogen austenitic steels with different vanadium content: Fe-23Cr-19Mn-0.2C-0.5N, Fe-19Cr-21Mn-1.3V-0.3C-0.8N, and Fe-18Cr-23Mn-2.6V-0.3C-0.8N, wt %. Regardless of the chemical composition of the steels, high-pressure torsion (HPT) causes the refinement of their microstructure due to a high density of dislocations, twin boundaries, and shear bands. Vanadium alloying decreases the stacking fault probability in the structure of the steels and changes their dominating deformation mechanism under high-pressure torsion: from planar dislocation slip and twinning in the vanadium-free steel to dislocation slip with a tendency to shear band formation in the vanadium-alloyed steels. An increase in the vanadium content forces precipitation hardening. Thus, after HPT, the V-alloyed steels have a higher microhardness as compared to the vanadium-free one. Different strengthening factors (strain hardening, solid solution hardening, and precipitation strengthening) govern the value and kinetics of growth of microhardness of the steels processed by high-pressure torsion. Vanadium alloying and increasing its content result in the growth of the contribution of precipitation hardening and decreases strain hardening of high-nitrogen steels.

Abstract The structural features and phase composition are examined in near-surface layers of specimens of Al-Mg, Al-Cu-Mg alloys and commercially pure titanium obtained by plasma cutting using direct current straight polarity (DCSP) and direct current reverse polarity (DCRP). It is found that the flows of molten metal ejected by the gas stream from the cut cavity during cutting form the fusion and heat-affected zones, whose structural morphology, phase composition, and thickness depend on both the selected material and the cutting mode. The fusion zone is thicker in specimens cut using DCRP than in those cut with DCSP. The thickness of the adjacent heat-affected zone is also the largest in the mode that provides a thicker fused layer. Aluminum alloy specimens cut in ambient air are characterized by the presence of oxygen in the near-surface layers. The lowest degree of oxidation is observed in Al-Mg alloy. Oxygen penetrates into the fused layer to a depth of 350–500 μm in Al-Cu-Mg and up to 200–250 μm in Al-Mg alloy. In titanium alloy, the thickness of oxide layers does not exceed 100–150 μm during straight polarity cutting and 200–250 μm during reverse polarity cutting. A thin brittle layer of TiO and TiO2 oxides is formed on the titanium alloy surface. It is shown that the generation of “water mist” around the plasma jet when cutting materials of all types with DCRP leads to a more intensive oxidation of metal, less thermal effect on the material, and reduced roughness of the cut face.