20th International Forgemasters Meeting - IFM 2017

Validating new materials and heat treatments for large forgings is often a long and iterative process, due to uncertainty of through thickness variations of microstructure and mechanical properties. Finite element modelling can provide insight into the variables that control this variation, however material characterisations remain the province of small scale experimental simulations, and/or destructive testing of component test coupons following manufacture of full scale components. In the current work, a new rapid experimental assessment method has been developed, which predicts the microstructure and mechanical properties of large forgings following quality heat treatment. The work characterises the transformation kinetics of ASTM SA508 Grade 3 Class 1, and uses this to predict microstructure evolution of large forgings from through thickness temperature profiles. The rapid assessment method is then used to test the temperature profiles, and produce volumes of representative material from which microstructure and mechanical properties are characterised. The results are validated using existing small scale simulation methods, and show strong correlation, implying the new methodology is successful in rapidly predicting through thickness variations of microstructure and mechanical properties in large forgings.