Room Temp Stamping 1500 to 1800MPa Sheet for Structural and Energy Absorbing Components to <2T Bend Radii

Flash® Bainite Processing employs rapid thermal cycling to strengthen COTS steel sheet, plate, and tubing into AHSS. In a continuous process, induction technology heats a narrow segment of the cross section in just seconds to atypically high temperatures (1000-1300°C). Quenching substantially immediately follows.

Less than 10 seconds of thermal processing optimizes the inherent heterogeneity of steelmaking to create an intra-granular multi-chemistry, complex mixture of bainite, martensite, and other morphologies. Carbon migration and carbide dissolution are controlled by limiting time in the austenitic range. Unlike conventional heat treating, homogeneity is intentionally avoided.

After heat treating, steel such as AISI1010 (1100MPa UTS) and AISI1020 (1500MPa UTS) has shown excellent room temperature stamp-ability in over a dozen automotive components. Mass reduction and cost savings are coupled with improved performance in OEM testing Labs. Grades at 1500 MPa have room temp stamped into complex shapes including B-pillars and complex seating components. At 1800 MPa, less than 2T bends in complex geometry from 1 to 2mm thick 400x2000mm sheets have been achieved.

Progress on three recently awarded US DOE funded research and commercial scale-up projects for Flash® Bainite will be reported.