Developing new generation steel materials that are easier to spread and elongate (ductility) in different shapes and structures, have higher resistance to deformation (strength) and fracture (toughness), light weight and low production cost is the goal of engineers .
Now a super steel produced using the new D&P (Deformed and partitioned) method by the University of Hong Kong has demonstrated a never-before-seen level of these characteristics.
super steel D&P
The conventional view is that increasing the performance of a metallic property, whether in strength, ductility, or toughness, will reduce one or more of the others. This new super steel has not had to be developed at the expense of this "law", as explained by Huang Mingxin , from the Department of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Hong Kong (HKU), and principal investigator of the project:
In this latest advancement in D&P super steel, we achieved an unprecedented combination of strength and toughness that can address a significant challenge in safety critical industrial applications – achieving extremely high fracture toughness to prevent catastrophic premature fracture of structural materials.
The material thus results in an elastic limit against deformation of around 2GPa, a superior fracture toughness of 102MPam 1/2 and a good uniform elongation of 19% .
The team has already contacted industrial partners to prototype heavy duty jumper wire, bulletproof vest and car chassis with the super steel for further testing and testing. Currently, high-strength steel for jumper cables has a yield strength of less than 1.7 GPa, and a fracture toughness of less than 65 MPam 1/2.
We have taken a big step to industrialize the new super steel. It shows great potential to be used in various applications including superior bulletproof vests, jumper cables, light automobiles and military vehicles, aerospace, and heavy duty bolts and nuts in the construction industry.