BLOCK AND HEAD

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[001 ] The present invention refers to a vermicular cast iron alloy specially designed for internal combustion engine blocks and heads having special requirements of mechanical strength and fatigue strength.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[002] The demand for cast alloys with high mechanical strength has been intense in the automotive industry, aiming at reducing vehicle weight and increasing engine power. The arrival of vermicular iron, in the CGI 400 and CGI 450 grades, brought new opportunities for designers, both for blocks and for heads, in engines of different sizes, but all with high power density. These vermicular cast irons have much better mechanical strength than gray cast irons, reaching up to 450 MPa of Strength Limit and 315 MPa of Yield Stress 0.2, wherein the Fatigue Limit may be higher than 160 MPa, in tension-compression stresses with average tension equal to zero. In addition, its thermal conductivity is good, intermediate between nodular irons and gray irons, allowing good thermal extraction in parts exposed to high temperatures.

[003] Technical standard ISO 161 12/200 foresees a class of up to 500 MPa of Strength Limit, but this has not translated into any suitable industrial manufacturing technique to serve this class. In addition, the hardness of this class would be, according to the standard ISO, up to 260 HB. The standard ASTM A 842, because it limits the nodularity of the vermicular irons by 20%, it does not predict said class of Strength Limit of 500 MPa, since it will require a greater nodularity. In the standard SAE J1887 the class 500 is expected, however having nodularity up to 50% and a hardness of up to 269 HB, which should sensibly reduce the thermal conductivity and represent special difficulties of presence of shrinkage and machining. Strictly speaking, said class fits only to parts of very simple geometry, such as cylinder liners and rings. Also, the vermicular iron described in the patent CN 101423914, even with pearlitic matrix, is applicable only to parts of very simple geometry, such as rings, because they contain high levels of phosphorus, which increases the tendency to the presence of casting defects in complex parts, thus making it impossible to obtain high values of mechanical strength, in particular fatigue strength. Another patent even older, of 1977, US Patent 4,036,641 , describes a process of manufacturing vermicular iron using iron-silicon-magnesium-rare earth-titanium alloy, resulting in a vermicular iron with high titanium contents, up to 0.15 %, also not suitable for complex parts such as engine blocks and heads, due to the tendency to form internal porosities, not allowing the achievement of high values of mechanical strength.

[004] Thus, the increase of the use of vermicular irons in blocks and heads, parts of complex geometry, demands a new class of this material, with a minimum Strength Limit of 500 MPa and hardness values not exceeding 260 HB.

OBJECTIVES OF THE INVENTION

[005] In this regard it is presented the present invention of a vermicular cast iron alloy with special requirements of mechanical strength and fatigue strength.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[006] It is presented a vermicular iron alloy with high mechanical strength and high fatigue strength for the production of internal combustion engines blocks and heads having a microstructure of pearlitic matrix and predominantly vermicular graphite (> 70%) and presence of graphite nodules in up to 30%, wherein its graphite microstructure is described by the Microstructure Factor (FM), as defined below, with Microstructure Factor values higher than 0.94, wherein FM = (8.70 x A1 - 0.541 x A2 + 0.449 x A3 + 0.064 x A4) / 1000, (A1 - percentage of nodulization, referring to the number of spherical particles of graphite, considering particles smaller than 10 μιη, A2 - number of graphite particles greater than 10 μιη, per mm ² , A3 - number of graphite particles smaller than 10 μιη, per mm ² , and A4 - number of eutectic cells, per cm ² . The vermicular iron alloy with high mechanical strength for the production of internal combustion engines blocks and heads presents a minimum Strength Limit of 500 MPa, a minimum Yield Stress of 350 MPa, a minimum Fatigue Limit of 190 MPa (tension-compression, R = -1 ).

[007] It is presented an internal combustion engine block which presents, in samples obtained from the support bearings, a minimum Strength Limit of 500 MPa, a minimum Yield Stress of 350 MPa, a minimum Fatigue Limit of 190 MPa (tension- compression, R = -1 ).

[008] It is presented an internal combustion engine head which presents, in samples obtained from the combustion face, a minimum Strength Limit of 500 MPa, a minimum Yield Stress of 350 MPa, a minimum Fatigue Limit of 190 MPa (tension- compression, R = -1 ).

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[009] The present patent of invention will be described in detail on the basis of the figures listed below, which:

[010] Figure 1 shows micrographs of the vermicular iron, object of the present invention in which: (a) - Optical microscopy, 200X magnification, without attack; (b) - Scanning electron microscopy, with deep attack, 1 ,000 X magnification;

[01 1 ] Figure 2 shows microstructure of the vermicular iron, object of the present invention (Nital attack and 400X magnification);

[012] Figure 3 shows Results of Tensile Strength Limit and Yield Stress for the vermicular iron, object of the present invention. Samples obtained from bearing of V6 engine block. Average Strength Limit of sampling = 540 MPa. Average Yield Stress of sampling = 390 MPa.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [013] The present invention provides a novel vermicular cast iron alloy with a microstructure that allows obtaining high levels of mechanical properties, in particular fatigue strength. This microstructure can be seen in Figures 1 and 2, consisting of a pearlitic matrix and a predominantly vermicular graphite structure (form III of the standard ISO 945/1975), with a minimum of 70% vermicular graphite, and the presence of graphite nodules (form VI of the standard ISO 945/1975), by up to 30%. The main microstructural difference of this new type of vermicular iron, compared to the vermicular irons of the CGI 400 and CGI 450 grades, is described in the Microstructure Factor (FM), defined as:

[014] FM = (8.70 x A1 - 0.541 x A2 + 0.449 x A3 + 0.064 x A4) / 1000, wherein: A1 - percentage of nodulization, referring to the number of spherical particles of graphite, considering particles smaller than 10 μιη; A2 - number of graphite particles greater than 10 μιη, per mm ² ; A3 - number of graphite particles smaller than 10 μιη, per mm ² ; and A4 - number of eutectic cells, per cm ² .

[015] The vermicular irons of CGI 400 and CGI 450 grades present Microstructure Factor values between 0 and 0.93, while the vermicular iron of the present invention shows Microstructure Factor of greater than 0.94. This microstructure difference is obtained by treatments of the liquid bath, prior to the casting of the metal in the mold, and involving the combined addition of balanced proportions of Mg (from 0.010 to 0.070%), Rare Earths (from 0.005 to 0.050%), and of Si-rich inoculant (from 0.005 to 0.150%). The chemical composition of vermicular iron is characteristic of this material, without special alloying elements, and contains carbon (3.0 - 3.9%), manganese (0.1 - 0.6%), silicon (1 .5 - 3.0%), magnesium (0.005 - 0.030%), cerium (0.005 - 0.030%), tin (0.04 - 0.12%), copper (0.2 - 1 .2%), sulfur residual (less than 0.030%), phosphorus residual (less than 0.050%) and titanium residual (less than 0.020%), all these percentages by weight. Other common impurities in the cast irons may further be present. [016] The microstructure thus obtained, with the Microstructure Factor of greater than 0.94, allows obtaining a minimum Strength Limit of 500 MPa, a minimum Yield Stress of 350 MPa, and a minimum Fatigue Limit of 190 MPa, in a tension- compression test with 107 cycles, with R = -1 . The hardness is in values up to 255 HB.

[017] Specifically, said vermicular iron alloy is characterized by the fact that it presents a microstructure which results in high values of mechanical properties. The mechanical properties are characterized by a minimum Strength Limit of 500 MPa, a minimum Yield Stress of 350 MPa, and a minimum Fatigue Limit of 190 MPa, in a tension-compression test with 107 cycles. This set of properties is obtained with a pearlitic matrix, and with graphite morphology and distribution described by the Microstructure Factor, as described in the text.

[018] This Microstructure Factor should assume a minimum value of 0.94, with predominance of vermicular graphite (> 70%) and presence of nodular graphite in up to 30%.

[019] With this set of properties it is then possible to design new engine blocks and heads in order to reduce the weight of the components and increase the engine power.

[020] Figure 3 shows a set of results of tensile tests of vermicular cast iron, object of the present invention. It is verified that this vermicular iron presents a Strength Limit of more than 500 MPa, and a Yield Stress of more than 350 MPa, in samples obtained from part, in the case from support bearing of V6 engine block. This sample provided a Fatigue Limit, in the tension-compression test with R = -1 , by the staircase method, with a value of 193 MPa.

[021 ] Thus, the present invention of vermicular irons with high mechanical strength, in particular high fatigue strength, allows the development of high performance engine blocks and heads suitable for high power density engines involving high levels of mechanical stress.