Cracking of Electrolytic Tough Pitch Copper Plates During Hot Rolling, Journal of Failure Analysis and Prevention, 19 (2019), 858–865
Abstract
Failure analysis is performed in electrolytic tough pitch copper plates that have been severely
fractured during the initial hot rolling passes. A comprehensive investigation was conducted,
including mainly macroscopic examination, fractographic and metallographic evaluation.
Moreover, numerical simulation of the solidification front using a computational fluid dynamics
software was also employed to analyze the influence of the variation of casting parameters on
the solidification front development. Fracture areas manifested poor ductility, while in many
cases a prior cast pattern consisting of coarsely solidified dendritic crystals was revealed. The
obtained evidence is suggestive of microstructural embrittlement caused by the synergistic
contribution of the manufacturing process conditions and the potential elemental and particle
segregation, such as cuprous oxide aggregation, that might promote failure susceptibility.