An accurate prediction of temperature and stress evolution in work rolls is crucial to assess the service life of the work roll. In this paper, a finite element method (FEM) model with a deformable work roll and a meshed, rigid body considering complex thermal boundary conditions over the roll surface is proposed to assess the temperature and the thermal stress in work rolls during hot rolling and subsequent idling. After that, work rolls affected by the combined action of temperature gradient and rolling pressure are investigated by taking account of the hot strip. The accuracy of the proposed model is verified through comparison with the calculation results obtained from the mathematical model. The results show that thermal stress is dominant in the bite region of work rolls during hot rolling. Afterwards, the heat treatment residual stresses which are related to thermal fatigue are simulated and introduced into the work roll as the initial stress to evaluate the redistribution under the thermal cyclic loads during the hot rolling process. Results show that the residual stress significantly changed near the roll surface.

Considerable residual stress is produced during heat treatment. Compressive residual stress at the shell is conductive to improving the thermal fatigue life of a work roll, while tensile stress in the core could cause thermal breakage. In hot rolling, thermal stress occurs under the heating-cooling cycles over the roll surface due to the contact with the hot strip and water spray cooling. The combination of thermal stress and residual stress remarkably influences the life of a work roll. In this paper, finite element method (FEM) simulation of hot rolling is performed by treating the residual stress as the initial stress. Afterwards, the effects of the initial roll temperature and cooling conditions on thermal stress considering the initial residual stress are discussed. Lastly, the thermal fatigue life of a work roll is estimated based on the strain life model. The higher initial roll temperature causes a higher temperature but a lower compressive thermal stress at the roll surface. The surface temperature and compressive stress increase significantly in the insufficient cooling conditions, as well as the center tensile stress. The calculation of the fatigue life of a work roll based on the universal slopes model according to the 10% rule and 20% rule is reasonable compared with experimental results.

In order to explore the relationship between welding thermal cycles and the thermal field during the repair process of dies, a numerical simulation software (SYSWELD) was employed to construct a thermo-mechanical coupled model. The influence of various inter-layer cooling times was investigated on heat accumulation, residual stress, and deformation of the repaired component. The results showed that the numerical simulation results agreed well with experimental data. The temperature within the cladding layer gradually rose as the number of weld beads increased, leading to a more pronounced accumulation of heat. The residual stress exhibited a double-peak profile, where the deformation of the repaired component was large at both ends but small in the middle. The less heat was accumulated in the cladding layer with a prolonged cooling time. Meanwhile, the residual stress and deformation in the repaired component experienced a gradual decrease in magnitude. The numerical simulation results demonstrated that the microstructure of the repaired component predominantly consisted of martensite and residual austenite at the optimal cooling time (300 s). Furthermore, the microhardness and wear resistance of the cladding zone significantly surpassed those of the substrate. In conclusion, this study suggested the prolonged cooling time mitigated heat accumulation, residual stress, and deformation in repaired components, which provided a new direction for future research on the die steel repairments.

To address the practical requirements for in situ equipment restoration, this study investigates a portable and cost-effective approach for the localized repair of SAE 10SAE 1045 components using a 1Cr13 martensitic stainless steel coating prepared via an arc-based additive manufacturing (WAAM) process. The microstructural evolution and tribological response of the layers were analyzed, with a focus on the effects of discrete thermal cycling and controlled solidification inherent to portable arc equipment. The WAAM process produced a refined martensitic matrix with a microhardness of 551.94 HV0.2, which is 2.26 times that of the substrate. Under dry sliding conditions, the 1Cr13 coating exhibited a lower friction coefficient and a reduced wear volume compared to the untreated SAE 1045, primarily through the mitigation of severe plastic deformation. This additive route provides a millimeter-scale reinforcement layer with metallurgical integrity suitable for heavy-duty service, aiming to offer a practical reference for the low-cost, on-site restoration of industrial components.