Structure deformation characterizations of the warp-knitted metal mesh fabric with thermomechanical treatment

Abstract

In this paper, thermomechanical treatment is employed to eliminate the internal stress of the metal wire and the residual torque of the loop generated by knitting. Combined with materials science and textile science, it is found that the color of the warp-knitted metal mesh fabric becomes darker gradually with increase in the treatment temperature. During the annealing process, martensite grains grow before austenite due to poor thermal stability. The hardness and strength of the warp-knitted metal mesh fabric decrease slightly due to the unstable internal structure. Moreover, the loop deformation is small. Subsequently, the reverse transformation occurs at a certain annealing temperature and martensite gains transform into austenite grains. The original austenite grains have good thermal stability while remaining relatively stable. After exceeding a certain annealing temperature, it grows gradually with the increase of annealing temperature, forms a single austenite phase structure with a larger crystal grain size finally. As the number of applied springs increases, the force of the loop is uniform, the recrystallization of the metal wire proceeds fully. At this time, when the processing temperature is 800°C and the springs are fully utilized, the strength, hardness and loop deformation are maximized.