Advances in Recrystallization of Metallic Materials

Dear Colleagues,

Recrystallization (RX) is a key driver behind microstructure evolution in crystalline materials. The phenomenon is commonly observed in a range of different materials, comprising geo-materials, like rocks and ice, as well as engineering materials such as metals and alloys. The latter category of materials is the focus of this Special Issue of Metals.

In general terms, RX can be defined as the formation of a new grain structure in a cold-worked material and occurs through the formation and migration of mobile grain boundaries. A distinction is frequently made between RX that progresses by distinct stages of nucleation and growth (discontinuous RX, DRX) or that occurring by a continuous grain structure evolution (continuous RX, CDRX). Such differences are closely linked to the specific material and processing conditions under consideration.

On a macroscopic scale, RX can take place during materials processing under static conditions (static RX, SRX), or under dynamic conditions (dynamic RX, DRX) in conjunction with concurrent deformation of the material. Important processing parameters include the temperature, deformation and deformation rate. On the micro-/mesoscopic scale, RX is intimately linked to the properties of grain boundaries, crystallographic texture, grain morphologies, evolution of dislocation structures and a range of other processes and features of the crystal aggregate. At even finer length scales, detailed aspects of, for example, grain boundary structure, grain boundary energy/mobility and dislocation mechanics become relevant. Observations such as these highlight the inherent multiscale nature of RX, which is a challenge in both experimental investigations and in the numerical modelling of RX and related phenomena.

Recognizing the multitude of highly relevant research topics that are linked to RX, the present Special Issue of Metals welcomes, but is not limited to, studies on:

• Thermo-mechanical materials processing during which RX is a central aspect
• The exploitation of RX in materials design
• Observation and characterization of the processing-microstructure-property links and their dependence on RX
• Nucleation mechanisms in RX
• Influence of grain boundary structure on RX
• Grain boundary properties and their relation to RX
• Texture influence and evolution in RX
• Numerical models of RX
• Multiscale approaches in modelling and simulation of RX

The adopted methods can be based either on experimental characterization and observation or on numerical modelling. In particular, submissions that combine experimental observations with numerical simulations are encouraged. In addition, studies that aim to develop suitable experimental methods or to establish new numerical methods for describing and characterizing RX are welcome.

Dr. Håkan Hallberg
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

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Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Metals is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• Recrystallization
• Grain boundaries
• Nucleation
• Texture
• Metals and alloys
• Experiment
• Modeling
• Simulation