Using two fencing swords manufactured in Europe and China, we investigated the typical materials used for fencing blades and compared the experimental results with the nominal compositions of a variety of steels. By combining the requirements for the safety of athletes, mechanical behaviors of different steels, and production costs for industry, there is possible directions for the heat treatments and processing methods that have the potential to enhance performance and overcome the limitations of previous materials.
1. Exploring the Material of the Blade
In the early days, the material used for fencing blades was carbon steel
[23][1]. Because carbon steel is brittle and easily broken during matches, it is only used to fabricate blades which are used as props and decorations at present. In order to investigate the material selection of real fencing blades in detail, two types of blades that are currently used in training and matches were collected. One was produced in China and the other in Europe.
To detect the chemical composition, microstructure and micro-hardness of the two blades, a series of methods were applied. X-ray diffraction (XRD, Smartlab (9KW), Rigaku, Tokyo, Japan) experiments were performed to determine phase and crystal structure. A scanning electron microscope (SEM, Gemini 450, Zeiss, Cambridge, UK), which is attached with an Energy-dispersive X-ray spectrometer (EDS, Ultim 100, Oxford, London, UK) was used to obtain the chemical composition and microstructure. An optical microscope (OM, Zeiss AXIO vert.a1m) was employed to image the metallographic structure. Finally, a micro hardness tester (EM-1000VP, Hengyi, Shanghai, China) was used to obtain the micro Vickers hardness of blades. Five locations were randomly selected in each sample and the average value was taken. The load was 300 g and each loading lasted for 10s.
The XRD patterns of the two blades are given in
Figure 21. The results illustrate that the major phase in both blades is Fe, with a body-centered cubic (BCC) crystal structure. Additionally, there is a small amount of FeNi detected in the blade manufactured in Europe. The SEM-EDS results provided in
Table 3 show the chemical composition of the two blades. It should be noted that, the light elements (such as C) cannot be detected and quantitative analysis very precisely in EDS, thus the content of C is not included. In comparing these experimental results with the nominal compositions of varied steels, it was found that the blade imported from Europe has a very similar composition as 18Ni maraging steels
[24][2], and the one from China was very similar to Si-Mn series steel. After consulting with Chinese fencing blade manufacturers, it was confirmed that the blade made in China is composed of 60Si2MnA, a kind of spring steel.
Based on the results of our experimental exploration of blade material, it is clear that the European blade, which is more expensive and usually used in official fencing competitions, is of 18Ni maraging steel system showing better mechanical behaviors. In contrast, the Chinese blade, which is less costly and often used in daily training, belongs to the Si-Mn series and is from the spring steel system. The next section of the paper will provide details of the two steel systems, including their chemical composition and associated heat treatments.