Laser Gas Nitriding of Ti-6AI-4V Alloy

Laser gas nitriding of Ti-6A1-4V has been investigated with both CO₂ and Nd:YAG lasers. Results indicate that Nd:YAG laser in pulse mode provides a better surface finish and a lower cracking severity than CO₂ laser. A crack-free nitrided layer has been obtained by optimizing the processing parameters. Titanium nitride (TiN) significantly increases the hardness of the nitrided surfaces. The amount of titanium nitride produced depends on the processing parameters, such as laser pulse energy and nitrogen concentration. With optimized parameters, the nitrided surface is somewhat rougher than the polished base metal but much smoother than the shot peened surface. The shrinkage effect in the laser melt zone produces surface residual tensile stresses regardless of the processing environment. Preheating or stress relieving after laser nitriding can significantly reduce the residual tensile stress level.     

增材制造Ti-6Al-4V钛合金低周疲劳性能研究进展

金属增材制造技术可用于大型、复杂高性能钛合金结构件的制备,在航空航天等领域具有显著的优势和巨大的发展潜力。虽然增材制造Ti-6Al-4V合金构件的强度已经能够超过锻件,但它仍存在内部孔隙、熔合不良、粗大的柱状晶及残余拉应力等问题,使其在疲劳性能上与锻件具有一定的差距。本文在介绍直接能量沉积、选区激光熔化和电子束选区熔化3种代表性增材制造技术的原理及特点的基础上,简述了3种工艺制备Ti-6Al-4V合金构件的微观组织、静态力学性能及低周疲劳性能的研究进展,重点讨论了打印方向、缺陷、显微组织和表面处理对低周疲劳性能的影响。分析了增材制造Ti-6Al-4V合金构件低周疲劳性能、拉伸性能与微观组织之间的内在关系,并对提高构件低周疲劳性能的方法和推动其广泛应用的发展方向进行展望。     

Corrosion behavior of PIRAC nitrided Ti-6Al-4V surgical alloy

Hard titanium nitride (TiN) coatings were obtained on the surface of Ti-6Al-4V alloy using an original PIRAC nitriding method, based on annealing the samples under a low pressure of monatomic nitrogen created by selective diffusion of N from the atmosphere. PIRAC nitrided samples exhibited excellent corrosion resistance in Ringer's solution in both potentiodynamic and potentiostatic tests. The anodic current and metal ion release rate of PIRAC nitrided Ti-6Al-4V at the typical corrosion potential values were significantly lower than those of the untreated alloy. This, together with the excellent adhesion and high wear resistance of the TiN coatings, makes PIRAC nitriding an attractive surface treatment for Ti-6Al-4V alloy surgical implants.     

Plain fatigue and fretting fatigue behaviour of plasma nitrided Ti-6Al-4V

Fatigue tests with and without fretting against unnitrided fretting pads were conducted on unnitrided and plasma nitrided Ti-6Al-4V samples. Plasma nitrided samples exhibited higher surface hardness, higher surface compressive residual stress, lower surface roughness and reduced friction force compared with the unnitrided specimens. Plasma nitriding enhanced the lives of Ti-6Al-4V specimens under both plain fatigue and fretting fatigue loadings. This was explained in terms of the differences in surface hardness, surface residual stress, surface roughness and friction force between the unnitrided and nitrided samples.     

Surface characteristics of a porous-surfaced Ti-6Al-4V implant fabricated by electro-discharge-compaction

Electro-discharge-compaction (EDC) is a unique method for producing porous-surfaced metallic implants. The objective of the present studies was to examine the surface characteristics of the Ti-6Al-4V implants formed by EDC. Porous-surfaced Ti-6Al-4V implants were produced by employing EDC using 480 F capacitance and 1.5 kJ input energy. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy was used to study the surface characteristics of the implant materials. C, O, and Ti were the main constituents, with smaller amounts of Al and V. EDC Ti-6Al-4V also contained N. Titanium was present mainly in the forms of mixed oxides and small amounts of nitride and carbide were observed. Al was present in the form of aluminum oxide, while V in the implant surface did not contribute to the formation of the surface oxide film. The surface of conventionally prepared Ti-6Al-4V primarily consists of TiO₂, whereas, the surface of the EDC-fabricated Ti-6Al-4V consists of complex Ti and Al oxides as well as small amounts of titanium carbide and nitride components. However, preliminary studies indicated that the implant was biocompatible and supports rapid osseointegration.     

神经网络预测搅拌摩擦加工TC4超塑性行为

目的 研究搅拌摩擦加工工艺改性的Ti–6Al–4V双相钛合金的超塑性变形行为。方法 对360 r/min、30 mm/min工艺条件下搅拌摩擦加工处理的TC4钛合金在不同的变形条件下进行超塑性拉伸实验,在实验数据的基础上构建以变形温度、应变速率和晶粒尺寸为输入参数且以峰值应力为输出参数的3–16–1结构的BP人工神经网络模型。应用所构建的BP人工神经网络模型对不同变形条件的Ti–6Al–4V钛合金的超塑性行为进行预测。结果 BP人工神经网络预测的精准度较高,实验应力值与预测应力值吻合度较高,相关系数R=0.991 3,相对误差为1.91%~12.48%,平均相对误差为5.92%。结论 该模型预测的准确性较高,能够客观真实地描述Ti–6Al–4V合金的超塑性变形行为。     

Characterization and tribological evaluation of duplex treatment by depositing carbon nitride films on plasma nitrided Ti-6Al-4V

Carbon nitride (CN_X) films (with N/C ratio of 0.5) were deposited on both untreated and plasma nitrided Ti-6Al-4V substrates by D.C. magnetron sputtering using a graphite target in nitrogen plasma. TEM and XPS analysis revealed the formation of both amorphous CN_X structure and crystalline -C₃N₄ phases in the deposited coatings. Nano-indentation tests showed that the film hardness was about 18.36 GPa. Both the scratch tests and indentation tests showed that compared with CN_X film deposited directly on Ti-6Al-4V, the load bearing capacity of CN_X film deposited on plasma nitrided Ti-6Al-4V was improved dramatically. Ball-on-disk wear tests under both dry sliding and lubricated conditions (with simulated body fluids) were performed to evaluate the friction and wear characteristics of the deposited coatings. Results showed that under both dry and lubricated conditions, the duplex treated system (i.e., with CN_X film deposited on plasma nitrided Ti-6Al-4V substrate) was more effective in maintaining a favorable low and stable coefficient of friction and improving wear resistance than both individual plasma nitriding and CN_X films on Ti-6Al-4V substrate. Under dry sliding conditions, the generated wear debris of spalled films were accumulated on the wear track, mechanically alloyed and graphitized, thus significantly reducing the coefficient of friction and preventing wear of the substrate. However, under lubricated conditions, due to the flowing of the fluids, the lubricating wear debris was taken away by the fluids, and therefore, the direct contact of two original surfaces resulted in high coefficient of friction and extensive abrasive wear of the substrate for CN_X films deposited on Ti-6Al-4V substrate. Also when there was some small-area spallation of CN_X films, the fluids could seep into the interface between the film and substrate, thus degrading the interfacial adhesion and resulting in a large area spallation.     

INFLUENCE OF NITRIDING ON MICROSTRUCTURE AND FATIGUE BEHAVIOUR OF A SOLUTE-RICH BETA TITANIUM ALLOY

Abstract— The solute-rich beta titanium alloy Ti-3Al-8V-6Cr-4Mo-4Zr was subjected to 1500 bar nitrogen pressure at elevated temperatures (500–920°C), leading to a diffusion layer with a high surface hardness. Microstructural, crystallographic and compositional analyses indicate that TiN (δ) and Ti₂N (ε) are formed at temperatures exceeding 815°C. The increased concentration of nitrogen, which is a potent α-stabilizer in titanium, also causes α-Ti to form near the surface. The nitriding treatment does not significantly alter the tensile properties or fatigue limit in solution heat treated material. A subsequent ageing treatment of 72 h at 440°C and 16 h at 500°C reduces toughness significantly, allowing cracks induced by nitriding to propagate more easily into the bulk. Tensile ductility and fatigue performance of aged nitrided Ti-3Al-8V-6Cr—4Mo-4Zr are thus significantly lower than in the untreated reference condition.     

增材制造Ti-6Al-4V合金组织调控研究现状

增材制造技术可实现复杂钛合金零件的快速成形,制造的Ti-6Al-4V合金具有较高的强度以及优异的高温性能,被广泛应用于航空、医疗等各大领域。综述了金属增材制造的典型工艺,分析了Ti-6Al-4V合金的相变特征,总结了选区激光熔化制造Ti-6Al-4V的力学性能和组织调控方法,着重分析了热处理温度、冷却速率、变质处理以及超声冲击等对合金组织的影响;展望了增材制造Ti-6Al-4V合金的主要发展方向。     

激光选区熔化颗粒增强钛基复合材料的抗压性能EI北大核心CSCD

采用激光选区熔化(selective laser melting,SLM)制备LaB_(6)颗粒增强钛基复合材料,研究不同激光能量密度下试样的致密化行为、显微组织、物相及其在准静态和动态冲击条件下的力学性能。结果表明:LaB_(6)颗粒的加入在一定程度上改变了材料的致密化行为,过高或者过低的激光能量密度均会降低试样的致密度。而增强颗粒的加入细化了基体材料的晶粒,钛合金的初始β晶粒及针状α晶粒的晶界有一定程度的弱化,从而导致复合材料的屈服强度和极限强度增加,但延展性降低,同时复合材料表现出明显的应变率强化效应。与SLM成型Ti-6Al-4V合金相比,复合材料在塑性段的应变硬化效应和失稳阶段的脆性断裂特征更显著,为激光增材制造高性能颗粒增强钛基复合材料的动态抗压性能优化提供理论基础。     

Fabrication of TiC/TiB/Ti3AlC2 phases reinforced coatings on Ti-6Al-4V substrate

Intermetallic matrix composite coatings reinforced by TiC, TiB₂, and Ti₃AlC₂ were fabricated by laser cladding the mixed power Ti, Al, and B₄C on the Ti-6Al-4V alloy. X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscope, and energy dispersive spectroscopy were chosen to investigate the structures and morphologies of the coatings. Results showed that the coatings mainly consisted of the reinforcements of TiC, TiB₂, and Ti₃AlC₂ and the matrix of Ti₃Al, TiAl, TiAl₃, and α-Ti. The hardness and wear-resisting property of the prepared specimens of Ti-45Al-10B₄C and Ti-45Al-20B₄C were studied contrastively. It was found that the coating was metallurgical bonded to the Ti-6Al-4V substrate. The micro-hardness and dry sliding wear-resisting properties of the specimen of Ti-45Al-20B₄C were enhanced further. And the micro-hardness of Ti-45Al-20B₄C was from 900 HV_0.2 to 1225 HV_0.2. The wear-resisting property of Ti-45Al-20B₄C was four times as large as that of the Ti-6Al-4V alloys.     

Ti-6Al-4V合金表面超声振动滚压强化研究

采用超声振动滚压加工技术对Ti-6Al-4V合金表面进行处理,探究该项技术对Ti-6Al-4V合金表面质量的影响。通过对该工艺加工前后的Ti-6Al-4V合金进行表面粗糙度参数、XRD图谱、截面微观形貌、表层残余应力及显微硬度的对比分析,结果表明:经该工艺处理后的合金表面各项粗糙度参数皆有明显降低;加工后的合金表面XRD图谱的衍射峰减弱且宽化,衍射角向高角度方向偏移;加工后的合金表层β相组织相较加工前明显细化,且随着深度增加β相组织逐渐增大;在距离表面约50μm位置的残余应力值最大可达到-967 MPa;加工后的合金表面显微硬度可达到421HV,且在0~140μm的深度范围内,显微硬度随着深度的增加逐渐减小至与基体硬度一致。经超声振动滚压加工后的Ti-6Al-4V合金表面质量显著提高,有利于提高其零部件的使用性能。     

Laser Surface Nitriding of Ti-6A1-4V Titanium Alloy

Titanium and its alloys are known for their high specific strength as well as fatigue and corrosion resistance. However, they suffer from poor wear and friction resistance, limiting their use in tribological applications. Nitriding of these materials may be carried out favourably to harden them and thus to improve both wear and friction resistance. The laser nitriding process involves using the intense energy of the laser to melt the surface in a nitrogen comprising atmosphere. This results in creation of a very hard layer consisting of dendritic structures of nitride. But the non-uniformity of the melt pool and cracks in the nitrided layers have been generally observed. Our study deals with the results of Ti-6Al-4V laser surface nitriding and with the effects of a sample preheating on the cracks generation.     

Improvement of Ductility of Powder Metallurgy Titanium Alloys by Addition of Rare Earth Element

Ti-4.5Al-6.0Mo-1.5Fe, Ti-6Al-1Mo-1Fe and Ti-6Al-4V alloys were prepared by blended elemental powder metallurgy （PM） process, and the effects of Nd on the microstructures and mechanical properties were investigated by scanning electron microscopy （SEM）, transmission electron microscopy （TEM） and X-ray diffraction （XRD）. It was found out that the addition of Nd increased the density of sintered titanium alloys slightly by a maximum increment of 1% because small amount of liquid phase occurred during sintering. The addition of Nd shows little effect on the improvement of tensile strength, while the elongation is significantly improved. For example, the elongation of Ti-4.SAl-6.0Mo-1.5Fe can be increased from 1% without addition of Nd to 13% at a Nd content of 1.2 wt pct.     

Ti-6Al-4V合金的室温蠕变行为

研究了Ti-6Al-4V钛合金板材的室温蠕变行为及其对合金后续使用性能的影响。结果表明：合金的宏观织构、应力水平以及预塑性应变都显著影响其室温蠕变行为。在加载方向上合金的<0001>峰值极密度越高,则其加工硬化指数越大、蠕变指数越小、室温蠕变性能越好。足够大的应力,是合金发生室温蠕变的必要条件。只有在蠕变应力不小于0.85σ_y的条件下才能观察到较为明显的室温蠕变,且室温蠕变效应随着蠕变应力水平的增大而增大。在室温下无论是蠕变还是单调加载引起的塑性应变,都抑制合金的后续蠕变行为。预加的塑性应变虽然抑制合金的后续蠕变应变,却使合金的后续疲劳性能恶化。     

TI-6Al-4V合金置氢-除氢组织与力学性能

为研究除氢处理对置氢钛合金组织与性能的影响,对Ti-6Al-4V合金在不同参数条件下进行了置氢与除氢处理,采用光学显微镜分析了置氢-除氢处理过程中Ti-6Al-4V合金微观组织的演化规律,通过室温拉伸试验研究了置氢-除氢处理后Ti-6Al-4V合金的力学性能,探讨了Ti-6Al-4V合金置氢-除氢组织与力学性能之间的相...     

Thermophysical Properties of Solid and Liquid Ti-6Al-4V (TA6V) Alloy

Ti-6Al-4V (TA6V) titanium alloy is widely used in industrial applications such as aeronautic and aerospace due to its good mechanical properties at high temperatures. Experiments on two different resistive pulse heating devices (CEA Valduc and TU-Graz) have been carried out in order to study thermophysical properties (such as electrical resistivity, volume expansion, heat of fusion, heat capacity, normal spectral emissivity, thermal diffusivity, and thermal conductivity) of both solid and liquid Ti-6Al-4V. Fast time-resolved measurements of current, voltage, and surface radiation and shadowgraphs of the volume have been undertaken. At TU-Graz, a fast laser polarimeter has been used for determining the emissivity of liquid Ti-6Al-4V at 684.5 nm and a differential scanning calorimeter (DSC) for measuring the heat capacity of solid Ti-6Al-4V. This study deals with the specific behavior of the different solid phase transitions (effect of heating rate) and the melting region, and emphasizes the liquid state (T > 2000 K).     

Mechanism of surface modification of a porous-coated Ti-6Al-4V implant fabricated by electrical resistance sintering

A porous-coated Ti-6Al-4V implant was fabricated by electrical resistance sintering, using 480 F capacitance and 1.5 kJ input energy. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) was used to study the surface characteristics of the implant material before and after sintering. There were substantial differences in the content of O and N between as-received atomized Ti-6Al-4V powders and the sintered prototype implant, which indicates that electrical resistance sintering alters the surface composition of Ti-6Al-4V. Whereas the surface of atomized Ti-6Al-4V powders was primarily TiO₂, the surface of the implant consisted of a complex of titanium oxides as well as small amounts of titanium carbide and nitride. It is proposed that the electrical resistance sintering process consists of five stages: stage I – electronic breakdown of oxide film and heat accumulation at the metal-oxide interface; stage II – physical breakdown of oxide film; stage III – neck formation and neck growth; stage IV – oxidation, nitriding, and carburizing; and stage V – heat dissipation. The fourth stage, during which the alloy repassivates, is responsible for the altered surface composition of the implant.     

Interface contribution to the SiC-titanium and SiC-aluminium tensile strength prediction

Fragmentation tests of single SiC filaments embedded in an aluminium (1050 and 5083 alloys) or a titanium (Ti-6Al-4V) matrix have been analysed in an effort to obtain the interface contribution in terms that could be incorporated into a tensile fracture model for unidirectional composites. Depending on the matrix, two regimes of interfacial stress transfer can be distinguished within the whole range of tested temperatures. For the SCS2/5083 system, plastic deformation of the alloy limits the stress transfer, and the interface contribution thus finds its expression in the shear stress of the matrix. for the SCS6/Ti-6Al-4V system, friction is the leading process and the interface contribution strongly depends on the stress state around the fibre. Assuming a temperature dependent compressive radial stress up to 925C, an effective transfer shear stress may be easily calculated for unidirectional SCS6/Ti-6Al-4V composites.     

Influence of mechanical surface treatments on the high cycle fatigue performance of TIMETAL 54M

TIMETAL 54M (in the following Ti-54M) is a newly developed (α + β) titanium alloy with nominal composition Ti-5Al-4V-0.6Mo-0.4Fe. The alloy can provide a cost benefit over Ti-6Al-4V due to improved machinability and formability. These attractive properties might be a driving force for replacing Ti-6Al-4V in many aircraft as well as biomedical applications. Since HCF performance is one of the most important requirements for these applications, it is essential to improve this property by microstructural optimization and by mechanical surface treatments such as shot peening or ball burnishing. The latter improvement is mainly the result of induced near-surface severe plastic deformation which results in work-hardening and the generation of compressive residual stresses that retard fatigue crack propagation. The main aim of the present study was to investigate the potential fatigue life improvements in Ti-54M due to shot peening and ball-burnishing. The process-induced residual stresses and stress-depth profiles were determined by energy-dispersive X-ray diffraction (ED) of synchrotron radiation with the beam energy of 10-80 keV. Results on Ti-54M and Ti-6Al-4V will be compared and correlated with the mean stress and environmental sensitivities of the fatigue strengths in the microstructures.