Effect of Co on Microstructure and Stress Rupture Properties of K4750 Alloy

The effects of substituting Co for Fe on the microstructure and stress rupture properties of K4750 alloy were studied.The microstructure of the alloy without Co(K4750 alloy) and the alloy containing Co(K4750-Co alloy) were analyzed.Substitution of Co for Fe inhibited the decomposition of MC carbide and the precipitation of η phase during long-term aging treatment.In K4750-Co alloy,the morphology of MC carbide at the grain boundary(GB) remained dispersed blocky shape and no η phase was observed after aging at 750℃for 3000 h.However,in K4750 alloy,almost all the MC carbides at GBs broke down into granular M_(23)C_6 carbide and needle-like η phase.The addition of cobalt could delay the decomposition of MC carbides,which accordingly restricted the elemental supply for the formation of η phase.The stress rupture tests were conducted on two alloys at 750℃/430 MPa.When Co is substituted for Fe in K4750 alloy,the stress rupture life increased from 164.10 to 264.67 h after standard heat treatment.This was mainly attributed to increased concentration of Al,Ti and Nb in γ' phase in K4750-Co alloy,which further enhanced the strengthening effect of γ' phase.After aging at 750℃for 3000 h,substitution of Co for Fe can also cause the stress rupture life at 750℃/430 MPa to increase from 48.72 to 208.18 h.The reason was mainly because MC carbide degradation and η phase precipitation in K4750 alloy,which promoted the initiation and propagation of micro-crack during stress rupture testing.     

Effect of Heat Treatment on the Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of the Modified 718 Alloy

M718 alloy with an extra high Mo content of 7.50 wt% which reduced Nb addition and increased Al and Ti additions within the composition specifications of 718 alloy has been designed to increase the service temperature of 718 alloy. And the effect of the heat treatment on the microstructure and mechanical properties of M718 alloy has been investigated in this study. The results showed that Laves phase precipitated on the grain boundaries of M718 alloy instead of d-Ni_3 Nb phase in718 alloy, and y'and y'phases precipitated in the matrix of M718 alloy as that in 718 alloy. Increasing the solution temperature from 960 to 1050 ℃ noticeably reduced the intergranular precipitation of Laves phase. The precipitation of Laves phase was appropriate at 1020 ℃ for improving the grain boundary cohesion. Increasing the two-stage aging temperatures markedly increased the sizes of y' andy'phases. As a result, the strength of M718 alloy increased.     

Role of Ru on the Microstructural Evolution During Long-Term Aging of Ni-Based Single Crystal Superalloys

Two experimental alloys containing different contents of Ru were investigated to study the effect of Ru on the microstructural evolution during long-term thermal exposure. The increase in Ru promoted the formation of cubical, tiny, and even γ′ phase after full heat treatment. Moreover, the samples after full heat treatment were exposed at 1100 °C for different time. Based on the classical model by Lifshitz, Slyozov, and Wagner, the coarsening of γ′ phase of the alloy containing 2.5 and 3.5 wt.% Ru during the long-term aging was controlled by the interface reaction and diffusion, respectively. The γ/γ′ lattice misfit was more negative with the increment of Ru addition, which induced the formation of stable rafted γ′ phase in the alloy containing 3.5 wt.% Ru at the initiation of long-term aging. Besides, the increase in Ru reduced the diffusion coefficient, which could restrain the γ′ phase coarsening. The lower γ/γ′ lattice misfit of the alloy containing 2.5 wt.% Ru promoted the interface reaction, which induced the rapid coarsening of γ′ phase. Therefore, the increase in Ru improved the microstructural stability of the alloys. On the other hand, the raise of Ru induced “reverse partitioning” behavior, which was effective in suppressing the emergence of the topologically close-packed phase (TCP phase). The TCP phase occasionally occurred in the alloy containing 2.5 wt.% Ru, which was attributed to the high temperature and the supersaturation of the γ matrix. Moreover, the TCP phase was determined as μ phase, which had a high concentration of Co, Re, Mo, and W. A sketch map describing the evolution of the TCP phase was also constructed.     

Effects of PWHT on Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of Weld Metals of Ni-Based Superalloy 617 and 263 for Hyper-Supercritical Power Plants

It is well known that solid solution-strengthened alloy 617 and γ' precipitation-strengthened alloy 263 have excellent mechanical properties and corrosion resistance at high temperatures.Hyper-supercritical power plants work at temperatures above 700 ℃,and these superalloys are considered candidate materials for steam turbines components of these power plants.In this study,gas tungsten arc weldability of these superalloys was evaluated,and the effects of postweld heat treatment(PWHT) on the microstructural characteristics and the mechanical properties of their weld metals were investigated.Scanning transmission electron microscopy,energy-dispersive spectroscopy and electron probe microanalysis were utilized for the investigation.The experimental results confirmed that these weld metals had different characteristics in microstructure and mechanical properties.PWHT resulted in the precipitation of intergranular carbides,γ' particles and an increase in tensile strength of these superalloy weld metals.Furthermore,fine γ' particles,which were not detected in the as-welded metal of alloy 263,were precipitated after PWHT and those particles were the reason for the drastic increase in tensile strength.     

Evolutions of Microstructure and Mechanical Properties in Mg-5Li-1Zn-0.5Ag-0.5Zr-xGd Alloy

The evolution of the microstructure and mechanical properties of alloy system with nominally composition Mg-5Li-1Zn-0.5Ag-0.5Zr-xGd (x = 0, 1.2, 2.4, 3.6, 4.8, 6) is evaluated based on computational phase diagram and corresponding experimental studies. The results show that grains are significantly refined with the increase of Gd content. The main phases of as-cast alloys are α-Mg, β-Li, AgLi₂Mg, and Mg₃Gd. With the increase of Gd content, the amounts of Mg₃Gd phase and β-Li phase have been increased. When the Gd content exceeds 3.6 wt%, Mg₃Gd phase precipitates in a form of the network at the grain boundaries. The precipitation of β-Li can be attributed to the competitive dissolution of Zn, Gd, and Li in Mg. Meanwhile, γ″ is formed after the addition of Gd, which grows and transforms into γ′ with the increase of Gd content. In solidification process, stacking faults are formed by solid transformation of partial α-Mg and Mg₃Gd. Eventually, with the synergistic effect of Mg₃Gd, β-Li, and γ″ (or γ′), as the Gd content increasing, the tensile strength of the alloy first increases, then decreases, and the elongation decreases. When the content of Gd is 4.8 wt%, the ultimate tensile strength and yield strength reach the maximum values of 227 MPa and 139 MPa, and the elongation is 18.1%, respectively.     

Element Segregation and Solidification Behavior of a Nb,Ti, Al Co-Strengthened Superalloy ЭК151

The as-cast microstructure, element segregation and solidification behavior of a multi-alloyed superalloy ЭК151 have been investigated. The results show that the severe element segregation leads to the complicated precipitations at the inter-dendritic region, including η-Ni_3(Ti, Nb), eutectic(γ + γ') and Laves, which shows the characteristics of both Ti, Al-strengthened and Nb-strengthened alloys. Differential thermal analysis, heating and quenching tests reveal the solidification sequence as follows: Liquids →γ matrix →(Nb, Ti)C →η-Ni 3(Ti, Nb) →eutectic( γ+γ') → Laves. The melting points are between 1250 and 1260 °C for(Nb, Ti)C, between 1200 and 1210 °C for η phase, between 1180 and 1190 °C for eutectic(γ+γ') and Laves. γ' initially precipitates from matrix at 1150 °C and achieves the maximum precipitation at 1130 °C. According to the microstructure evolution captured during solidification and composition analysis by an energy dispersive spectrometer and electron probe microanalyzer,(Nb, Ti)/Al ratio is put forward to explain the formation of η-Ni_3(Ti, Nb) and eutectic( γ+γ'). The solidification of γ matrix increased the Nb, Ti concentration in the residual liquids, so the high(Nb, Ti)/Al ratio would result in the formation of η-Ni_3(Ti, Nb); the precipitation of the phase consumed Nb and Ti and decreased the(Nb, Ti)/Al ratio in the liquid, which led to the precipitation of eutectic(γ + γ'). Laves formed by the sides of η-Ni_3(Ti, Nb) and in front of the eutectic( γ + γ') after Al, Ti were further depleted by the two phases and Cr, Co, Mo were rejected to liquids.     

A286合金的高温持久性能

为了探究A286合金的高温持久性能,对采用进口电炉+炉外精炼+真空自耗(EAF+LF+VAR)冶炼工艺制备的A286合金进行不同温度和应力的高温持久试验,利用Larson-Miller参数(LMP)预测了A286合金的持久寿命,并分析了断口微观组织演变。结果表明,A286合金应力与LMP之间的关系为σ=-107.30×LMP+3011.02。随着试验温度的降低,A286合金的断裂方式由韧窝和孔洞组成的韧性断裂转为沿晶断裂的脆性断裂。在低温高应力下,裂纹主要在MC和M₂₃C₆处产生,在高温低应力下,裂纹主要在片层状η相处产生。在试验温度650℃、应力450 MPa下,强化机制主要为位错切过γ′相的沉淀强化,在试验温度750℃、应力150 MPa下,强化机制为位错切过γ′相的沉淀强化和位错绕过γ′相的弥散强化,并且晶内析出的TiP₂、(Ti, Nb)C、TiC和NbC等纳米颗粒有利于高温持久蠕变。     

Creep-Induced Phase Instability and Microstructure Evolution of a Nearly Lamellar Ti-45Al-8.5Nb-(W,B,Y)Alloy

Microstructure degradation and stress-induced transformation of a high Nb-containing TiAl alloy with nearly lamellar microstructure during creep were investigated. Tensile creep experiments were performed at 800, 850 and 900 °C under 150 MPa in air. Microstructures before and after creep tests were examined using scanning and transmission electron microscopy (SEM and TEM). Dislocations within the lamellar structure and β_o(ω) region and twin intersection in massive γ grains were investigated. Dislocation sliding played a critical role in the deformation of ω_o phase, which preferentially occurred on the (0002)ω_o plane. Possible deformation mechanisms were revealed. A stress-induced γ→α₂ phase transformation took place during the creep test at 850 and 900 °C. α₂ lamella could directly decompose into the ω_o phase at 850 °C. The instability of high-temperature microstructure can weaken the creep resistance and promote the plastic deformation of the lamellar matrix, thus could be detrimental to the creep properties. The correlations between creep properties and microstructure instability were discussed.     

Microstructure Evolution of Primary γ'Phase in Ni3Al-Based Superalloy

In this work, water cooling, air cooling (AC) and furnace cooling (FC) were applied to investigate the effect of cooling rate on microstructure evolution of primary γ′ in a newly designed Ni₃Al-based alloy. The results showed that nucleation rate of primary γ′ increased with increasing cooling rate. In addition, higher cooling rate shortened growth period of primary γ′, which made its morphology close to the initial precipitated γ′. For AC and FC specimens, due to the lower cooling rate, primary γ′ possessed longer growth period and its morphology was mainly due to the evolution of lattice misfit between γ and primary γ′. Meanwhile, growth of primary γ′ depended on lattice misfit distribution between its corner and edge area. Moreover, primary γ′ morphologies of sphere, cube and concave cube with tip corners were illustrated by considering interaction between elemental diffusion and elastic strain energy.     

Effect of Interactions Among Elements on Diffusion Process Associated with γ′ Coarsening in a Ni-Based Single-Crystal Superalloy

Coarsening of cuboidal γ' precipitates and relevant diffusion process in Ni-based single-crystal superalloy CMSX-4 were investigated at 1000,1020 and 1040℃ for specific times.The y' coarsening kinetics followed a cubic rate law with time and was presumably controlled by bulk diffusion of elements in y matrix.The associated diffusion activation energy was experimentally determined to be about 300 kJ/mol when it is considered the temperature-dependent thermo-physical parameters in modified Lifshitz-Slyozov-Wagner theory.The influence of temperature on γ/γ' microstructure is briefly discussed based on pseudo-binary [Ni]-[Al] phase diagram.Interactions among elements can effectively raise the local vacancy formation and vacancy-atom exchange barriers close to γ-and γ'-partitioning elements,respectively.Thus,it can significantly reduce the inter-coupling migrations of atoms during the macroscopic cross-diffusion process associated with γ' coarsening of Ni-based superalloys.     

Effect of Aging Heat Treatment on the Microstructure and Creep Properties of the Cast Ni-Based Superalloy at Low Temperature

Effect of aging heat treatment on the grain boundary microstructure and creep properties of a cast Ni-based superalloy was investigated. With increasing aging temperature from 750 to 1000 ℃, M_(23)C_6 carbides along the grain boundaries evolve from fine distributed block, continuous film into the coarse discrete block. Moreover, the M_(23)C_6 carbides are mainly enveloped within γ’ layers along grain boundaries during 1000 ℃ aging. Creep rupture lifetime and elongation at 760 ℃ and 645 MPa are improved with increasing the aging temperature. In particular, the creep rupture lifetime of the specimens aging at 1000 ℃ is one order of magnitude higher than that of the specimens aging at 750 ℃. The enhancement of ductility induced by the γ’ envelopes plays a significant role in the improvement of creep rupture lifetime.     

High-Temperature Structural Stabilities of Ni-Based SingleCrystal Superalloys Ni–Co–Cr–Mo–W–Al–Ti–Ta with Varying Co Contents

It has been recently pointed out that the compositions of industrial alloys are originated from cluster-plus-glueatom structure units in solid solutions. Specifically for Ni-based superalloys, after properly grouping the alloying elements into Al, Ni-like(■), r-forming Cr-like(■) and c-forming Cr-like(■), the optimal formula for single-crystal superalloys is established [Al–Ni_(12)](Al_1■~_(0:5) ■_(1:5)). The Co substitutions for Ni at the shell sites are conducted on the basis of the first-generation single-crystal superalloy AM3, formulated as [Al–■_(12)Co_x](Al_1Ti_(0.25)Ta_(0.25)Cr_1W_(0.25)Mo_(0.25)), with x = 1.5, 1.75, 2 and 2.5(the corresponding weight percents of Co are 9.43, 11.0, 12.57 and 15.71, respectively). The900 ℃ long-term aging follows the Lifshitz–Slyozov–Wagner theory(LSW theory), and the Co content does not have noticeable influence on the coarsening rate of c0. The microstructure and creep behavior of the four(001) single-crystal alloys are investigated. The creep rupture lifetime is reduced as Co increases. The alloy with the lowest Co(9.43 Co) shows the longest lifetime of about 350 h at 1050 ℃/120 MPa, and all the samples show N-type rafting after creep tests.     

Microstructural Instability of an Experimental Nickel-Based Single-Crystal Superalloy

Microstructural instability with the precipitation of topologically close-packed (TCP) phases of an experimental nickel-based single-crystal superalloy has been investigated. A significant amount of σ phases are distinguished in the interdendritic region of the as-cast samples after thermal exposure at 900 °C for 1000 h. The σ phases are preferentially precipitated at the periphery of coarse γ/γ′ eutectic, and their morphological evolution from needles to granules is observed. Microstructural analysis suggests that the local segregation of Cr and Ti at the periphery of coarse γ/γ′ eutectic accounts for the formation of σ phases in the as-cast samples. After heat treatment with low solution temperature and short holding time, the dendritic segregation of alloying elements (i.e., W, Re, Ti and Ta) and the volume fraction of γ′ phase in the interdendritic region are similar to that of the as-cast samples. However, no TCP phases are present in the interdendritic region of the heat-treated samples after thermal exposure, which is primarily ascribed to the elimination of local segregation of Cr and Ti near the coarse γ/γ′ eutectic. Moreover, small quantities of μ phases are precipitated in the secondary dendrite arm near the interdendritic region after thermal exposure, due to the increased volume fraction of γ′ phase and the concomitant enrichment of W and Re in the γ matrix.     

Effects of Ti and Cu on the Microstructure Evolution of AlCoCrFeNi High-Entropy Alloy During Heat Treatment

The microstructure evolution of AlCoCrFeNiTi_(0.5) alloy and AlCoCrFeNiCu alloy during heat treatment was systematically studied,to reveal the influence rules of chemical activity of adding element on the microstructure evolution of AlCoCrFeNi system.Owing to the negative mixing enthalpy with the constituent elements,Ti element was mainly dissolved in the Al-Nirich phases,and aggravated the lattice distortion of B2 phase.The structure variation of BCC phase by adding Ti inhibited the formation of FCC phase and enhanced the precipitation of σ phase during heat treatment.Owing to the positive mixing enthalpy with constituent elements,Cu element tended to be repelled to the ID region and formed metastable Cu-rich FCC1 phase which would transform into Cu-Al-Ni-rich FCC2 phase with increasing temperature.The addition of Cu inhibited the precipitation of σ phase during heat treatment.Adding Ti maintained the stable dendritic morphology,while adding Cu reduced the thermal stability of microstructure.Two dramatic morphology changes occurred at 1000~℃ and 1100~℃ in the AlCoCrFeNiCu alloy.The lattice distortion of phase in AlCoCrFeNiTi_(0.5) alloy was aggravated with increasing temperature up to 800~℃,then relaxed together with the dissolution of σ phase when temperature was above 900~℃.The variation in lattice distortion dominated the hardness of AlCoCrFeNiTi_(0.5) alloy.With increasing heating temperature,the increasing volume fraction of region with FCC structure due to the transformation between FCC phases,and the pronounced coarsening in microstructure due to the reduced thermal stability,resulted in the mainly decreasing trend in the hardness of AlCoCrFeNiCu alloy.     

Microstructures and Mechanical Properties of a Newly Developed Austenitic Heat Resistant Steel

The effect of heat treatment on the microstructures and mechanical properties of a newly developed austenitic heat resistant steel(named as T8 alloy) for ultra-supercritical applications have been studied. Results show that the main phases in the alloy after solution treatment are γ and primary MX. Subsequent aging treatment causes the precipitation of M_(23)C_6 carbides along the grain boundaries and a small number of nanoscale MX inside the grains. In addition, with increasing the aging temperature and time, the morphology of M_(23)C_6 carbides changes from semi-continuous chain to continuous network.Compared with a commercial HR3C alloy, T8 alloy has comparable tensile strength, but higher stress rupture strength. The dominant cracking mechanism of the alloy during tensile test at room temperature is transgranular, while at high temperature, intergranular cracking becomes the main cracking mode, which may be caused by the precipitation of continuous M_(23)C_6 carbides along the grain boundaries. Typical intergranular cracking is the dominant cracking mode of the alloy at all stress rupture tests.     

Effect of Different Ageing Processes on Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of Cast Al–3Li–2Cu–0.2Zr Alloy

The effect of different ageing processes on microstructure and mechanical properties of cast Al–3 Li–2 Cu–0.2 Zr alloy was investigated using transmission electron microscopy and tensile tests. The results showed that the mean size of δ′-Al_3 Li particles and the number density of Cu-rich precipitates both increased with increasing ageing temperature from 150 to 190 °C for 24 h, resulting in increasingly high strength. In contrast, the ductility deteriorated with the increase in ageing temperature as a result of the intensified planar slip. The duplex low-to-high ageing treatment(120 °C for 6 h followed by 160 °C for 24 h) was shown to be beneficial to the ductility compared with the corresponding single-stage ageing treatment(160 °C for 24 h). The reduced slip length induced by the precipitation of θ′-Al 2 Cu phases was found to be mainly responsible for this ductility improvement.     

Microstructure and Stress-Rupture Property of Large-Scale Complex Nickel-Based Single Crystal Casting

The microstructure and stress-rupture property of the large-scale complex single crystal(SX) casting DD10 were investigated in high-rate solidification process. It is found that the primary dendrite arm spacing(PDAS) does not increase monotonically with the height increase. When across the platform, the temperature gradient increases due to the effect of platform, and the corresponding PDAS decreases. The distribution of eutectic volume fraction in large-scale complex SX casting is affected by PDAS, solid back diffusion, and the development of high order dendrites. The eutectic volume fraction contained in the sample taken below the platform decreases with the height increase. While the eutectic volume fraction contained in the sample taken upper the platform increases gradually with the height increase. After heat treatment,most of the γ/γ' eutectics are eliminated and the components are distributed uniformly. The similar stress rupture properties of the samples at different heights in the same direction are obtained.     

Re-recognition of the Effects of Phosphorus and Boron on the γ’’ and γ’ Phases in IN718 Alloy

The effects of P and B on the matrix strength and precipitations of γ’ and γ’’ phases in the grain interior were re-recognized in this study. The combination addition of P and B markedly accelerated the precipitations of γ’ and γ’’ phases and strengthened the matrix of IN718 alloy when air-cooled from high temperature, while made no difference when waterquenched from high temperature. The effect of single addition of P on the precipitations of γ’’ and γ’ phases was the same with that of the combination addition of P and B, while the single addition of B had no effect on the precipitations of the two phases. Therefore, it was P rather than B which accelerated the precipitations of γ’ and γ’’ phases. P could take part in the precipitations of γ’ and γ’’ phases, which was revealed by electrochemical extraction and quantitative analysis of chemical composition. It also revealed that P atoms were dissolved in the c matrix to a relatively high degree at the temperature that γ’ and γ’’ phases began to precipitate, and consequently the precipitations of γ’ and γ’’ phases were accelerated. The first-principle calculation indicated that P decreased the formation enthalpies of γ’ and γ’’ phases when it occupied the Ni lattice sites in the two phases, which explained the effect of P on the γ’ and γ’’ phases.     

Effect of Heat Treatment on Microstructure and Stress Rupture Properties of a Ni-Mo-Cr-Fe Base Corrosion-Resistant Superalloy

The influences of heat treatment and test condition on the microstructure and stress rupture properties of a Ni-Mo-Cr-Fe base corrosion-resistant superalloy have been investigated in this paper. Optical microscope and scanning electron microscope were employed for the microstructure observation, and X-ray diffraction, electron probe micro-analyzer, and transmission electron microscope were used for phase determination. It was found that the grain size increased and the volume fractions of initial M₆C carbides decreased along with the increase in solution treatment temperature. When tested at 650 °C/320 MPa, the stress rupture lives decreased with the increase in solution treatment temperature, but the stress rupture lives increased slightly at first and then decreased for the samples solution heat treated at 1220 °C when tested at 700 °C/240 MPa. The elongations showed the descendent trends under these two conditions. The stress rupture life and elongation for the aged samples all showed a noticeable improvement at 650 °C/320 MPa, but there was no noticeable improvement at 700 °C/240 MPa. The reasons can be attributed to the grain size, test conditions, and the initial and secondary carbides.     

Microalloying Effect of Sn on Phase Transformation During Heat Treatment in Mg–Y–Zn–Zr Alloys

The microstructure and mechanical properties of the as-cast and heat-treated Mg-4.6 Y-2.5 Zn-0.6 Zr-x Sn(x = 0, 0.2 and0.5 wt%) alloys were investigated in this work. The results showed that the eutectics have been refined with 0.2% Sn addition and it has no effect on the phase category of the alloys. However, Sn3 Y5 phase was found in 0.5% Sn-added alloy.After heat treatment at 520 °C, the transformation of the long-period stacking ordered(LPSO) phase takes place in the Mg-Y-Zn-Zr alloy, but the transition is not completed in the alloys containing Sn. In addition, during the heat treatment, the mechanical properties of Sn-free alloys are significantly improved, and the strength of alloys containing Sn does not change much. Through observation and analysis of the microstructure and mechanical properties, it is found that Sn addition hinders the process of a0-Mg ? a-Mg ? 14 H and the process is the key to the transition of 18 H-LPSO to 14 H-LPSO.