Molecular dynamics investigation of mechanical mixing in mechanical alloying

Molecular dynamic simulation is exploited to obtain a deep insight of atomic scale mixing and amorphization mechanisms happening during mechanical mixing. Impact–relaxation cycles are performed to simulate the mechanical alloying process. The results obtained by structural analysis shows that the final structure obtained through simulation of mechanical alloying is in an amorphous state. This analysis reveals that amorphization occurs concurrently with the attainment of a perfectly mixed alloy. The results indicate diffusion and deformation are two important mechanisms for mixing during mechanical alloying. The rate of diffusion is controlled by the temperature and by the density of defects in the structure. Deformation enhances mixing directly by sliding atomic layers on each other and increases the number of defects in the structure. The results agree with mechanical alloying experiments described in the literature.     

Structure and properties of ductile CuAlMn shape memory alloy synthesized by mechanical alloying and powder metallurgy

A ductile Cu–Al–Mn–Ti–B shape memory alloy with high fatigue strength has been prepared via mechanical alloying and powder metallurgy. With increasing milling time, the size of the crystallite grains decreases. Cu diffraction pattern appeared only after milling at a speed of 300 rpm for 25 h. The single phase CuAlMnTiB solid solution powder after 35 h milling was hot-pressed and extruded to form the final alloy. The quenched alloy had a single β phase at room temperature and its yield strength, maximum strength and strain were measured to be 390 MPa, 1015 MPa and 14.4%, respectively. The aged alloy showed a martensite structure at room temperature and had a shape memory recovery of 92% after 120 cycles.     

Characterization of Ti-HA composite fabricated by mechanical alloying

Titanium (Ti) and its alloys possess suitable mechanical characteristics for utilization in orthopedic implants. However, their poor integrity with native tissues is a major challenge in their clinical application. Composite structures of Ti and hydroxyapatite (HA) can be used to promote the bone ingrowth and integration of the implant with the surrounding tissue. Here, we report the fabrication of Ti-HA nanocomposite powders using a high energy planetary ball mill. We investigate the effects of fabrication parameters including HA content (10–30% w/w), milling time (20 and 50 h), and HA particle size (50 nm and 15 μm) on the characteristics of the fabricated composites. In particular, we determine the samples hardness, sintering density, surface roughness and topography for different conditions. The results show that the addition of HA to Ti decreases the sintering density and enhances the surface hardness. Also, we observe a direct relationship between HA concentration in the Ti matrix and the surface roughness.     

Synthesis of nanocrystalline alloys and intermetallics by mechanical alloying

Nanocrystalline Al₃Ni, NiAl and Ni₃Al phases in Ni-Al system and theα, β, γ, ɛ and deformation induced martensite in Cu-Zn system have been synthesized by mechanical alloying (MA) of elemental blends in a planetary mill. Al₃Ni and NiAl were always ordered, while Ni₃Al was disordered in the milled condition. MA results in large extension of the NiAl and Ni₃Al phase fields, particularly towards Al-rich compositions. Al₃Ni, a line compound under equilibrium conditions, could be synthesized at nonstoichiometric compositions as well by MA. The phases obtained after prolonged milling (30 h) appear to be insensitive to the starting material for any given composition > 25 at.% Ni. The crystallite size was finest (∼ 6 nm) when NiAl and Ni₃Al phases coexisted after prolonged milling. In contrast, in all Cu-Zn blends containing 15 to 85 at.% Zn, the Zn-rich phases were first to form, and the final crystallite sizes were coarser (15–80 nm). Two different modes of alloying have been identified. In case of NiAl and Al₃Ni, where the ball milled product is ordered, as well as, the heat of formation (ΔH _f) is large (> 120 kJ/mol), a rapid discontinuous mode of alloying accompanied with an additive increase in crystallite size is detected. In all other cases, irrespective of the magnitude of ΔH _f, a gradual diffusive mode of intermixing during milling seems to be the underlying mechanism of alloying.     

Processing of Cu-Fe and Cu-Fe-SiC nanocomposites by mechanical alloying

The Cu-Fe and Cu-Fe-SiC nanocomposite powders were synthesized by a two step mechanical alloying process. A supersaturated solid-solution of Cu-20 wt% Fe was prepared by ball milling of elemental powders up to 5 and 20 h and subsequently the SiC powder was added during additional 5 h milling. The dissolution of Fe into Cu matrix and the morphology of powder particles were analyzed by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM), respectively. It was found that the iron peaks in the XRD patterns vanish at the early stages of mechanical alloying process but the dissolution of Fe needs more milling time. Moreover, the crystallite size of the matrix decreases with increasing milling time and the crystallite size reaches a plateau with continued milling. In this regard, the addition of SiC was found to be beneficial in postponing the saturation in crystallite size refinement. Moreover, the effect of SiC on the particle size was found to be significant only if it is added at the right time. It was also found that the silicon carbide and iron particles are present after consolidation and are on the order of nanometer sizes.     

Synthesis and formation mechanisms of molybdenum silicides by mechanical alloying

The synthesis and formation of MoSi₂, Mo₅Si₃, and Mo₃Si compounds by the mechanical alloying of MoSi powder mixtures has been investigated. Ball-milling experiments were conducted for the composition range of 10–80 at.% Si. The formation of molybdenum silicides, especially MoSi₂, during mechanical alloying and the relevant reaction rates markedly depended on the powder composition. The spontaneous formation of MoSi₂ during mechanical alloying at 67 at.% Si (MoSi₂ stoichiometry) proceeded by a mechanically-induced self-propagating reaction (MSR), the mechanism of which is analogous to that of the self-propagating high-temperature synthesis (SHS). At the compositions of 54 and 80 at.% Si, however, the formation of MoSi₂ proceeded by the gradual formation of both the and /gb phases instead of the MSR mode. The formation of Mo₅Si₃ during mechanical alloying was characterized by a slow reaction rate as the reactants and product coexisted over a long period. The milling of Mo-rich powder mixtures up to 150 h did not lead to the direct formation of Mo₃Si. The Mo₃Si phase appeared only after brief annealing at temperatures of 800°C and above.     

Preparation and mechanical properties of SiC-reinforced Al6061 composite by mechanical alloying

In this paper, an Al6061–10 wt% SiC composite was prepared using the mechanical alloying route. The morphology and the structure of the prepared powder, which change with milling time, were evaluated using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) techniques, respectively. Moreover, the relationships among the stages of mechanical alloying (MA), relative density and hardness of both pressed and hot extruded materials were investigated. The morphological evolutions showed that relatively equiaxed powders could be synthesized after 9 h of milling. The evolution of relative density and hardness with milling time is due to the morphological and microstructural changes imposed on the composite powder. High-relative densities are typical of the hot extruded samples. The effect of mechanical alloying process on hardness is more significant compared to reinforcement particles. The aging behaviors of the mechanically alloyed, commercially mixed and unreinforced Al6061 were compared. The results showed that MA composites exhibit no aging-hardenability.     

Development of new Al-based nanocomposites by mechanical alloying

Al-based binary (Al–Mg) and ternary (Al–Mg–Zr) elemental powder mixtures were mechanically alloyed to develop new Al–Mg–Zr nanocomposite materials. The phase evolution was studied in the as-milled and heat-treated powders by XRD and TEM/EDS analyses. For the binary Al–Mg alloy, the predominant phase was an Al(Mg) solid solution (SS) and an amorphous phase was not possible to be synthesized. Upon adding 5 at.% Zr to the Al–10Mg blended powder, some free Mg was present in addition to the formation of an Al(Zr,Mg)SS, which transformed to the Al₃Zr intermetallic after annealing. When the Zr content was increased a nanocomposite of a solid solution and an intermetallic was obtained with considerable improvement in terms of structural stability and hardness. The presence of an oxide phase at 35% Zr might be responsible for the increased hardness in this particular alloy.     

An investigation of the synthesis,consolidation and mechanical behaviour of Al 6061 nanocomposites reinforced by TiC via mechanical alloying

Nanostructured Al 6061–x wt.% TiC (x = 0.5, 1.0, 1.5 and 2.0 wt.%) composites were synthesised by mechanical alloying with a milling time of 30 h. The milled powders were consolidated by cold uniaxial compaction followed by sintering at various temperatures (723, 798 and 873 K). The uniform distribution and dispersion of TiC particles in the Al 6061 matrix was confirmed by characterising these nanocomposite powders by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), differential thermal analysis (DTA) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The mechanical properties, specifically the green compressive strength and hardness, were tested. A maximum hardness of 1180 MPa was obtained for the Al 6061–2 wt.% TiC nanocomposite sintered at 873 K, which was approximately four times higher than that of the Al 6061 microcrystalline material. A maximum green compressive strength of 233 MPa was obtained when 2 wt.% TiC was added. The effect of reinforcement on the densification was studied and reported in terms of the relative density, sinterability, green compressive strength, compressibility and Vickers hardness of the nanocomposites. The compressibility curves of the developed nanocomposite powders were also plotted and investigated using the Heckel, Panelli and Ambrosio Filho and Ge equations.     

Fabrication of spherical Ti-6Al-4V powder by RF plasma spheroidization combined with mechanical alloying and spray granulation

Spherical Ti-6Al-4V powder was produced by RF plasma spheroidization combined with mechanical alloying and spray granulation. Particle size distribution, morphology, specific surface area, apparent density, flowability, element distribution and content of alloy powders after each stage during the process were investigated. Results show that the obtained spheroidized Ti-6Al-4V alloy powder has dense structure, good sphericity and high spheroidization ratio (98%), moderate particle size (37.8 μm) with narrow distribution. It also has excellent flowability (33.2 s· (50 g)^-1) and apparent density (2.53 g·cm^?3). In addition, elements distribution in the spherical Ti-6Al-4V alloy powder is uniform and most of elements content of it is within the standard of Ti-6Al-4V alloy.     

Anode behaviors of aluminum antimony synthesized by mechanical alloying for lithium secondary battery

AlSb was synthesized as an anode active material for lithium secondary battery using mechanical alloying (MA). Electrochemical performance was examined on the electrodes of AlSb synthesized with different MA time. The first charge (lithium-insertion) capacity of the AlSb electrodes decreased with increasing the MA time. The discharge capacity on repeating charge-discharge cycle, however, did not show the same dependence. The electrode, consisting of the 20 h MA sample exhibited the longest charge-discharge life cycle, suggesting that there is the optimum degree of internal energy derived from the strain and/or the amorphization due to mechanical alloying. These results were evaluated using ex situ X-ray diffraction and differential scanning calorimetry.     

W-Y2O3 composites obtained by mechanical alloying and sintering

The aim of this work was to manufacture tungsten composites from different initial powder mixtures by mechanical alloying followed by sintering. Two initial powder mixtures, W + 5 wt% of Y₂O₃ and W + 10 wt% of Y₂O₃, and pure W for comparison were mechanically alloyed for 50 h in a Fritsch Pulverisette P5 planetary ball mill under an argon atmosphere. The final products were consolidated by pulse plasma sintering at 1640 °C under a pressure of 20 MPa. The powders and consolidated pellets were examined by the XRD method. The obtained results show that during milling, the tungsten based solid solution formed. After consolidation, the XRD examination revealed that in addition to the tungsten-based solid solution and yttria, new carbide phases (Fe₃C, WC, W₂C and Fe₃W₃C) appeared. The graphite present in the carbides originated from the die used in the sintering process. SEM observations of the surfaces of the sinters revealed that the microstructure is not homogeneous and consists of areas rich in one or two elements, such as W, C, Fe or the Y₂O₃ phase. The microhardness of the pellets increases with the increasing content of the Y₂O₃ strengthening phase, whereas the values of the relative density decrease.     

机械合金化和粉末冶金法制备Fe-Mn-Si基形状记忆合金的研究进展

铁基形状记忆合金由于价格低廉、强度高、加工性能好、可焊接等优点引起广泛重视。机械合金化(MA)和粉末冶金(PM)作为制备材料的新工艺,可以用来制备性能优越的形状记忆合金。本文详述了机械合金化和粉末冶金工艺在制备Fe-Mn-Si基形状记忆合金过程中对合金相变、组织与性能的影响,以及此类合金在新领域的应用。最后提出了现阶段在研究MA/PM工艺制备Fe-Mn-Si基SMA中有关工艺参数、相变机制以及回复应力和低温应力松弛所存在的问题。     

机械合金化方法制备Sm_2Fe_7Ti_1永磁合金

用机械合金化技术和由混合的元素粉制备了Ｓｍ２Ｆｅ７Ｔｉ１三元永磁合金。Ｘ射线衍射和Ｍｏｓｓｂａｕｅｒ谱方法确定合金中的硬磁相为Ｓｍ５（Ｆｅ，Ｔｉ）１７相，并对机械合金化过程中相的变化作了跟踪研究。试验表明，经３０小时球磨后才开始出现磁硬相；随球磨时间的增加，该相的量逐渐增多。为了获得足够数量的晶化的磁硬相，球磨后进行了７６０－７８０℃下保温１０－３０分的热处理是必须的。     

Phase transformations of NbCr2 intermetallics produced by mechanical alloying followed by hot-pressing consolidation

Mechanical alloying followed by hot-pressing consolidation has been used to produce NbCr₂ intermetallics under different conditions. High-purity Nb and Cr crystalline powders, in the relative (molar) ratio of 13:1, were milled for periods up to 100 h. This powder was vacuum-sintered at temperatures ranging from 1423 to 1573 K for 0.5 h under a pressure of 45 MPa. The phase transformations of the NbCr₂ were investigated by X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy; several different phase transformations were observed. Increasing the milling time up to 100 h transforms into a mixture of C14, Nb, Cr and C15. The experimental results show that new evidence based on X-ray diffraction measurements further establishes the existence of a high-temperature C14 Laves polytype; an intermediate C36 structure for NbCr₂, reported in the literature, was not detected in this study. The relationship between the various phase transformations, based on the atomic radii and different preparation techniques, is discussed.     

NiAl-B composites with nanocrystalline intermetallic matrix produced by mechanical alloying and consolidation

Powder mixtures with equiatomic Ni–Al stoichiometry and with the addition of 5, 10, 20 and 30 vol% of boron were mechanically alloyed in a high-energy SPEX mill. Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) was used for examination of the thermal behaviour of the milled powders. The mechanically alloyed powders and powders after DSC examinations were investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD). For all the powder mixtures, a nanocrystalline NiAl intermetallic phase was formed during milling. With the increase of boron concentration in the mixtures, more intense refinement of the NiAl grain size during mechanical alloying was observed. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) examinations showed that the produced powders have composite structure, with boron particles uniformly distributed in the nanocrystalline NiAl intermetallic matrix. The density of the composite powders decreases with the increase of boron content, following the rule of mixture.The produced powders were subjected to consolidation by hot-pressing at 800 °C under the pressure of 7.7 GPa for 180 s. The produced bulk materials were investigated by XRD, SEM and EDS as well as characterised by hardness, density and open porosity measurements. It was found that during applied consolidation process the nanocrystalline structure of the NiAl matrix was maintained. The average hardness of the bulk composite samples is in the range of 10.58–12.6 GPa, depending on boron content, increases with the increase of boron content, and is higher than that of the NiAl intermetallic reference sample (9.53 GPa). The density of the bulk composite samples is the same as that of the corresponding powders after milling, decreases with the increase of boron content and is lower than that of the NiAl reference sample. To the best of our knowledge, the NiAl-B composites with nanocrystalline intermetallic matrix have been produced for the first time.     

Effect of carbon on the density,microstructure and hardness of alloys formed by mechanical alloying

This work aimed to produce iron-based alloys containing resistant microstructures to improve the mechanical properties of the resulting alloy. The effects of both carbon content and compaction pressure on the microstructure, density and hardness of the alloys were examined. Iron-based alloys with initial carbon contents of 0.5%, 1%, 2% and 3% were produced by powder metallurgy following a process that involved ball milling elemental powders, cold pressing and sintering. The composition, density, microstructure, porosity, hardness and ductility of the alloys depended on both compaction pressure and carbon content. As the carbon content increased, the amount of the resistant microstructure bainite in the alloys also increased, as did their hardness. In contrast, the density and ductility of the alloys decreased with increasing carbon content. This study shows that formation of the resistant microstructure bainite in alloys fabricated by powder metallurgy is influenced by both the initial carbon content of the alloy and compaction pressure during cold pressing.     

Amorphization and nanocrystalline Nb3Al intermetallic formation during mechanical alloying and subsequent annealing

In this paper the formation as well as the stability of Nb₃Al intermetallic compounds from pure Nb and Al metallic powders through mechanical alloying (MA) and subsequent annealing were studied. According to this method, the mixture of powders with the proportion of Nb-25 at% Al were milled under an argon gas atmosphere in a high-energy planetary ball mill, at 7, 14, 27 and 41 h, to fabricate disordered nanocrystalline Nb₃Al. The solid solution phase transitions of MA powders before and after annealing were characterized using X-ray diffractometry (XRD). The microstructural analysis was performed using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) as well as transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The results show that in the early stages of milling, Nb(Al) solid solution was formed with a nanocrystalline structure that is transformed into the amorphous structure by further milling times. Amorphization would appear if the milling time was as long as 27 h. Partially ordered Nb₃Al intermetallic could be synthesized by annealing treatment at 850 °C for 7 h at lower milling times. The size of the crystallites after subsequent annealing was kept around 45 nm.     

Synthesis and characterization of the novel nanostructured NiC carbide obtained by mechanical alloying

In the present work, a comprehensive study of mechanical alloying of Ni-carbon nanotubes (CNT) and Ni-Graphite equiatomic powder mixtures under the same technological modes has provided to reveal the features of using different types of carbon (CNT or graphite) as a charge component. The as-milled powders were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and magnetometric study. A novel nanoscale fcc NiC monocarbide was synthesized regardless the type of the charge used. According to the XRD study the formation of this phase takes place in two stages. A two-step carbide formation mechanism has been proposed. The associated changes in the nickel lattice, such as changes in the lattice parameter, lattice strain and residual stresses, which led to the formation of NiC monocarbide were also evaluated and discussed. Parameters of the electronic structure of NiC were calculated using the MStudio MindLab 7.0 software package with the experimental data on the crystal structure of the NiC phase obtained as input. Temperature dependencies of magnetic susceptibility of NiC synthesized have been studied up to 950 K. Carbides synthesized were found to be weak ferromagnets at the room temperature and their Curie temperature T_C ranges within 670 – 725 K. The calculated value of the magnetic moment per nickel atom (2.83μ_B) is higher than that of a bulk Ni (1.3μ_B). Likely, the observed increase of μ is caused by the presence of a certain amount of residual single-domain ferromagnetic Ni nanoparticles in the samples synthesized.     

Alloying and thermal behaviour of CoCrFeNiMn0.5Ti0.5 high-entropy alloy synthesised by mechanical alloying

An inequi-atomic CoCrFeNiMn_0.5Ti_0.5 high-entropy alloy (HEA) was synthesised by mechanical alloying. The structural and morphological evolution of the alloy powder during the mechanical alloying process and the thermal behaviour of 60?h ball-milled HEA powder were investigated systematically. A simple body-centred cubic solid solution HEA structure was obtained when the blended powder was ball-milled longer than 36?h. A 60?h ball-milled powder had an average particle size of 3?μm and consisted of hard agglomerated crystalline particles with a crystal size of <?20?nm. The body-centred cubic phase transformed into a face-centred cubic phase when the powder was annealed for 1?h at a temperature of 700°C; the liquidus point of the face-centred cubic phases was 1402.8°C.