The Effect of Small Amount of Titanium Addition on the Grain Refinement and Mechanical Properties of ZA48 Alloy

Low-titanium (Ti) aluminum alloys were prepared, and the effects of Ti elements on the microstructure, tensile property, and wear property of zinc-aluminum alloys were investigated. The addition of Ti is found to be effective in refining the grain size of the zinc-aluminum alloys. With a Ti content of 0.04 wt.%, the minimum grain size is achieved, and the tensile property of the test alloy reaches the maximum. Wear resistance is improved with decreased grain size. The grain-refining mechanism of the low-Ti aluminum alloys can be explained by the formation of Al₆₆Ti₂₅Zn₉ particles. These particles serve as the nucleation sites and effectively restrict α phase growth.     

The effect of boron and alpha grain size on the massive transformation in Ti–46Al–8Nb–xB alloys

Samples of Ti–46Al–8Nb containing up to 1 at.% B have been examined using optical microscopy after cooling over a wide range of cooling rates from the α phase field in order to understand the influence of boron and grain size on the massive transformation. The grain size of the samples was controlled either by varying the boron level or by appropriate processing of B-free and B-containing alloys. The results show that the addition of boron suppresses the feathery and the Widmanstätten transformation. The massive transformation and the lamellar transformation are strongly influenced by prior α grain size independent of whether the grain size was achieved by heat treatment or by addition of boron. In fine-grained samples the range of cooling rates over which the massive transformation occurs is restricted by formation of the lamellar microstructure at high cooling rates. These observations are discussed in terms of the factors controlling the nucleation and the progression of these transformations.     

Thermal stability and creep behavior of Ti–V–Cr burn-resistant alloys

The thermal stability and creep behavior of Ti–35V–15Cr (35V alloy) and Ti–25V–15Cr (25V alloy) burn-resistant titanium alloys are researched. The results show that post-exposure tensile properties deteriorated with the increase in exposure temperature (450–600 °C). The decrease in tensile properties of the 35V alloy results from the combination of surface oxidation and microstructural changes and the decrease in tensile properties of the 25V alloy results from surface oxidation. The main change of the microstructure during thermal exposure is the heterogeneous precipitation of α phase on β grain boundaries. Increased vanadium content in the alloy shows an adverse effect on alloys’ thermal stability. The creep resistance of the 35V alloy is little better that that of the 25V alloy. During creep exposure at 540 °C for 100 h, the heterogeneous precipitation of α phase on β grain boundaries in 35V alloy strengthens the grain boundary, leading to increases in the creep resistance, while the heterogeneous precipitation of α phase in grains and grain boundaries in the 25V alloy is rod-like, leading to decreases in the creep resistance.     

Optimal modifying and refining processes for A356 aluminium alloys

M illions of alum inium alloy com ponents are produced using A356 alum inium alloys, which provide high fluidity, good 'castability'and m echanical properties. A356 alloys are widely used to fabricate structural castings for autom otive and other industrial applications. For α (Al) refining,A356 alum inium alloys usually apply Al-Tim aster alloys in the range 0.08-0.20% Ti, resulting in high consum ption of Al-Ti m aster alloys and higher production cost.M odification ofthe Al-Sieutectic …     

Effect of β grain growth on variant selection and texture memory effect during α → β → α phase transformation in Ti-6 Al-4 V

In the present study, the texture evolution and the role of β grain growth on variant selection during β → α phase transformation have been investigated in Ti-6 Al-4 V with and without 0.4 wt.% yttrium addition. The aim of adding yttrium was to control β grain growth above the β transus by pinning grain boundaries with yttria. Both materials were first thermomechanically processed to generate similar starting microstructures and crystallographic textures. Subsequently, both materials were solution-heat-treated above the β transus followed by slow cooling to promote growth of the α lath structure from grain boundary α. Additional interrupted slow cooling experiments were carried out to identify the α lamellae that nucleate first from β grain boundaries. Detailed electron backscatter diffraction analysis was carried out and it was found that the β heat treatment did not generate new texture components although the intensities of the individual components changed dramatically depending on the alloy/β grain size. Variant selection was assessed by comparing measured α texture components with predicted α texture components based on the high-temperature β texture assuming equal variant selection. It was found that with increasing β grain size variant selection intensified favouring the {φ1, Φ, φ2} {90°, 30°, 0°} texture component. Interrupted cooling experiments revealed that α nucleates first on β grain boundaries that are formed by two β grains having a common (1 1 0) normal and that these α lamellae display almost exclusively a {φ1, Φ, φ2} {90°, 30°, 0°} orientation. Consequently, the dominance of this variant with increasing β grain size can be related to the relative free growth of this particular α texture component into an “empty” β grain.     

Effect of Various SPD Techniques on Structure and Superplastic Deformation of Two Phase MgLiAl Alloy

MgLiAl alloy containing 9 wt% Li and 1.5% Al composed of hexagonal α and bcc β phases was cast under protecting atmosphere and hot extruded. Various methods of severe plastic deformation were applied to study their effect on structure and grain refinement. Rods were subjected to 1–3 passes of Twist Channel Angular Pressing TCAP (with helical component), cyclic compression to total strain ε?=?5 using MAXStrain Gleeble equipment, both performed at temperature interval 160–200 °C and, as third SPD method, KOBO type extrusion at RT. The TCAP pass resulted in grain refinement of α phase from 30 μm down to about 2 μm and that of β phase from 12 to 5 μm. Maxstrain cycling 10?× up to ε?=?5 led to much finer grain size of 300 nm. KOBO method performed at RT caused average grain size refinement of α and β phases down to about 1 μm. Hardness of alloy decreased slightly with increasing number of TCAP passes due to increase of small void density. It was higher after MAXStrain cycling and after KOBO extrusion. TEM studies after TCAP passes showed higher dislocation density in the β region than in the α phase. Crystallographic relationship (001) α|| (110) β indicated parallel positioning of slip planes of both phases. Electron diffraction technique confirmed increase of grain misorientation with number of TCAP passes. Stress/strain curves recorded at temperature 200 °C showed superplastic forming after 1st and 3rd TCAP passes with better superplastic properties due to higher elongation with increasing number of passes. Values of strain rate sensitivity coefficient m were calculated at 0.29 after 3rd TCAP pass for strain rate range 10^?5 to 5?×?10^?3 s^?1. Deformation by MAXStrain cycling caused much more effective grain refinement with fine microtwins in α phase. Superplastic deformation was also observed in alloy deformed by KOBO method, however the value of m?=?0.21 was obtained at lower temperature of deformation equal to 160 °C and deformation rate in the range 10^?5 to 5?×?10^?3. Tensile samples deformed superplastically showed grain growth and void formation caused by grain boundary slip. Summarizing, all methods applied resulted in sufficient grain refinement to obtain the effect of superplastic deformation for alloys of two phase α?+?β structure.     

Tensile properties and strengthening mechanisms of Mo-Si alloy

Pure Mo and Mo-Si alloys with different silicon content were fabricated by powder-metallurgical and thermo-mechanical processing. Tensile properties of the pure Mo and Mo-Si alloys were measured at room temperature and the fracture surface was analyzed after test. The results indicate that Si can effectively reduced the grain size and improve the yield strength of Mo-Si alloys. With the decrease in grain size, the dominant fracture morphology is changed from intergranular to transgranular. The strengthening mechanisms were discussed and the yield strength was analyzed described with respect to grain size, solid solution hardening and Mo₃Si particle strengthening. Calculations show that the yield strength of Mo-Si alloys is governed by grain size.     

In situ observation of texture evolution during α → β and β → α phase transformations in titanium alloys investigated by neutron diffraction

Texture changes during recrystallization and the α–β–α phase transformation in two titanium alloys were investigated in situ by time-of-flight neutron diffraction by heating in a vacuum furnace to 950 °C. In commercially pure titanium, a strong texture memory effect is observed. This effect is a direct consequence of an orientation-selective α → β transformation, favoring new orientations produced during nucleation and grain growth. The β–α transformation favors β orientations with minimal misorientations, resulting in a strong final α texture that emphasizes the grain growth component. In Ti–6Al–4V, the texture memory effect is less pronounced. The high-temperature β texture is obtained by growth of pre-existing β nuclei. In a similar way, during cooling, the growth of α domains is controlled by high-temperature α orientations inherited from the β grains with Burgers orientation relation.     

Effect of Alpha Sohites on the Heat-Treatment Response Of Ti-Mn Alloys

Alpha solutes increase the strengths of Ti-Mn alloys through solid-solution strengthening. The substitutional α addition, aluminum, decreases, and the interstitial solutes, carbon and nitrogen, increase the rate of nucleation and growth of a from β. The best combinations of properties of α-β alloys are obtained when there is α sufficient quantity of a phase in the structure to dissolve the α solutes.     

MA-PAS和MA-HP烧结制备的Fe_3Al金属间化合物的组织和力学性能

以机械合金化Fe-28%Al（摩尔分数）合金粉末为原料,分别采用等离子活化烧结（PAS）和热压烧结（HP）方法制备致密度高达99%的Fe3Al金属间化合物。XRD和TEM测试结果表明：PAS烧结试样保留了机械合金化粉末的A2无序结构,并呈现出亚微米晶粒区域（〉1μm）和纳米晶粒区域（〈500nm）双峰分布的特征,而HP烧结试样为部分D03有序结构,晶粒尺寸在1～2μm的范围内。压缩试验表明：在室温至800℃的条件下,采用两种方法烧结的Fe3Al金属间化合物具有近似的压缩强度,虽然当温度超过400℃后压缩屈服强度均急剧下降,但在800℃时其压缩屈服强度仍高达100MPa,远高于铸造态Fe3Al金属间化合物。相比于HP烧结和铸造态Fe3Al金属间化合物,PAS烧结Fe3Al金属间化合物表现出优异的室温塑性,其室温压缩工程应变为20%。组织结构分析和力学性能测试结果表明,超细晶无序组织有利于Fe3Al金属间化合物室温塑性和高温强度的同时增强。     

Experimental and simulation studies on grain growth in TiC and WC-based cermets during liquid phase sintering

The grain growth behaviors of TiC and WC particles in TiC-Ni, TiC-Mo₂C-Ni, WC-Co and WC-VC-Co alloys during liquid phase sintering were investigated for different Ni or Co contents and compared with the results of Monte Carlo simulations. In the experimental study, TiC-Ni and WC-Co alloys had a maximum grain size at a certain liquid volume fraction, while the grain size in TiC-Mo₂C-Ni and WC-VC-Co alloys increased monotonically with an increasing liquid volume fraction. These results mean that the grain growth of these alloys cannot be explained by the conventional mechanisms for Ostwald ripening, namely diffusion or reaction controlled processes. Monte Carlo simulations with different energy relationships between solidliquid interfaces predicted the effect of the liquid volume fraction on grain size similar to the experimental results. The contiguous boundaries between solid (carbide) particles appear to influence the grain growth behavior in TiC- and WC-based alloys during liquid phase sintering.     

Microstructure,grain size distribution and grain shape in WC–Co alloys sintered at different carbon activities

The properties of cemented carbides strongly depend on the WC grain size and it is thus crucial to control coarsening of WC during processing. The aim of this work was to study the effect of sintering at different carbon activities on the final microstructure, as well as the coarsening behavior of the WC grains, including the size distribution and the shape of WC grains. These aspects were investigated for five WC–Co alloys sintered at 1410 °C for 1 h at different carbon activities in the liquid, in the range from the graphite equilibrium (carbon activity of 1) to the eta (M₆C) phase equilibrium (carbon activity of 0.33). The grain size distribution was experimentally evaluated for the different alloys using EBSD (electron backscatter diffraction). In addition, the shape of the WC grains was evaluated for the different alloys. It was found that the average WC grain size increased and the grain size distribution became slightly wider with increasing carbon activity. Comparing the two three-phase (WC–Co–eta and WC–Co–graphite) alloys a shape change of the WC grains was observed with larger grains having more planar surfaces and more triangular shape for the WC–Co–graphite alloy. It was indicated that in alloys with a relatively low volume fraction of the binder phase the WC grain shape is significantly affected by impingements. Moreover, after 1 h of sintering the WC grains are at a non-equilibrium state with regards to grain morphology.     

Grain refinement and mechanism of CAl_（0.5）W_（0.5） compound in Mg-Al alloys

The effect of CAl0.5W0.5(CAW) compound on the grain refinement of Mg-Al based alloys was investigated.The results show that CAW compound is an effective and active grain refiner.The grain size of binary Mg-Al alloys is more than 500 μm,and it is changed to about 110 μm with a 1 wt.% CAW addition.The hardness increased with the decease of grain size monotonously.The mechanical properties are improved by the addition.The fine grain size is mainly ascribed to the dispersed Al2CO particles,which are very potent nucleating substrates for Mg-Al alloys.The nucleation cores formed by chemical reaction directly are well-distributed in the matrix.     

Effect of composition on grain refinement in TiAl-based alloys

Grain refinement through boron addition has been investigated in a range of cast TiAl-based alloys. The alloys have 44–50 at.% Al, up to 8 at.% alloying elements, and 1 at.% boron. The observed grain size ranges from 40 to 300 μm. The grain size in as-cast TiAl-based alloys is strongly composition dependent with aluminium having the strongest effect. Decreasing Al concentration from 50 to 44% the grain size can be reduced to 50 from 300 μm with similar casting conditions. Alloying element species and concentration also have strong effect on grain size. The strong boride formers like W, Ta and Nb increase the grain size and change the prevalent titanium boride form from TiB₂ to TiB. It is elucidated that the compositional effect on the grain size could be through affecting the local boron concentration in the solidification front during casting.     

深冷处理对TC4钛合金退火过程中微观组织和力学性能的影响

采用液氮直冷法在-196 ℃下分别对10%、20%和40%压下量的TC4双相钛合金进行12 h的深冷处理并进行500 ℃不同时间退火处理。利用光学显微镜对晶粒尺寸进行表征;利用扫描电镜(SEM)对α相和β相体积分数进行表征;利用维氏硬度仪、电子万能试验机分别对硬度和拉伸性能进行表征。通过晶粒尺寸以及α相和β相组织结构的变化,来分析材料的硬度和拉伸性能的变化原因。结果表明,随着退火时间的延长,深冷退火试样晶粒尺寸呈先下降后上升的规律,β相的体积分数逐渐减少,转变为α相。深冷12 h轧制态TC4钛合金经过1 h的退火处理后,晶粒尺寸出现小幅度的下降,这与退火过程中产生的较小晶粒有关,并且材料在轧制后继续深冷使得材料的变形能更高,在退火过程中容易产生更多的小晶粒,同时更有利于促进β相向α相转变,材料在500 ℃退火1 h时综合力学性能表现优异。当退火时间超过1 h后,材料内α相和β相两相体积分数的变化逐渐趋于平缓,并且随着退火时间的延长,晶粒粗化现象比较明显。因此,材料的强度和硬度均低于退火1 h时的强度和硬度。冷轧变形的TC4合金经12 h深冷后在500 ℃退火1 h较为理想,可获得较好的综合力学性能。     

混合元素法激光立体成形Ti-XAl-YV合金的微观组织演化

研究了混合元素法激光多层沉积Ti-XAl-YV(X≤11,Y≤10)(质量分数,%,下同)合金的微观组织随Al、V元素含量的演化规律。结果发现:随Al、V含量的增加,Ti-XAl-YV合金原始β晶内α域的尺寸和数量逐渐减小,原始β晶内的显微组织逐渐由魏氏组织转化为α和β编织细密的网篮组织,且α板条的尺寸和长宽比显著减小。结合单道多层激光沉积过程热历史循环曲线的计算、合金相变点温度的计算以及Ti-XAl-YV合金的相图分析,研究了单道多层激光沉积Ti-XAl-YV合金α相的形核和生长条件,揭示了微观相结构演化机理。     

Grain size effects on the oxidation of two-phase Cu-Fe alloys

The oxidation behavior of thin layers of two Cu-Fe alloys containing 25 and 50 wt.% Fe, respectively, prepared by magnetron sputtering deposition on cast alloys of the same composition (Cu-Fe coatings) and presenting grain sizes in the nanometer range, was studied at 600-800 °C in air to examine the influence of the reduction in the grain size on the selective oxidation of the most reactive component in two-phase binary systems. A continuous Fe₃O₄ layer formed beneath an external region of copper oxide on the Cu-25Fe coating, whereas an external iron oxide scale mostly composed of Fe₃O₄ free from copper oxides formed on the Fe-50Cu coating. In both cases, an iron-depleted region was present in a subsurface alloy layer. These results differ remarkably from the oxidation behavior of cast Cu-Fe alloys of similar composition but with a large grain size, which formed mixed external scales of iron and copper oxides in air and simultaneous internal and external oxidation of Fe under both high and low oxygen pressures. Therefore, a grain size reduction can effectively promote the selective external oxidation of the more reactive component in binary two-phase alloys due to an increase in the mutual solubility of the two components associated with the method of alloy preparation as well as to the presence of a large density of grain boundaries in the coatings which may act as short-circuit diffusion paths, allowing a faster outward diffusion of iron during oxidation.     

Tailoring and patterning the grain size of nanocrystalline alloys

Nanocrystalline alloys that exhibit grain boundary segregation can access thermodynamically stable or metastable states with the average grain size dictated by the alloying addition. Here we consider nanocrystalline Ni–W alloys and demonstrate that the W content controls the grain size over a very broad range: ∼2–140 nm as compared with ∼2–20 nm in previous work on strongly segregating systems. This trend is attributed to a relatively weak tendency for W segregation to the grain boundaries. Based upon this observation, we introduce a new synthesis technique allowing for precise composition control during the electrodeposition of Ni–W alloys, which, in turn, leads to precise control of the nanocrystalline grain size. This technique offers new possibilities for understanding the structure–property relationships of nanocrystalline solids, such as the breakdown of Hall–Petch strength scaling, and also opens the door to a new class of customizable materials incorporating patterned nanostructures.     

Sn对Mg-5Li合金铸态和挤压态组织的影响

在氩气保护气氛下熔炼,得到Mg-5Li-xSn（x=0.15,0.25和0.65,质量分数）系列合金。通过光学显微镜、扫描电镜、X射线衍射仪和能谱仪分析合金的显微组织。结果表明,Mg-5Li合金中添加的Sn元素可以起到明显的晶粒细化作用,当Sn含量从0.15%增加到0.65%时,铸态合金的平均晶粒尺寸从556μm细化到345μm,相应的挤压态合金的晶粒从33μm减小到23μm。近似网状的第二相Mg2Sn分布在铸态合金的晶界上,挤压之后,颗粒状的Mg2Sn主要分布在晶粒内部。这些金属间化合物在挤压动态再结晶中可以作为有效的形核质点,从而起到细化晶粒的作用。