Prediction of internal stresses during growth of first- and second-generation twins in Mg and Mg alloys

The present work is dedicated to the development of a mean-field continuum mechanics method capable of predicting internal stresses in parent and twin phases during first- and second-generation twinning. For that purpose, a generalized Tanaka-Mori scheme in heterogeneous elastic media with plastic incompatibilities is developed. The work is applied to the case of first- and second-generation twinning in hexagonal close packed magnesium. In the case of first-generation twinning, the model is capable of predicting the trends in the development of back-stresses within the twin domain. A parametric study is performed to explain the roles of grain and twin shape and of relative volume twin volume fractions on the magnitude and directions of the back-stresses. In addition, applying the methodology to the case of second-generation twinning allows identification, in exact agreement with experimental observations, of the most likely second-generation twin variants to grow in a primary twin domain.     

Deformation of wrought uranium: Experiments and modeling

The room temperature deformation behavior of wrought polycrystalline uranium is studied using a combination of experimental techniques and polycrystal modeling. Electron backscatter diffraction is used to analyze the primary deformation twinning modes for wrought alpha-uranium. The {1 3 0}〈3 1 0〉 twinning mode is found to be the most prominent twinning mode, with minor contributions from the ‘{1 7 2}’〈3 1 2〉 and {1 1 2}‘〈3 7 2〉’ twin modes. Because of the large number of deformation modes, each with limited deformation systems, a polycrystalline model is employed to identify and quantify the activity of each mode. Model predictions of the deformation behavior and texture development agree reasonably well with experimental measures and provide reliable information about deformation systems.     

On the measure of dislocation densities from diffraction line profiles: A comparison with discrete dislocation methods

In this work the accuracy and range of applicability of peak broadening models, from which dislocation densities can be extracted, is studied. For that purpose dislocation microstructures are generated via a discrete dislocation dynamics method and the internal elastic strains within the simulated volume are calculated. Diffraction peaks are generated from the simulations and a whole pattern line profile analysis method based on the Wilkens model is used to quantify the dislocation densities associated with the simulated microstructures. The work is applied to the case of face-centered cubic crystals deforming in coplanar slip. The accuracy of the analytical models is quantified by considering realistic three-dimensional microstructures containing curved dislocations with a specified distribution. The dependence and sensitivity of the analytical models upon dislocation density and long-range order are investigated. It was found that, provided the distribution of dislocations is rather homogeneous, line profile analysis provides fairly accurate predictions of the dislocation density.     

Variant selection during secondary twinning in Mg–3%Al

Secondary twin formation during the tensile deformation of Mg–3.4%Al–0.33%Mn was studied by means of the electron backscatter diffraction technique. This was employed to identify the particular variants that formed in each grain. For this purpose, the variants were characterized with respect to the orientation of the parent grain rather than that of its host primary twin. This approach led to a regrouping of the 36 possible variants into four sets, namely S^A, S^B, S^C and S^D, consisting of variants that are geometrically equivalent. A statistical analysis revealed that the observed secondary twins were almost entirely of S^A and S^D type (misorientations of 37.5° and 69.9°, respectively). The former variant is shown to require the least accommodation strain within the parent grain and to have the greatest potential for growth. Formation of the S^D variant, in contrast, can be attributed to its being favored by the highest resolved shear stresses, i.e., it obeys Schmid’s law.     

A Physics-Based Crystallographic Modeling Framework for Describing the Thermal Creep Behavior of Fe-Cr Alloys

In this work, a physics-based thermal creep model is developed based on the understanding of the microstructure in Fe-Cr alloys. This model is associated with a transition state theory-based framework that considers the distribution of internal stresses at sub-material point level. The thermally activated dislocation glide and climb mechanisms are coupled in the obstacle-bypass processes for both dislocation and precipitate-type barriers. A kinetic law is proposed to track the dislocation densities evolution in the subgrain interior and in the cell wall. The predicted results show that this model, embedded in the visco-plastic self-consistent framework, captures well the creep behaviors for primary and steady-state stages under various loading conditions. The roles of the mechanisms involved are also discussed.