Heat Treatment of Ni-Ti Alloy for Improvement of Shape Memory Effect

Nickel-Titanium alloys with stoichiometric single phase and non-stoichiometric dual phase structures of NiTi and NiTi+Ni3Ti are produced through high speed induction melting and combustion synthesis of pure Ti/Ni elements. Both alloys are homogenized at 1273 K for two hours, rolled into thin strips of 0.3 mm thickness, solution treated at 1273 K for two hours under vacuum and finally quenched in water. Effect of ageing on austenite/martensite and intermediate phase transformation temperatures are investigated. Results show that transformation temperatures and reversible shape memory properties comparable with those required for bioengineering applications such as manufacturing of artificial hand prostheses can be obtained through careful control of the chemical composition and the heating processes.