Abstract
In order to discern the effect of rare earth element Er addition on grain refinement of the most widely used titanium alloy Ti6Al4V, new erbium modified Ti6Al4V alloys with compositions of Ti6Al4V-xEr (x = 0, 0.2, 0.4, 0.6 wt %) were developed and investigated for their microstructural characteristics and mechanical properties in comparison with their unmodified baseline alloy. Microstructural examinations revealed that, by adding Er, (1) the microstructure primarily retained a two-phase structure consisting of α and β, (2) remarkable grain refining occurred, and (3) some Er2O3 and Al2Er disperses were formed largely around the β phase and near the grain boundaries. Mechanical property measurements evidenced an overall enhancement under tension and hardness tests. An increase in both strength and plasticity with increasing Er content was obtained but followed by a drop, while a gradual monotonous improvement in hardness was achieved. The Ti6Al4V-0.2Er alloy exhibits optimal mechanical properties.
Highlights
High specific strength, high corrosion resistance and high temperature stability, titanium alloys are been used as structural materials in aerospace, mechanical manufacturing and biomedical industries [1,2,3]
Titanium alloy components are widely fabricated by forging, and some difficulties are encountered in the processing of titanium alloys, such as poor processability and low comprehensive utilization
The understanding of the as-cast microstructure of titanium alloys is of technological importance to control the microstructural characteristics and understand the performance of the casting
Summary
High specific strength, high corrosion resistance and high temperature stability, titanium alloys are been used as structural materials in aerospace, mechanical manufacturing and biomedical industries [1,2,3]. In many cases, workpieces with complex structures could be manufactured by precision casting, such as large complex thin-walled titanium castings for aerospace applications. The precision casting technology has the advantages of good surface roughness and high dimensional accuracy of the castings, which can significantly improve the utilization rate of raw materials (up to a range of 75% to 90%) and reduce the machining cost. The crystal growth rate of melt solidification of titanium alloy outperforms the nucleation rate, making the casting favor forming coarse grain structure.
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