Quantitative characterization of Zr60700 alloy plate rolling in different directions based on electron back-scatter diffraction

Abstract

Fully annealed Zr60700 alloy plates with a thickness of 15 mm were rolled at 15%, 30%, 45%, 60%, and 75% thickness reductions, and the rolling paths were unidirectional rolling (UR) and cross-rolling (CR), respectively. Electron back-scatter diffraction (EBSD) experiments revealed that the texture developed gradually towards the basal texture with increased thickness reduction. Severe orientation hardening enhanced the deformation resistance of the CR sample, resulting in a higher grain size than the UR sample. The plastic deformation during the rolling process was dominated by dislocation slip. The results of the prediction based on the Schmid factor (SF) and the calculation based on the in-grain misorientation axis (IGMA) showed that the prismatic <a> slip was the primary deformation mode in the early stages of the UR and CR processes. With the increase in thickness reduction, the basal <a> and pyramidal <c+a> slip played an increasingly important role. Compared with the UR process, the CR process was more accessible to activate the basal <a> slip and more conducive to forming the basal texture. Mechanical tests showed that the CR samples exhibited higher isotropy than the as-received and UR samples.