Texture and Mechanical Behavior of Zircaloy-2 Rolled at Different Temperatures

Abstract

Zircaloy-2 was deformed by cryorolling (CR) and room-temperature rolling (RTR) with different true strains, and the effects of true strains on microstructural characteristics, texture, and mechanical properties of the alloy were investigated in the current study. The alloy was subjected to rolling at liquid nitrogen temperature and room temperature with the maximum true strain of 1.89 after the initial heat treatment of the alloy at 800 °C in inert atmosphere followed by quenching in mercury. The hardness and tensile properties of the CR, RTR, and annealed alloy upon rolling were systematically measured in rolling and transverse directions. The tensile strengths were found to be 891 and 679 MPa, while hardness values were found to be 282 and 269 VHN for the CR and RTR alloys, in the rolling direction, respectively. Texture results showed the activation of basal slip at higher strains in RTR zircaloy-2. In CR zircaloy-2, only activation of prism slip was observed. Grain refinement, substructures, and texture in the deformed alloy contribute to the improved mechanical properties observed in the current study.