Texture of quenched uranium as a function of the character of heating and other heat treatment parameters

Abstract

This article contains data on a metallo-physical study of the structure of uranium subjected to phase recrystallization with various heating and cooling rates. During this heat treatment the uranium may acquire texture, the degree and distribution of which over the sample cross section depends on the parameters of heat treatment (heating conditions, time of holding in high temperature phases, and so forth), as well as on the previous mechanical treatment of the uranium. The degree of texture and even its form can be substantially altered by varying these parameters within certain limits. The greatest degree ofquasi-isotropy is found in samples which during heat treatment come under the influence of stresses created by thermal gradients or external forces and exceeding the yield point of the uranium. The probable mechanism of texture formation in uranium in the process of polymorphic transformations is discussed.