Crystallographic Texture Research Articles

Finite element modeling of the magnetic property behaviors of electrical steels in rotating fields considering their crystallographic textures

In magnetic device modeling, the crystallographic textures and microstructures of electrical steels critically influence their magnetic properties. Yet, these aspects are often neglected or inadequately represented in finite element (FE) models, leading to inaccuracies in predicting electrical steel performance, especially in complex electromagnetic environments. This paper presents a multi-scale modeling approach, integrating a macroscopic FE model of a magnetic device with a microstructural scalar permeability model that accounts for the crystallographic textures of electrical steels. This approach demonstrates proficiency in predicting nonlinear anisotropic permeability and capturing magnetic anisotropy of electrical steels within a rotational tester, especially when anisotropy is predominantly governed by crystallographic texture and the angles between the B and H vectors are minimal. Furthermore, the model effectively captures the magnetic anisotropy in complex magnetic fields and geometric configurations of a permanent magnet motor. A comparative analysis of this model is conducted against three other material models: an isotropic model, a two-axis model, and a general-vector model. These models are based on different approaches, ranging from a single non-linear BH curve to comprehensive vector BH curves covering all directions. Among them, the general-vector model, reliant on extensive 2D vector BH measurements, is the most accurate but requires substantial experimental data.

Microstructural contribution to the magnetic anisotropy in Fe 1−x Ga x thin films: correlation between crystallographic texture and magnetic response

In this study, we present a systematic analysis of the relation between the structural properties and magnetic anisotropies of as-grown and heat-treated polycrystalline Fe 1−x Ga x (0.11 <x< 0.19) thin films deposited on glass and Si(100) substrates. The results show that the crystallographic texture of the films has a significant impact on the evolution of the magnetic anisotropies. The samples grown on glass do not exhibit a preferred texture while, for samples grown on Si(100), the appearance of a weak in-plane fourfold magnetic anisotropy is reported. Such anisotropy is enhanced and better defined in the heat treated samples. Via a phenomenological model we show that this anisotropy has a microstructural origin. These findings demonstrate the possibility of tuning magnetic anisotropies by growing on different substrates and/or performing thermal treatments, which in turn reinforces the possibility of developing smart magnetic switching materials for electronic applications.

Creep anisotropy of additively manufactured Inconel-738LC: Combined experiments and microstructure-based modeling

The current lack of quantitative knowledge on processing-microstructure–property relationships is one of the major bottlenecks in today’s rapidly expanding field of additive manufacturing. This is centrally rooted in the nature of the processing, leading to complex microstructural features. Experimentally-guided modeling can offer reliable solutions for the safe application of additively manufactured materials. In this work, we combine a set of systematic experiments and modeling to address creep anisotropy and its correlation with microstructural characteristics in laser-based powder bed fusion (PBF-LB/M) additively manufactured Inconel-738LC (IN738LC). Three sample orientations (with the tensile axis parallel, perpendicular, and 45° tilted, relative to the building direction) are crept at 850 °C, accompanied by electron backscatter secondary diffraction (EBSD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) investigations. A crystal plasticity (CP) model for Ni-base superalloys, capable of modeling different types of slip systems, is developed and combined with various polycrystalline representative volume elements (RVEs) built on the experimental measurements. Besides our experiments, we verify our modeling framework on electron beam powder bed fusion (PBF-EB/M) additively manufactured Inconel-738LC. The results of our simulations show that while the crystallographic texture alone cannot explain the observed creep anisotropy, the superlattice extrinsic stacking faults (SESF) and related microtwinning slip systems play major roles as active deformation mechanisms. We confirm this using TEM investigations, revealing evidence of SESFs in crept specimens. We also show that the elongated grain morphology can result in higher creep rates, especially in the specimens with a tilted tensile axis.

Al-Co-Cr-Fe-Ni high-entropy coatings produced by non-vacuum electron beam cladding: Understanding the effect of Al by in-situ synchrotron X-ray diffraction

This study investigates the structure and properties of Al-Co-Cr-Fe-Ni high-entropy alloy (HEA) based coatings on steel substrates produced by non-vacuum electron beam cladding. Powder mixtures with Al molar ratios of 0.5, 1, and 1.5 were used for cladding, resulting in coatings with fcc, bcc + fcc, and bcc structures, respectively. The Fe content, which entered the coating from the substrate during cladding, increased from 9.9 up to 48.1 at. % with the decrease of the Al molar fraction from 1.5 to 0.5. In-situ synchrotron X-ray diffraction analysis showed that this effect can be attributed to the higher solidus temperatures of the compositions with higher Al content. Electron backscatter diffraction showed that differences in grain morphology and crystallographic texture were related to the crystallization temperatures in different zones of the coatings. The bcc coating with an Al molar ratio of 1.5 demonstrated superior hardness and wear resistance. Fcc coating, which received more Fe from the substrate, had lower hardness and was prone to plastic flow. However, the specific wear rate of the fcc coating was close to that of the bcc + fcc one due to the hardening of the fcc phase during sliding wear.

Dislocation Distribution, Crystallographic Texture Evolution, and Plastic Inhomogeneity of Inconel 718 Fabricated by Laser Powder Bed Fusion

Plastic inhomogeneity, particularly localized strain, is one of the main mechanisms responsible for failures in engineering alloys. This work studies the spatial arrangement and distribution of microstructure (including dislocations and grains) and their influence in the plastic inhomogeneity of Inconel 718 fabricated by additive manufacturing (AM). The bidirectional scanning strategy with no interlayer rotation results in highly ordered alternating arrangements of coarse Goss‐like {110}&lt;001&gt; textured grains separated by fine Cube‐like {100}&lt;001&gt; textured grains. The bidirectional strategy also results in an overall high density of geometrically necessary dislocations (GNDs) that are particularly dense in the fine grains. Although the Cube‐like texture desirable for isotropy is dominant, it gradually weakens during plastic deformation and the undesirable Goss‐like component (second most dominant in the as‐built microstructure) increases. The highly clustered and bimodal distribution of fine and coarse grains, textures, and GND densities causes fast localized roughening during deformation, particularly along the line row of fine Cube‐like grains. However, the chessboard strategy results in a lower GND density and a comparatively more random distribution of crystallographic texture and GNDs, with a dominant Cube‐like component (and much lower Goss‐like texture) that remains stable throughout plastic deformation. This results in more uniform deformation, reducing plastic inhomogeneity.

Unveiling the self-annealing phenomena and its effect on microstructure and texture evolution in the room temperature rolled Cu-0.13Sn-0.04Mg alloy

ABSTRACT In this study, we investigated the microstructural evolution of a Cu-0.13Sn-0.04Mg alloy that underwent heat treatment followed by room temperature rolling (RTR). Initially heat-treated specimens were rolled at room temperature (RT) with reduction ratios (RR) of 40% and 75% to perform microstructural and crystallographic textural analyses. Electron backscattered diffraction (EBSD) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) were utilise to examine both initial and deformed microstructures. Both exhibited heterogeneous microstructural distributions. Shear bands (SBs) existed in the initial specimen and became main sites for the nucleation of new grains during heat treatment. A denser presence of SBs was noted in the RTR specimens. Remarkably, an unusual self-annealing phenomenon was observed in these specimens, culminating in the emergence of recrystallized grains at RT. A plethora of such grains was observed in the severely deformed specimens, with numerous nucleating grains appearing proximal to the SBs or deformed grain boundaries (GBs). Time dependent microstructure evolution was observed via ex-situ EBSD technique in the compressed specimens. Formation of new grains, increase in high angle grain boundaries (HAGBs), and dislocation annihilations were observed with the progress of time. The crystallographic texture evolution in the initial specimen was predominantly influenced by the S component. At lower strains, the fractions of Copper component increased, whereas at higher strains, a greater fraction of Brass and S components were induced. Following a 40% RR, a saturation in hardness value was observed, which could be potentially attributable to an accelerated rate of RT recrystallization in the case of 75% RR.

Stress localization investigation of additively manufactured GRCop-42 thin-wall structure

A full-field crystal plasticity (CP) framework is presented for the GRCop-42 alloy to study microscopic mechanical behavior and local stress heterogeneities. The microstructures of additively manufactured (AM) materials are often unique relative to conventionally processed materials, and the local thermal histories drive these differences during the build process. These thermal histories depend on the process parameters (laser power, scan speed, and scan strategy) and the part geometry. Prior research has shown that the mechanical properties of thin-walled structures can vary significantly with wall thickness due to changes in the thermal boundary conditions during manufacturing. It is, therefore, desirable to perform CP simulations based on the phenomenological constitutive model to predict the local mechanical responses induced by microstructural heterogeneities. This work generates representative microstructures based on experimentally collected grain information (i.e., texture) for grain scale stress analysis, and the material constitutive parameters are calibrated using the experimental mechanical testing data. We specifically investigated the effect of crystallographic texture and grain morphologies on the size-dependent mechanical properties of AM GRCop-42. The selection of appropriate material properties for implementing an effective free surface boundary condition and the influence of adjacent buffer layers are also discussed. Analysis of local field results reveals a strong correlation between stress localization and the initial grain orientation. However, no significant relationship between the misorientation of the individual adjacent grains and the average misorientation is observed.

Microstructure evolution and local mechanical properties of friction stir additively manufactured (FSAM) AA5083/AA6061/AA7075 gradient composite

The current study is focused on the successful fabrication and characterization of microstructure and properties gradient composite made of 3 mm thick sheets of AA5083-O, AA6061-T6, and AA7075-T6 alloys using friction stir additive manufacturing (FSAM) technique. Two combinations of four layered FSAM builds (6756 and 7567) were fabricated successfully without any major defects at the optimized process parameters of 850 rpm (tool rotational speed) and 55 mm/min (tool transverse speed). The material mixing, interfacial bonding features, microstructure evolution, and mechanical performance within the stir zones (SZ) were thoroughly examined using advanced characterization techniques. Electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) analysis confirmed a gradient microstructure along the build depth in both FSAM builds, with average grain sizes decreasing from 52 μm (AA5083), 46 μm (AA6061), and 40 μm (AA7075) in base metals to ∼ 4–7 μm within the SZ. The remarkable grain refinement within the SZ was mainly attributed to the dominant presence of the continuous dynamic recrystallization (CDRX) mechanism. Texture analysis corresponding to pole figures (PFs) and orientation distribution function (ODF) plots reveals the crystallographic texture evolution along the build depth. The prevalent existence of B/ B‾ and C textures throughout all regions of the FSAM builds affirms the presence of ample shear strain during the FSAM procedure. Through thickness miniature tensile and microhardness tests depict the gradient in mechanical performance for both the FSAM builds along the build depth. Microhardness gradients in the range from ∼ 80 HV0.1 to ∼ 145 HV0.1 were observed along the build depth. The axial sample in the build direction shows appreciable strength (265 MPa and 224 MPa) and uniform elongation (28 % and 24 %) for 6756 and 7567 FSAM build, respectively. Furthermore, remarkable strain hardening behaviour corresponding to hardening capacity (Hc) and hardening exponent (n) was noticed for both the axial build samples compared to AA6061-T6 and AA7075-T6 base metals. These findings underscore the potential of FSAM in fabricating functionally gradient composite materials tailored to specific functional requirements.

Microstructure-Based Modeling of Deformation and Damage Behavior of Extruded and Additively Manufactured 316L Stainless Steels.

In this study, we investigated the micromechanical deformation and damage behavior of commercially extruded and additively manufactured 316L stainless steels (AMed SS316L) by combining experimental examinations and crystal plasticity modeling. The AMed alloy was fabricated using the laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) technique with an orthogonal scanning strategy to control the directionality of the as-fabricated material. Optical microscopy and electron backscatter diffraction measurements revealed distinct grain morphologies and crystallographic textures in the two alloys. Uniaxial tensile test results suggested that the LPBFed alloy exhibited an increased yield strength, reduced elongation, and comparable ultimate tensile strength in comparison to those of the extruded alloy. A microstructure-based crystal plasticity model was developed to simulate the micromechanical deformation behavior of the alloys using representative volume elements based on realistic microstructures. A ductile fracture criterion based on the microscopically dissipated plastic energy on a slip system was adopted to predict the microscopic damage accumulation of the alloys during plastic deformation. The developed model could accurately predict the stress-strain behavior and evolution of the crystallographic textures in both the alloys. We reveal that the increased yield strength in the LPBFed alloy, compared to that in the extruded alloy, is attributed to the higher as-manufactured dislocation density and the cellular subgrain structure, resulting in a reduced elongation. The presence of annealing twins and favorable texture in the extruded alloy contributed to its excellent elongation, along with a higher hardening rate owing to twin-dislocation interactions during plastic deformation. Moreover, the grain morphology and defect state (e.g., dislocations and twins) in the initial state can significantly affect strain localization and damage accumulation in alloys.

In situ neutron diffraction study and electron microscopy analysis of microstructure and texture evolution during annealing of rolled CoCrFeNi alloy doped with 1 at.%C

In situ neutron diffraction studies of changes in the dislocation density, volume fraction of carbides, and crystallographic texture have been performed during annealing of a cold-rolled multi-principal element CoCrFeNi alloy doped with 1 at.%C. In addition, microstructures of the as-rolled and several annealed samples of this alloy have been investigated using electron microscopy-based techniques. It is found that cold rolling to a thickness reduction of 74% results in a brass-type rolling texture with a spread of orientations between the Goss and brass components and with a pronounced 〈111〉//ND fiber. The deformed microstructure is characterized by a high density of dislocations and shows large variations in deformation structures in regions of different crystallographic orientations. In particular, bundles of deformation twins and high frequencies of shear bands are observed in regions having orientations along the 〈111〉//ND fiber. Annealing at 700 °C–1000 °C leads to recovery and recrystallization, during which shear bands and regions of mixed orientations act as preferential nucleation sites for recrystallized grains. Precipitation of M23C6 particles also takes place during annealing. The particles retard boundary migration, thus slowing down recrystallization and restricting grain growth. The average size of recrystallized grains does not exceed 5 μm even after annealing at 1000 °C for 60 min. While rolling textures are retained in some annealed samples, other samples demonstrate distinct recrystallization textures with new texture components. The results obtained in this work are compared with the literature data for several carbon-doped face-centered cubic multi-principal element alloys and for a carbon-free CoCrFeNi alloy.

Suppressing anisotropy in additive manufacturing by shear crystallographic texture development during multi-layer friction stir deposition

The solid-state additive manufacturing (AM) approach based on a strategy of sheet lamination (SL) using friction stir deposition/friction surfacing, and was investigated for multi-layer metal deposition in the present study. This resulted in synthesis of fully dense parts with a homogeneous and thermally stable fine-grain microstructure with isotropic properties by avoiding solidification-related defects and exploiting dynamic recrystallized shear crystallographic texture component. A non-heat-treatable AA5083 aluminum-magnesium alloy exhibiting serration yielding behavior was used for friction stir additive manufacturing (FSAM) solid-state deposition using a rotational speed of 1000 rpm with two working windows for the consumable rod feed rate in the range of 35–45 mm/min and a traverse speed in the field of 300–400 mm/min. The microstructural features and mechanical properties were assessed across different sections of the solid-state deposited AA5083 alloy structure to verify a pore-free structure with homogeneous and isotropic behavior. Metallography revealed the formation of uniform and refined equiaxed grains derived from continuous dynamic recrystallization (CDRX) with an average size of ∼4 μm over the entire region of the deposited wall through outstanding layers diffused adhesion. Mechanical testing of the multi-layer structure indicates isotropic tensile properties along the building direction (BD) and transverse direction, due to the shear crystallographic texture formed by thermo-mechanical processing during additive deposition process. An excellent combination of ultimate tensile strength (of 370 MPa) and elongation to fracture at ∼33 % was achieved enhanced by serration yielding tensile flow behavior due to solute element/dislocation interactions during plastic straining.

Crystallographic Texture Evolution in 3D Printed Polyethylene Reactor Blends.

In this work, crystallographic texture evolution in 3D printed trimodal polyethylene (PE) blends and high-density PE (HDPE) benchmark material were investigated to quantify the resulting material anisotropy, and the results were compared to materials made from conventional injection molded (IM) samples. Trimodal PE reactor blends consisting of HDPE, ultrahigh molecular weight PE (UHMWPE), and HDPE_wax have been used for 3D printing and injection molding. Changes in the preferred orientation and distribution of crystallites, i.e., texture evolution, were quantified utilizing the wide angle X-ray diffraction through pole figures and orientation distribution functions (ODFs) for 3D printed and IM samples. Since the change in weight-average molecular weight (Mw) of the blend was expected to significantly affect the resulting crystallinity and orientation, the overall Mw of the trimodal PE blend was varied while keeping the UHMWPE component weight fraction to 10% in the blend. The resulting texture was analyzed by varying the overall Mw of the trimodal blend and the process parameters in 3D printing and compared to the texture of conventional IM samples. The printing speed and orientation (defined with respect to the axis along the length of the samples) were used as the variable process parameters for 3D printing. The degree of anisotropy increases with an increase in the nonuniform distribution of intensities in pole figures and ODFs. All the highest intensity major texture components in IM and 3D printed samples (0° printing orientation) of reactor blends are observed to have crystals oriented in [001] or [001̅]. Overall, for the same throughput, 3D printed samples in the 0° orientation showed greater texture evolution and higher anisotropy compared to IM samples. Most notably, an increase in 3D printing speed increased the crystalline distribution closer to the 0° direction, increasing the anisotropy, while deviation from this printing orientation reduced crystalline distribution closer to the 0° direction, thus increasing isotropy. This demonstrates that tailoring material properties in specific directions can be achieved more effectively with 3D printing than with the injection molding process. Change in the overall Mw of the trimodal PE blend changed the preferential orientation distribution of the crystal planes to some degree. However, the degree of anisotropy remained the same in almost all cases, indicating that the effect of molecular weight distribution is not as significant as the printing speed and printing orientation in tailoring the resulting properties. The 3D printing process parameters (speed and orientation) were shown to have more influence on the texture than the material parameters associated with the blend.

Investigations on microstructure, crystallographic texture evolution, residual stress and mechanical properties of additive manufactured nickel-based superalloy for aerospace applications: role of industrial ageing heat treatment

Investigations on microstructure, crystallographic texture evolution, residual stress and mechanical properties of additive manufactured nickel-based superalloy for aerospace applications: role of industrial ageing heat treatment

Grain boundary localized damage in hexagonal titanium

Fully recrystallized hexagonal titanium tubes were processed through industrial cold pilgering. Two different pilgering sequences, generalized as case I and case II, were used. Both pilgering processes involved identical effective pilgering strains, but they had different strain modes. Case I, for example, used a pilgering pass with more (∼2.5 times) deviation from ideal plane strain compression. Both fully pilgered tubes showed similar grain fragmentations, misorientations, and tensile properties. However, their crystallographic textures and residual stresses significantly differed. Further, the inner surfaces of case II tube showed localized intergranular damage. Direct experimental observations, combining interrupted tensile tests with high-resolution electron backscattered diffraction (HR-EBSD), revealed that the damage originated only at select grain boundaries. In particular, dislocation pile-up plus stress localization appeared to be responsible for the grain boundary damage initiation. Microstructurally, this originated from the relative difference in elastic moduli between neighboring grains and the Luster-Morris parameter, representing slip transfer across the grain boundary.

Effect of annealing process on microstructure, residual stress, and fatigue behaviour of AISI 2205 duplex stainless steel

ABSTRACT This study investigated the microstructure, residual stress, and fatigue behavior of duplex stainless steels that have been annealed with different annealing processes. A cold-rolled AISI 2205 Duplex Stainless Steel (DSS) sample was annealed in three ways for this purpose. In modes 1 and 2, samples were annealed at 500°C for 6 and 8 hours, respectively. The sample was annealed for 6 hours at 950°C for mode 3.The Optical Microscopy (OM) technique was used to determine the crystallographic texture and microstructural characteristics. An X-ray Diffraction (XRD) analysis was used to determine the residual stresses in austenite and ferrite phases on pre- and post-heat-treated samples. The Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) technique was utilized to assess fatigue cracks. The results showed that the texture microstructure of the specimens using mode 1 and 2 were remained; the grain had a smaller fragmentation. The elongation grains of the specimen after mode 3 were smaller, relatively spheroidal, and more homogeneous. There was a reduction in residual stress after mode 3 annealing process. The fatigue strength of the specimens that under applied this process was 11.1% higher than that of specimens in the as-received state.

Additive manufacturing of metallic metamaterials with enhanced mechanical properties enabled by microstructural and structural design

The emergence of additive manufacturing (AM) facilitates the fabrication of lightweight mechanical metamaterials characterized by intricate geometrical features. Here, we focus on the contributions of microstructural and structural design to the significant performance enhancement of metamaterials. Cubic plate-lattices featuring spherical holes were produced using laser powder bed fusion. Different from commonly used optimization of AM parameters to change the thermal histories and the resulting properties, we employ a simple strategy inspired by the crystallographic and AM features—tilting the build orientation. Compared to the normal build orientation, the tilted build orientation converts the printed microstructure of the plate-lattices from (100)-dominated to (111)- and (101)-dominated crystallographic texture and significantly refines the grain size, leading to remarkable 30% and 10% increases in the compressive strength and strain of the printed plate-lattices, respectively. For further tailoring the performance of metamaterials, we integrate a wavy plate topology design to improve the isotropy of properties and increase the impact attenuation. Our work paves the way to optimize additively manufactured metamaterials by combining microstructural and structural designs.

A critical investigation of the anisotropic behavior in the WAAM-fabricated structure

PurposeWire-arc-based additive manufacturing (WAAM) is a promising technology for the efficient and economical fabrication of medium-large components. However, the anisotropic behavior of the multilayered WAAM-fabricated components remains a challenging problem.Design/methodology/approachThe purpose of this paper is to conduct a comprehensive study of the grain morphology, crystallographic orientation and texture in three regions of the WAAM printed component. Furthermore, the interdependence of the grain morphology in different regions of the fabricated component with their mechanical and tribological properties was established.FindingsThe electron back-scattered diffraction analysis of the top and bottom regions revealed fine recrystallized grains, whereas the middle regions acquired columnar grains with an average size of approximately 8.980 µm. The analysis revealed a higher misorientation angle and an intense crystallographic texture in the upper and lower regions. The investigations found a higher microhardness value of 168.93 ± 1.71 HV with superior wear resistance in the bottom region. The quantitative evaluation of the residual stress detected higher compressive stress in the upper regions. Evidence for comparable ultimate tensile strength and greater elongation (%) compared to its wrought counterpart has been observed.Originality/valueThe study found a good correlation between the grain morphology in different regions of the WAAM-fabricated component and their mechanical and wear properties. The Hall–Petch relationship also established good agreement between the grain morphology and tensile test results. Improved ductility compared to its wrought counterpart was observed. The anisotropy exists with improved mechanical properties along the longitudinal direction. Moreover, cylindrical components have superior tribological properties compared with cuboidal components.

Towards wake-up free ferroelectrics and scaling: Al-doped HZO and its crystallographic texture

Ferroelectric (FE) hafnium zirconium oxide (HZO) is an excellent candidate for data storage applications. However, it has some reliability limitations such as imprint and retention. Herein, we explore Al doping of HZO to overcome these limitations. FE behavior is tuned by the aluminum (Al) concentrations in the films and by annealing temperature. A correlation is done between electrical behavior, crystallographic texture, and FE phases determined by grazing-incidence X-ray diffraction (GIXRD) measurements. Reduced coercive field (2Ec) values and wake-up free HZO-based ferroelectrics are explored. We show the tunability of remanent polarization (2Pr) and 2Ec with respect to Al-doping concentration and anneal temperature, hence crystallographic texture.

Microstructure, tensile strength, and hardness of AA5024 modified with ZrH4 additions produced by laser powder bed fusion

This work investigates the effect of ZrH4 additions on a commercial AA5024 aluminum alloy produced via Laser Powder Bed Fusion (L-PBF) where pre-mixed powders of AA5024 and ZrH4 were used. The microstructure was characterized using light and scanning electron microscopy assisted by energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, and electron backscattered diffraction. The mechanical properties were evaluated by hardness and tensile measurements. The ZrH4 additions modify the microstructure. Regions without particles originate the large and elongated grains, while regions with undissolved ZrH4 or formed particles during solidification originate a fine equiaxed microstructure. The fine-grained region is typically located at the boundary of the melt pools, while the coarse-grained region is formed within the melt pools. There is substantial grain refinement with additions higher than 2.0 wt% ZrH4, nearly eliminating the coarse-grained region. The grain size does not differ in the fine-grained region for the different ZrH4, cross-sections (perpendicular or along the printing direction), or printing parameters. The 〈110〉 crystallographic fiber texture is identified, and a few particular texture components are more pronounced, such as the Cube {001} 〈100〉, the rotated Cube {001} 〈110〉, the Goss {011} 〈001〉, and Z {111} < 110>. Low texture index values are obtained in the fine-grained region, indicating the highly isotropic microstructure. The hardness and tensile strength increase with the increase in ZrH4 content for the as-built condition. A saturation in tensile strength is reached after 1.0 wt% ZrH4 additions.

Anisotropic Tensile Properties of a 14YWT Nanostructured Ferritic Alloy: On the Role of Cleavage Fracture

Two plates of nanostructured ferritic alloy NFA-1 were processed by ball milling atomized Fe-14Cr-3W-0.4Ti-0.2Y (wt.%) with FeO powders, canning, and hot-extrusion at 850 °C, followed by annealing and multipass cross-rolling at 1000 °C. This produces a severe (001) brittle cleavage texture on planes running parallel to the plate faces. In the first plate (P1), pre-existing microcracks (MCs) formed on the cleavage planes during cross-rolling. The second plate (P2) contained far fewer, if any, MCs. Here, we compare the tensile data for out-of-plane (S) and in-plane (L) tensile axis orientations, at temperatures from −196 °C to 800 °C. We also assess the tensile property differences between P1 and P2, and the effect of specimen size. The L-orientation strength and ductility were excellent; for example, the room temperature (RT) yield stress, σy ≈ 1042 ± 102 MPa, and the total elongation, εt ≈ 12.9 ± 1.5%. In contrast, the S-orientation RT σy ≈ 708 ± 57 MPa, and εt ≤ 0.2%. These differences were due to cleavage on the brittle (001) planes. Cleavage leads to beneficial delamination toughening, but is deleterious to deformation processing and through-wall heat transfer. Therefore, it is important to quantitatively characterize the pronounced NFA-1 strength anisotropy due to severe crystallographic texturing and cleavage fracture.