Large Tensile Ductility Research Articles

Grain refinement induced unusually large shape memory effect in lightweight titanium alloy

High-performance and lightweight shape memory alloys (SMAs) play a pivotal role in a variety of cutting-edge fields like aerospace, which however, are still quite difficult to be obtained until now. In the present work, we meticulously develop a novel lightweight Ti-12.5V-3.5Al-1Hf-0.8Fe-0.01B (at.%) SMA, which has a low mass density of ∼4.73 g/cm3. Prominently, distinct from the conventional wisdom in previous studies that is mainly based on eliminating grain boundaries or developing desired texture, we utilize the grain refinement strategy introduced by elaborate thermal-mechanical training, which effectively enables us to achieve exceptional shape memory response and strength-ductility combination simultaneously. It was revealed that a dominant β phase structure is achieved in this newly designed fine-grain SMA, accompanied by some α″ variants penetrating the grain boundaries. Compared to the coarse-grained counterpart, the deformation process becomes more intricate, involving stress-induced martensitic transformation and additional reorientations, which ultimately results in an unusually large recoverable strain up to 9.3 %. Furthermore, the fine-grain structure also contributes to an enhanced specific yield strength up to ∼159 MPa·m³/kg, while maintaining a large tensile ductility of ∼30 %. In light of its impressive structure-function integration and cost efficiency, this new-type SMA would emerge as a promising candidate for various advanced lightweight applications in a broad spectrum of fields.

Negative mixing enthalpy solid solutions deliver high strength and ductility.

Body-centred cubic refractory multi-principal element alloys (MPEAs), with several refractory metal elements as constituents and featuring a yield strength greater than one gigapascal, are promising materials to meet the demands of aggressive structural applications1-6. Their low-to-no tensile ductility at room temperature, however, limits their processability and scaled-up application7-10. Here we present a HfNbTiVAl10 alloy that shows remarkable tensile ductility (roughly 20%) and ultrahigh yield strength (roughly 1,390 megapascals). Notably, these are among the best synergies compared with other related alloys. Such superb synergies derive from the addition of aluminium to the HfNbTiV alloy, resulting in a negative mixing enthalpy solid solution, which promotes strength and favours the formation of hierarchical chemical fluctuations (HCFs). The HCFs span many length scales, ranging from submicrometre to atomic scale, and create a high density of diffusive boundaries that act as effective barriers for dislocation motion. Consequently, versatile dislocation configurations are sequentially stimulated, enabling the alloy to accommodate plastic deformation while fostering substantial interactions that give rise to two unusual strain-hardening rate upturns. Thus, plastic instability is significantly delayed, which expands the plastic regime as ultralarge tensile ductility. This study provides valuable insights into achieving a synergistic combination of ultrahigh strength and large tensile ductility in MPEAs.

Deformation mechanisms in an additively manufactured dual-phase eutectic high-entropy alloy

Nanostructured metals and alloys often exhibit high strengths but at the expense of reduced ductility. Through harnessing the far-from-equilibrium processing conditions of laser powder-bed fusion (L-PBF) additive manufacturing, we develop a dual-phase nanolamellar structure comprised of FCC/L12 and BCC/B2 phases in a Ni40Co20Fe10Cr10Al18W2 eutectic high-entropy alloy (EHEA), which exhibits a combination of ultrahigh yield strength (>1.4 GPa) and large tensile ductility (∼17%). The deformation mechanisms of the additively manufactured EHEA are studied via in-situ synchrotron X-ray diffraction and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy. The high yield strength mainly results from effective blockage of dislocation motion by the high density of lamellar interfaces. The refined nanolamellar structures and low stacking fault energy (SFE) promote stacking fault (SF)-mediated deformation in FCC/L12 nanolamellae. The accumulation of abundant dislocations and SFs at lamellar interfaces can effectively elevate local stresses to promote dislocation multiplication and martensitic transformation in BCC/B2 nanolamellae. The cooperative deformation of the dual phases, assisted by the semi-coherent lamellar interfaces, gives rise to the large ductility of the as-printed EHEA. In addition, we also demonstrate that post-printing heat treatment allows us to tune the non-equilibrium microstructures and deformation mechanisms. After annealing, the significantly reduced SFE and thicknesses of the FCC nanolamellae facilitate the formation of massive SFs. The dissolution of nano-precipitates in the BCC/B2 nanolamellae reduces spatial confinement and further promotes martensitic transformation to enhance work hardening. Our work provides fundamental insights into the rich variety of deformation mechanisms underlying the exceptional mechanical properties of the additively manufactured dual-phase nanolamellar EHEAs.

Critical resolved shear stresses for slip and twinning in Mg-Y-Ca alloys and their effect on the ductility

The deformation mechanisms of an extruded Mg-5Y-0.08Ca (wt.%) alloy were analyzed by means of micropillar compression tests on single crystals along different orientations -selected to activate specific deformation modes- as well as slip trace analysis, transmission electron microscopy and transmission Kikuchi diffraction. The polycrystalline alloy presented a remarkable ductility in tension (∼32%) and negligible differences in the yield strength between tension and compression. It was found that the presence of Y and Ca in solid solution led to a huge increase in the CRSS for 〈a〉 basal slip (29 ± 5 MPa), 〈c + a〉 pyramidal slip (203 ± 7 MPa) and tensile twin nucleation (above 148 MPa), while the CRSS for 〈a〉 prismatic slip only increases up to 105 ± 4 MPa. The changes in the CRSS for slip and tensile twinning in Mg-Y-Ca alloys expectedly modify the dominant deformation mechanisms in polycrystals. In particular, tensile twinning is replaced by 〈a〉 prismatic slip during compressive deformation along the a-axis. The reduction of twinning (which generally induces strong anisotropy in the plastic deformation in textured alloys), and the activation of 〈a〉 prismatic slip (which provides an additional plastic deformation mechanism with limited hardening) were responsible for the large tensile ductility of the alloy.

A novel AlMoNbHfTi refractory high-entropy alloy with superior ductility

Refractory high-entropy alloys (RHEAs) have attracted considerable attention in the recent pastdue to their high yield strength (YS) and superior high-temperature mechanical properties. However, poor ductility at room temperature and high density are still major challenges in their processing and industrial application. Here, two novel single-phase body-centered cubic (BCC) structured Al5MoxNb36Hf13Ti46-x (x = 5, 7 at%, marked as Mo5 and Mo7) RHEAs with excellent room-temperature ductility and low density (7.53–7.64 g/cm3) were designed and prepared by tailoring the Mo content. These two RHEAs have a good combination of ambient ductility, high YS, and low density. The as-cast state Mo5 and Mo7 alloys show ∼ 20%, ∼ 15% tensile ductility and 680, 820 MPa YS, respectively. The YS increased to 892 MPa for the Mo5 alloy and up to 900 MPa for the Mo7 alloy after cold rolling and heat treatment, respectively. The peak strength at 873 K increased from 666 MPa of the Mo5 alloy to 710 MPa of the Mo7 alloy, and the peak strength of the Mo7 alloy at 1073 K was higher than 450 MPa. According to the solid solution strengthening model, the high strength can be attributed to the atomic radius misfit and shear modulus misfit of the alloy components, as well as high atomic-level pressure. Increasing the Mo content will introduce a solid solution strengthening effect into the RHEAs. The large tensile ductility arises owing to the dense dislocation slip and no twins or the second phase was detected in the tensiled sample. This study provides more helpful information to design RHEAs with superior ambient tensile ductility.

Enhanced plastic deformation capacity in hexagonal-close-packed medium entropy alloys via facilitating cross slip

• A novel Hf x (ZrTi) 100-x (x=0, 20, 33 and 40 at.%) MEAs with single phase HCP was developed. • Addition of Hf enhanced the strain hardening rate and tensile ductility. • Effects of Hf on stacking fault energy and dislocation slip behavior were revealed. • Facilitated cross slip and pyramidal dislocations is responsible for the outstanding mechanical properties. Alloys with a hexagonal close-packed (HCP) lattice often suffer from intrinsic brittleness due to their insufficient number of slip systems, which limits their practical uses. In this paper, nevertheless, we show that remarkably tensile ductility in HCP Hf-Zr-Ti medium entropy alloys (MEAs) was achieved, particularly in the MEAs with a higher content of Hf. Both first-principles calculation and experimental analyses reveal that addition of Hf increases basal I2 stacking fault energy and decreases prismatic stacking fault energy in these HCP MEAs, which promotes the source of pyramidal dislocations due to the facilitated cross slips of basal dislocations and eventually give rise to the observed large tensile ductility. Our current findings not only shed new insights into understanding deformation of HCP alloys, but also provide a basis for controlling alloying effects for developing novel HCP complex alloys with optimized properties.

Development of a novel Ni-based composite via in-situ reinforcement units formed by high-density hierarchical nanoscale precipitates

In the present work, we selected (CoCrFeNiMn)90Hf10 amorphous high-entropy alloys (AHEAs) as the added particle into pure Ni powder and prepared novel Ni-based composites by spark plasma sintering (SPS). Three kinds of in-situ nanoscale reinforcements with face-centered cubic structure are obtained by phase separation and crystallization of AHEA in the Ni matrix during SPS, possessing different formation mechanisms, distribution sizes, and existing regions. It allows the formation of hierarchical nanoprecipitates through the interaction of Ni matrix and appropriately added AHEA, bringing about reinforcement unit formation with core–shell types embedded in the matrix.Accordingly, a significant enhancement in the strength and ductility synergy compared to SPS-ed pure Ni bulk is achieved. The 20 vol% AHEA/Ni-based composite achieves the optimal yield strength, ultimate tensile strength, and elongation of 358 MPa, 561 MPa, and 24.1%, respectively. The different types of in-situ hierarchical nanoscale precipitates in the Ni matrix manifest unique pinning behaviors for various defect forms. The disordered interfacial nanolayer obtained along the grain boundary between matrix and nanoprecipitate verifies the large tensile ductility. Moreover, the hierarchical dimples exhibiting a uniform distribution involving in reinforcement unit and Ni matrix also decipher the basis of the strength-ductility trade-off.

Synergetic Effects of Complex Additions of Mo and Ni on the Phase Transformation Behavior and Mechanical Properties of Austenitic Lightweight Steels

Fe–30Mn–10.5Al–1.1C alloys with different Mo and Ni contents are prepared to investigate the phase transformation behavior and mechanical properties of austenitic lightweight steels. Solution‐treated samples have microstructures consisting of an austenite matrix and ordered κ‐carbides, and the size of the κ‐carbides decreases with the addition of Mo or Ni. In addition, the ordered body‐centered cubic (BCC) phases of B2 and DO3 also form when 3wt%Mo and 3wt%Ni are complexly added, resulting in a large decrease of the austenite grain size. Nanoindentation experiments show that the intrinsic strength of the austenite matrix changes depending on the precipitation behavior of the κ‐carbide; i.e., the addition of 3wt%Mo or 3wt%Ni decreases the intrinsic strength of the austenite by suppressing κ‐carbide precipitation, while complex additions of 3wt%Mo and 3wt%Ni increase them again. The results of tensile tests show that the alloy containing both 3wt%Mo and 3wt%Ni exhibits the highest yield (1102 MPa) and tensile strength (1155 MPa) with large tensile ductility (33%) due to the effects of grain refinement of the austenite grains and formation of secondary hard phases of DO3 and B2, as well as κ‐carbides. Finally, the changes in the precipitation behavior of the κ‐carbide are investigated via transmission electron microscopy and atom probe tomography analyses.

A nanodispersion-in-nanograins strategy for ultra-strong, ductile and stable metal nanocomposites

Nanograined metals have the merit of high strength, but usually suffer from low work hardening capacity and poor thermal stability, causing premature failure and limiting their practical utilities. Here we report a “nanodispersion-in-nanograins” strategy to simultaneously strengthen and stabilize nanocrystalline metals such as copper and nickel. Our strategy relies on a uniform dispersion of extremely fine sized carbon nanoparticles (2.6 ± 1.2 nm) inside nanograins. The intragranular dispersion of nanoparticles not only elevates the strength of already-strong nanograins by 35%, but also activates multiple hardening mechanisms via dislocation-nanoparticle interactions, leading to improved work hardening and large tensile ductility. In addition, these finely dispersed nanoparticles result in substantially enhanced thermal stability and electrical conductivity in metal nanocomposites. Our results demonstrate the concurrent improvement of several mutually exclusive properties in metals including strength-ductility, strength-thermal stability, and strength-electrical conductivity, and thus represent a promising route to engineering high-performance nanostructured materials.

Strong yet ductile nanolamellar high-entropy alloys by additive manufacturing.

Additive manufacturing produces net-shaped components layer by layer for engineering applications1-7. The additive manufacture of metal alloys by laser powder bed fusion (L-PBF) involves large temperature gradients and rapid cooling2,6, which enables microstructural refinement at the nanoscale to achieve high strength. However, high-strength nanostructured alloys produced by laser additive manufacturing often have limited ductility3. Here we use L-PBF to print dual-phase nanolamellar high-entropy alloys (HEAs) of AlCoCrFeNi2.1 that exhibit a combination of a high yield strength of about 1.3 gigapascals and a large uniform elongation of about 14 percent, which surpasses those of other state-of-the-art additively manufactured metal alloys. The high yield strength stems from the strong strengthening effects of the dual-phase structures that consist of alternating face-centred cubic and body-centred cubic nanolamellae; the body-centred cubic nanolamellae exhibit higher strengths and higher hardening rates than the face-centred cubic nanolamellae. The large tensile ductility arises owing to the high work-hardening capability of the as-printed hierarchical microstructures in the form of dual-phase nanolamellae embedded in microscale eutectic colonies, which have nearly random orientations to promote isotropic mechanical properties. The mechanistic insights into the deformation behaviour of additively manufactured HEAs have broad implications for the development of hierarchical, dual- and multi-phase, nanostructured alloys with exceptional mechanical properties.

Comparison of microstructure and mechanical behavior of Ti-35Nb manufactured by laser powder bed fusion from elemental powder mixture and prealloyed powder

Although different types of powder feedstock are used for additive manufacturing via laser powder bed fusion (L-PBF), limited work has attempted to directly compare the microstructure and mechanical behavior of components manufactured from those powder feedstock. This work investigated the microstructure, phase composition, melt pool morphology, and mechanical properties of a prealloyed Ti-35Nb alloy manufactured using L-PBF and compared these to their counterparts produced from elemental powder mixture. The samples manufactured from the powder mixture are composed of randomly distributed undissolved Nb in the α/β matrix, resulting from the unstable melt pool during the melting of the powder mixture. By contrast, parts produced from prealloyed powder display a homogeneous microstructure with β and α″ phases, owing to the full melting of prealloyed powder, therefore, a more stable melt pool to achieve a homogeneous microstructure. The Ti-35Nb manufactured from prealloyed powder exhibits large tensile ductility (about 10 times that of the counterparts using mixed powder), attributed to the high homogeneity in microstructure and chemical composition, strong interface bonding, relatively low oxygen content, and the existence of a large amount of β phase. This work sheds insights into understanding the effect of powder feedstock on the melt pool stability therefore the microstructure and mechanical behavior of the resultant parts.

Mixed mode (I and II) fracture behavior of nanoglass and metallic glass

Nanoglasses (NGs) have shown large tensile ductility and hardness than metallic glasses (MGs) used to synthesized them. The mixed mode (I and II) fracture experiments and complementary finite element (FE) simulations reported significant influence of applied mode mixity on the crack tip plasticity and fracture toughness of MGs. However, no such study has been under taken for NGs which are synthesized from MGs only. Therefore, two-dimensional, plane strain, FE analysis on the stationary crack in nanoglass (NG) and metallic glass (MG) subjected to mixed mode (I and II) loading conditions are performed under small scale yielding (SSY) conditions by employing the constitutive model for MGs. It is found that the crack tip plasticity is markedly affected by mode mixity in both NGs and MGs, and the shear bands ahead of crack tip appears to be more diffused in the former than the latter. Further, the plastic zone size ahead of the crack tip in NG is larger than that for MG for identical loading conditions. Also, FE simulations predict enhancement in fracture toughness of both the alloys with increase in the mode I contribution. In addition, the results suggest that the NGs may not exhibit larger fracture toughness than MGs with identical composition, although they exhibit larger tensile ductility.

Effect of strain rate and low temperature on mechanical behaviour and microstructure evolution in twinning-induced plasticity steel

The mechanical behaviour and microstructure evolution of twinning-induced plasticity (TWIP) steel subjected to tensile tests at high strain rate and low temperature were investigated. Under extreme conditions (3 × 103 s−1 and liquid nitrogen temperature), the TWIP steel exhibits high strain hardening capability and high strength, which are intimately related to deformation twinning. Here we investigate the plasticity and failure processes of a TWIP steel under extreme conditions, such as shock and/or cryogenic loading, and identify that deformation twinning no longer serves the fine plasticity. Obvious ductility loss has been found in TWIP steel even with strong strain hardening capability, which always leads to large uniform tensile ductility against local necking. In this study, the microstructure observations suggest that both of the second twin systems and nanotwin structures are highly active under extreme conditions. Twin-twin and dislocation-twin interactions accelerate the crack nucleation at and propagation along the twin boundaries. The conversion from twinning-induced plasticity to twinning-assisted cracking is controlled by twin structure and its spatio-temporal evolution, which are most susceptible to strain rate and temperature. These results provide an underlying micromechanism that controls the plasticity and failure in TWIP materials under extreme conditions and contributes to the understanding of twin structure-related processes to a broad community.

Achieving high strength and ductility in a heterogeneous-grain-structured CrCoNi alloy processed by cryorolling and subsequent short-annealing

Despite possessing otherwise desirable properties, the single-phase CrCoNi medium entropy alloy (MEA) with coarse grain structure generally suffer from disappointingly low strength, which severely limits its practical utility. Grain refinement can make this material several times stronger, but this benefit typically comes at a drastic loss of ductility. In this work, a thermo-mechanical processing method comprised of cryorolling and subsequent short-annealing is proposed for design of CrCoNi MEA with heterogeneous grain structure (HGS) to achieve outstanding mechanical properties. Firstly, a highly non-uniform pre-deformed nanostructure containing nanotwin bundles, nanometer-sized grains and dislocation structures regions was formed by cryorolling. Subsequent short-annealing of the as-cryorolled CrCoNi MEA at 700 °C/10 min yielded a three-level HGS with grain sizes spanning from a few nanometers up to several tens of micrometers. The as-prepared heterogeneous CrCoNi MEA exhibits ultra-high yield and tensile strengths of 1123 ± 14 MPa and 1453 ± 21 MPa, respectively, together with a large tensile ductility with a uniform elongation of 31.2%, achieving an enhanced strength–ductility combination relative to those fabricated by conventional rolling and subsequent annealing. The extraordinary combination of strength and ductility came from heterogeneous grain and residual cryo-deformation structural effect.

High plasticity achieved by spark plasma sintering method in aluminum matrix composites reinforced with Ti2AlC particles

The 20 vol% Ti2AlC particles reinforced Al composites were fabricated using spark plasma sintering technique followed by hot extrusion. The relationship between microstructure, phase composition and mechanical properties of composites at different sintering temperatures was investigated in order to achieve high plasticity. The Al matrix composite sintered at 590 °C with 20 vol% Ti2AlC particles demonstrates a large tensile ductility, with a uniform strain of 14.8%. The fracture morphology characterizes the kink and delamination ability of Ti2AlC particles and good interfacial bonding between Al matrix and Ti2AlC reinforcement. Furthermore, a combination of in-situ tensile test and digital image correlation (DIC) reveal that the process of uniform strain evolution plays an important role in high elongation. The high plasticity of Ti2AlC/Al composites are attributed to good interfacial bonding and microstructure obtained by SPS method, the ability of layered structure of Ti2AlC to kink and delaminate, and the uniform strain distribution in the multi-regions of Ti2AlC particles wrapped in Al matrix.

Tensile Deformation of Ultrafine-Grained Fe-Mn-Al-Ni-C Alloy Studied by In Situ Synchrotron Radiation X-ray Diffraction

Intermetallic compounds are usually considered as deleterious phase in alloy designing and processing since their brittleness leads to poor ductility and premature failure during deformation of the alloys. However, several studies recently found that some alloys containing large amounts of NiAl-type intermetallic particles exhibited not only high strength but also good tensile ductility. To clarify the role of the intermetallic particles in the excellent tensile properties of such alloys, the tensile deformation behavior of an ultrafine-grained Fe-Mn-Al-Ni-C alloy containing austenite matrix and B2 intermetallic particles was investigated by using in situ synchrotron radiation X-ray diffraction in the present study. The elastic stress partitioning behavior of two constituent phases during tensile deformation were quantitively measured, and it was suggested that B2 particles played an important role in the high strength and large tensile ductility of the material.

Challenging Ultra Grain Refinement of Ferrite in Low-C Steel Only by Heat Treatment

It is well-known that grain refinement is one of the most effective ways to improve strength of metals without addition of alloying elements. In order to obtain bulky metals having ultrafine grained (UFG) microstructures with average grain sizes smaller than 1 μm, severe plastic deformation (SPD) processes have made a great success. However, there are still big barriers to realize UFG metallic materials, especially UFG steels, in large scale industries, since severe plastic deformation processes usually need special techniques and equipment, and large deformation forces are required for heavy plastic deformations. Cyclic heat treatments to repeat martensitic transformation and austenitization have been known as a simple way to fabricate fine-grained austenitic structures in steels. In the present study, we tried to make final ferrite microstructures ultrafine in a low-C steel by means of the cyclic heat treatment. Evolution of microstructures during the cyclic heat treatment was systematically investigated, putting stress on the change of grain sizes of austenite and ferrite. The austenite grain size decreased with increasing the number of heat treatment cycles, and the minimum average austenite grain size obtained was 11 μm. By having furnace-cooling from austenite states with various grain sizes, ferrite microstructures with different mean grain sizes were fabricated. We could successfully obtain a fine-grained ferrite structure with a mean grain size of 4.5 μm and nearly a random texture through the heat treatment without deformation. Microstructural features and mechanical properties of the obtained fine-grained ferritic structures were investigated by scanning electron microscope/electron back-scattering diffraction measurements and a tensile test at room temperature. The specimens with ferrite + pearlite microstructure with the smallest average ferrite grain size of 4.5 μm managed both high strength (yield strength of 375 MPa and tensile strength of 500 MPa) and large tensile ductility (uniform elongation of 20% and total elongation of 39%) in the simple 2Mn-0.1C steel.

Heterogenous columnar-grained high-entropy alloys produce exceptional resistance to intermediate-temperature intergranular embrittlement

High-entropy alloys (HEAs) strengthened by coherent nanoparticles show great potentials for elevated-temperature structural applications, which however, generally suffer from a severe intergranular embrittlement when tested at intermediate temperatures. In this study, we demonstrated a novel “heterogenous columnar-grained” (HCG) approach that can effectively overcome this thorny problem. Different from the equiaxed counterpart which shows extreme brittleness along grain boundaries at 800 °C, the newly developed HCG-HEA exhibits an exceptionally high resistance to intergranular fractures originating from the unique grain-boundary characters and distributions. The presence of heterogenous columnar grain structure drastically suppresses the crack nucleation and propagation along with boundaries, resulting in an unusually large tensile ductility of ~18.4 % combined with a high yield strength of ~652 MPa at 800 °C. This finding provides a new insight into the innovative design of high-temperature materials with extraordinary mechanical properties.

Electric Current Dependence on Superplastic Tensile Flow in Tetragonal Zirconia Polycrystal Under a DC Field

Electric DC current dependence on the superplastic flow in densified, fine-grained tetragonal ZrO2 polycrystal was systematically investigated. An optimal current density for large tensile ductility existed; the maximum elongation of 135% was achieved under the current density of 250 mA∙mm-2 at a furnace temperature of 1000 oC and an initial strain rate of 1×10-3 s-1. Application of DC current decreased the flow stress, while that simultaneously accelerated the grain growth in tetragonal ZrO2 polycrystal. The reduced flow stress and improved ductility can be explained not only by Joule heating but also by enhanced atomic diffusion or accelerated grain boundary sliding.

Designing Concrete with Self-healing Properties Using Engineered Cementitious Composites as a Model

Engineered Cementitious Composites (ECC), also known as Strain Hardening Cement-based Composites, are an easily molded mortar-based composites reinforced with polymer fibers. ECCs are designed based on micromechanics and fracture mechanics theory, to feature large tensile ductility and a variety of unique properties, including tensile properties, superior to other fiber-reinforced composites. The properties of ECCs can be custom-tailored through micromechanics design due to the interaction between the fibers and cement matrix. A structural deterioration of ECC is avoided because the fibers do not allow cracks with large widths to form, unlike conventional concrete. ECCs have the capacity to bend, generating a flexible material. Ductile properties rather than brittle had increased, unlike ordinary concrete, leading to a wide variety of applications. Obtaining superior characteristics for ECC, both in fresh and hardened state, a transition from ECC paste to concrete with self-healing properties was made. To obtain self-healing concrete, with same ECC paste behavior and characteristics, the mix-design of the paste was optimized. The aim of this article is to present the experimental results regarding the transition from ECC paste to self-healing concrete and to analyze the results in order to establish a mix-design pattern for concrete with self-healing properties.