Martensitic Phase Transformation Research Articles

Simultaneous enhancement of the strength and plasticity of Fe[sbnd]12Mn steel through modulating grain morphology

The relationship between grain morphology and tensile properties of Fe-12Mn steel thermo-mechanically processed by rolling annealing and re-cold rolling processes was investigated. The results indicated that the re-cold rolling deformed the mostly austenite grain morphology from equiaxed to lamellar, and the steel exhibited a yield strength of 1295 MPa, tensile strength of 1518 MPa, and elongation of 18 %. Compared to the experimental steel without re-cold rolling processes, more than 300 MPa tensile strength was improved and elongation increased from 14 % to 18 %. The steel demonstrated remarkable enhancement in mechanical properties owing to the “multistage TRIP effect”, which referred to the sequential martensitic phase transformation of austenite with varying stability as the strain increased. The change in grain morphology reduced the rate of twin formation and increased the nucleation point of the martensitic phase transition, this also stabilized the retained austenite by increasing the hard phases surrounding the retained austenite, which had multistage stability. These factors contributed to the “multistage TRIP effect”, which could be sustained to higher strains and presented regular fluctuations in work-hardening rates

Achieving high strength and low yield ratio by constructing the network martensite-ferrite heterogeneous in low carbon steels

In this research, focusing on low-carbon steel, a martensite-ferrite heterogeneous structure dual-phase (MFDP) steel with a network morphology where ferrite is surrounded by martensite was obtained via cyclic annealing and subcritical quenching heat treatment processes. With the initial microstructure of ferrite and lamellar pearlite, a spherical pearlite and martensitic structure surrounding the ferrite was first obtained by applying the cyclic annealing process near the Ac1 temperature. Subsequently, the annealed structure was subjected to subcritical quenching heat treatment, thereby establishing a network-like martensite-ferrite dual-phase heterogeneous structure and named N-760 °C and N-780 °C. In comparison with the ferrite-martensite dual-phase steel where ferrite envelopes martensite, N-780 °C witnessed a marked increase in tensile strength and uniform elongation, while the yield ratio dropped by 20 %. Through cyclic loading and unloading tensile tests, it was found that the N-760 °C showed a more obvious heterogeneous deformation-induced (HDI) strengthening effect. The results from electron backscattering and transmission electron microscopy indicate that, in the N-760 °C, a small quantity of dislocations is produced in the ferrite due to the martensitic phase transformation prior to the tensile test. During the tensile process, as the strain increases, the ferrite undergoes significant deformation, and the intragranular dislocations re-arrange to form dislocation cells and deformation-induced grain boundaries (SIBs). Meanwhile, geometrically necessary dislocations (GNDs) accumulate at the ferrite/martensite interface. Therefore, the non-coordinated deformation between the mesh-like dual-phase microstructure offers additional HDI strengthening for MFDP steel.

Exceptional strength-ductility synergy in the novel metastable FeCoCrNiVSi high-entropy alloys via tuning the grain size dependency of the transformation-induced plasticity effect

In-depth knowledge of the coupling between grain refinement and the transformation-induced plasticity (TRIP) effect in metastable alloys is a viable approach for the improvement of strength-ductility synergy, which needs systematic research with consideration of commercial austenitic stainless steels and novel high-entropy alloys (HEAs). Accordingly, in the present work, two Si-containing metastable HEAs in the Fe47Co30Cr10Ni5V8-xSix system (x = 3 and 6 at.%) were designed, and the TRIP-assisted AISI 304L stainless steel was also considered for comparison. The alloys were processed by cold rolling and annealing to obtain different grain sizes. Reducing the stacking fault energy (SFE) through adjusting chemical composition contributes to minimizing the detrimental effect of grain refinement on the ductility of TRIP alloys, while extremely low SFE must be avoided owing to the fast kinetics of deformation-induced martensitic phase transformation, which leads to the deterioration of ductility. In contrast to AISI 304L stainless steel, a strong TRIP effect was maintained upon grain refinement in the Fe47Co30Cr10Ni5V2Si6 HEA due to the remaining apparent SFE in the appropriate TRIP range. The tuned kinetics of martensitic transformation was found to be responsible for the exceptional ductility (∼65%) of Fe47Co30Cr10Ni5V2Si6 HEA at an ultrahigh tensile strength of 1250 MPa. Therefore, considering the identical trend of SFE with grain size, an appropriate initial SFE value is important for tuning the grain size dependency of the TRIP effect. Moreover, the ultrahigh strength was attributed to the high volume fraction of α΄-martensite as well as the high strength of the martensite phase due to the high Si content. Accordingly, for achieving strong-yet-ductile HEAs, a high Si content is recommended to benefit from solid solution strengthening in the martensite phase, a specially-designed chemical composition is needed for attaining a high volume fraction of α΄-martensite, and SFE should be in a desirable range to tune the kinetics of martensitic phase transformation.

Unveiling the mechanism of the carbon ordering and martensite tetragonality in Fe–C alloys studied via deep-potential molecular dynamics simulations

The martensitic transformation plays a pivotal role in the strengthening and hardening of steels, yet an accurate interatomic potential for a comprehensive description of the martensitic phase formation in Fe–C alloys is lacking. Herein, we develop a deep learning-based interatomic potential to perform molecular dynamics (MD) simulations to study the martensitic phase transformation across a range of carbon (C) concentrations. The results reveal that an increased C concentration leads to a suppression of phase boundary movement and a deceleration of the phase transformation rate. To overcome the timescale limitations inherent in MD simulations, metadynamics sampling was employed to accelerate the simulations of C diffusion. We find that C atoms tend to cluster at distances equivalent to the lattice parameter of Fe with the same sublattice occupation, leading to local lattice tetragonality. Such C-ordered structures effectively inhibit dislocation movement and enhance strength. The stress field induced by dislocations facilitates a higher degree of ordering. The formation of C-ordered structures is identified as a potentially crucial strengthening mechanism for martensitic steels. The consistency between our simulation results and reported experimental observations underscores the effectiveness of the developed DP model in simulating martensitic phase transformation in Fe–C alloys, providing detailed insights into the mechanisms underlying this process.

Investigation of phase stability and martensitic transformation of all-d-metal Heusler alloys Fe2CrIr and Fe2CrV

The magnetism, elastic properties, phase stability and martensitic phase transition of the all-d-metal Heusler alloys Fe2CrIr and Fe2CrV are systematically investigated using first-principles calculations. Compound Fe2CrIr containing late transition metal atoms tends to have a Cu2MnAl (L21)-type structure and exhibits antiferromagnetism. Fe2CrV is relatively stable in the Hg2CuTi (XA)–type structure and exhibits ferromagnetism. Differences in mechanical stability under pressure arise from differences in phonon hybridisation. The response of Fe2CrIr to external pressure stems from a high pressure-induced martensitic transformation. On the contrary, the pressure inhibited the martensitic phase transition of Fe2CrV. The lower the value of C′, the more unstable the cubic phase. This work analyses in detail the different mechanical behaviours of Fe2CrIr and Fe2CrV under pressure and the mechanism of pressure-induced martensitic transformation, which may improve a new insight for pressure regulated martensitic phase transformation.

Black Body Cavity Apparatus for Measuring the Emissivity of Nickel-Titanium-Based Shape-Memory Alloys and Other Metals

Nickel-titanium (NiTi)-based shape-memory alloys (SMAs) have various applications in biomedicine, actuators, aerospace technologies, and elastocaloric devices, due to their shape-memory and super-elastic effects. These effects are induced in SMAs by a reversible martensitic phase transformation. This transformation can be achieved by applying stress or temperature differences. It is extremely difficult to measure the temperature of NiTi elements with contact thermometers because they disturb the phase transformation phenomenon. An alternative approach is contactless infrared thermography for which accurate emissivity data are mandatory. To determine the temperature distribution in NiTi components with an infrared camera, a newly constructed apparatus is presented to measure the emissivity of metals. For this purpose, a state-of-the-art infrared camera was employed to analyze the emissivity behavior with temperature, especially during the phase transformation. The emissivity of the NiTi samples was systematically studied by comparing them with a reference-quality black body cavity (BBC) having an emissivity better than 0.995. Calibration measurements revealed that the maximum deviation of the BBC temperature measured with the infrared camera was only 0.15% (0.45 K) from its temperature measured with the built-in contact thermometers. The apparatus was validated by measuring the emissivity of a polished aluminum sample and found to be in good agreement with literature data, particularly for temperatures above 340 K. Finally, the emissivity of two rough and one polished NiTi samples was measured covering the temperature range from 313 K to 423 K with an expanded uncertainty of about 0.02 (k=2\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$k=2$$\\end{document}). The studied NiTi samples have an atomic percent composition of Ni42.5\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$\\hbox {Ni}_{42.5}$$\\end{document}Ti49.9\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$\\hbox {Ti}_{49.9}$$\\end{document}Cu7.5\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$\\hbox {Cu}_{7.5}$$\\end{document}Cr0.1\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$\\hbox {Cr}_{0.1}$$\\end{document}. We observed that the emissivity of NiTi varies between 0.17 and 0.31 depending on temperature. As the temperature rises, the emissivity increases rapidly during the phase transformation, and it decreases gradually beyond the austenite finish temperature. In addition, the emissivity of NiTi depends on the microstructure of the martensite and austenite phases and the surface roughness of the samples.

Constitutive modeling of transformation-induced plasticity steels considering strength-differential effect

Transformation-induced plasticity (TRIP) steels undergo martensitic phase transformations due to their austenite phase. In this study, using 1-mm-thick TRIP steel at room temperature, the phase transformation behaviors under tensile and compressive modes were measured using a ferrite scope based on the detection of the magnetic volume. A strength differential (SD) effect was observed, where the tensile strength was lower than the compressive strength. The rate of tensile transformation was faster than that of compressive transformation. To account for the SD effect in finite element analysis, a martensitic kinetics-based constitutive model was developed, which was decomposed into elastic, plastic, Bain, and transformational parts. A larger transformational strain was generated in the tensile mode, and the asymmetric SD effect was captured well by the proposed model.

Ratcheting-fatigue behavior and fracture mechanism of 316H ASS under cyclic random loading block

In this study, a set of programmed random factors with non-zero mean were designed. Then various stress levels (15, 18 and 22 KN) were multiple superimposed to factors to form one random loading block (RLB), the blocks were repeated to failure to investigate the synergistic damage of 316H ASS under low-cycle fatigue (LCF), high-cycle fatigue (HCF) and ratcheting effect. The lifetime of cyclic RLB tests decreased with the increase of block-mean stresses σmBlock (208、255 and 311.5 MPa). The normalized strain amplitudes indicate that when the σmBlock amplitude below the yield strength (208 and 255 MPa), a stable ratchet accumulation phase allows the specimens to exhibit cyclic hardening behavior. When σmBlock (311.5 MPa) exceeds the yield strength, the ratcheting strain increases significantly and the specimens exhibit cyclic softening behavior. Especially, the transgranular cleavage fracture, quasi-cleavage fracture and intergranular secondary cracks were identified when the failure of cyclic RLB tests were induced by LCF, HCF and ratcheting. With the increase of σmBlock amplitude, the decrease of LAGB proportion and the increase of dislocation density further reduce the fatigue resistance. In addition to dislocation motion, the α’-martensite phase transformation induced by ratcheting-fatigue has been further demonstrated as a mechanism for coordinated deformation. The percentage of stresses (within one block) that exceeds the diverge critical stress (375.6 MPa) of stacking faults (SFs) determines the α’-martensite nucleation mechanism.

Effect of surface nanocrystallization induced by mechanical grinding treatment on stress corrosion cracking behavior of 316 L austenitic stainless steel in boiling MgCl2 solution

The effect of surface nanocrystallization prepared by surface mechanical grinding treatment (SMGT) on stress corrosion cracking (SCC) behavior of 316 L austenitic stainless steel was studied in boiling MgCl2 solutions at 155 °C and 130 °C, respectively. The refined-grain structures of different morphologies produced by three different SMGT penetration depths were employed to assess how different microstructures and corrosive environments affected the SCC behavior of nanocrystallized surfaces. Results showed that in the 155 °C boiling MgCl2 solution, the refinement of grains resulted in an increase in the critical stress for SCC initiation and progressively enhanced the ability to inhibit crack propagation with the SMGT penetration depth increasing from 20 μm to 60 μm. In the 130 °C MgCl2 solution, the grain refinement still contributed to resisting crack propagation, but the threshold stress for SCC initiation on the surface with the deepest SMGT penetration depth of 60 μm was lower than that in the 155 °C MgCl2 solution. This behavior was attributed to the significant martensitic phase transformation formed in SMGT with penetration depth of 60 μm, resulting in the mechanism of SCC transforming from anodic dissolution in MgCl2 solution at 155 °C to hydrogen embrittlement at 130 °C.

Mechanisms of laser non-uniform shock peening on the mechanical properties of SUS 304 stainless steel weld joints

The technique of Laser Non-Uniform Shock Peening (LNUSP) is proposed based on the residual stress distribution in welded joints and the shock wave peak pressure of SUS 304 stainless steel. The study investigated the effects of LNUSP on the mechanical properties of laser beam oscillation welded (LWW) joints of SUS 304 stainless steel. The results indicate that LNUSP induced residual compressive stress with an affected layer depth exceeding 0.9 mm, leading to a more uniform residual stress distribution. LNUSP also induced martensitic phase transformation, altered the grain structure orientation, formed parallel dislocation arrays that refined the grains, increased dislocation density leading to dislocation tangles, and induced mechanical twins of 20–70 nm. Furthermore, LNUSP significantly enhanced microhardness and promoted a more uniform hardness distribution, favoring a better balance between strength and ductility. LNUSP notably increased the yield strength (YS) and ultimate tensile strength (UTS) by 49.4% and 5.1%, respectively, compared to the original samples. The LNUSP-treated samples demonstrated superior strength and plasticity, attributed to the uniformity of internal plastic deformation.

Effect of Partition Temperature on Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of Cold‐Rolled Medium‐Manganese Steel

The influence of different heat‐treatment conditions on the microstructure evolution and mechanical properties of cold‐rolled Fe–7.69Mn–2.76Al–0.12C (wt%) steel is investigated using various techniques, including scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and X‐ray diffraction. In the results, it is shown that the stability of austenite is significantly affected by different partitioning temperatures. It is found that factors such as dislocation density, temperature, and grain size collectively influence partitioning behavior. In the observations, it is revealed that when the partitioning temperature is raised from 120 to 180 °C, the dislocation density of the face centered cubic phase within the test steel decreases from 10.38 × 1016 to 7.67 × 1016 m−2. Additionally, within specimens exhibiting higher dislocation densities, carbon element diffusion is more uniform. During the experiment, the poor stability of the austenite is found to be susceptible to stress‐inducing the phase of the martensitic transformation, and the type of the martensite transformation affects the deformation process and the performance of submission behavior. In the observations under TEM, a phenomenon where variations in dislocation density within individual austenite grains may lead to differing stability across grain regions is revealed, thereby triggering localized martensitic phase transformations.

Orientation-dependent deformation and failure of micropillar shape memory ceramics: A 3D phase-field study

Some microscopic samples of zirconia-based shape memory ceramics (SMCs) have shown full martensitic phase transformation (MPT) over multiple loading cycles without cracking. However, the occurrence of MPT is strongly influenced by grain orientation. Depending on the specific grain orientation relative to the loading direction, alternative mechanisms such as plastic slip and fracture may emerge. This study introduces a phase-field (PF) based framework that integrates a PF-MPT model, a PF fracture model, and a crystal viscoplasticity model to investigate the effects of grain orientation on MPT, plastic slip, and fracture mechanisms in SMC micropillars. Single crystal micropillars are created to distinguish the orientations that facilitate each mechanism. A wide range of grain orientations are found to predominantly exhibit MPT. Micropillars with grain orientations close to the (100) and (001) directions primarily experience fracture, with minimal plastic slip. Additionally, samples oriented along the (110) direction show a significant amount of plastic slip. A pole figure is constructed to elucidate the interplay between MPT, cracking, and plastic slip under compressive loading conditions. This research provides valuable insights into the intricate behavior of SMCs under different loading scenarios, crucial for optimizing their performance in practical applications.

Laser Cutting of Titanium Alloy Plates: A Review of Processing, Microstructure, and Mechanical Properties

The growing use of titanium alloys has led to the gradual replacement of traditional processing methods by laser cutting technology, making it the preferred method for processing titanium alloy plates due to its high efficiency, precision, and adaptability. In this review, the characteristics of laser cutting technology and its application in titanium alloy plate processing are summarized, outlining several aspects of the cutting process, microstructure, and mechanical properties of the material after cutting, along with simulation predictions. Previous research categorized laser-cutting input parameters into beam parameters and process parameters, with the commonly used parameters being the laser power, cutting speed, and gas pressure. Various parameter combinations can achieve different cutting qualities, and seven indices can be used to evaluate the cutting process, with the surface roughness and slit width serving as the most common indices. Different auxiliary gases have shown a significant impact on the laser cutting quality, with commonly used gases consisting of nitrogen, argon, and air. Argon-assisted cutting generally results in better surface quality. Due to the rapid temperature change, the titanium alloy microstructure will undergo a non-diffusive martensitic phase transformation during laser cutting, producing a heat-affected zone. Experimental studies and simulations of the mechanical properties have shown that the occurrence of a martensitic phase transformation increases the hardness and residual tensile stress of the material, which reduces the fatigue strength and static tensile properties. In addition, studies have found that the more streaks appear on the cut surface, the lower the fatigue strength is, with fatigue cracks arising from the stripes. Hence, the established analytical solution model and three-dimensional finite element model can effectively predict the temperature distribution and residual stress during the cutting process. This can provide a better understanding of the high residual stress characteristics of the cutting edge and the stripe formation mechanism, allowing researchers to better explore the mechanism of laser cutting.

Enhanced cryogenic mechanical properties of heterostructured CrCoNi multicomponent alloy: Insights from in-situ neutron diffraction

Heterostructured materials (HSMs) has been shown to improve the strength-ductility trade-off of conventional alloys but their cryogenic performance has not been studied during real-time deformation. We investigated heterostructured CrCoNi medium-entropy alloy by in-situ neutron diffraction at cryogenic (77 K) and room (293 K) temperatures. The significant mechanical mismatch at interfaces between fine and coarse grains, due to pronounced grain size disparity, resulted in exceptional yield strength of 918 MPa at 293 K. The yield strength further increased to 1244 MPa at 77 K with an excellent uniform elongation of 34 %. The exceptional strength–ductility combination at 77 K can be attributed to enhanced geometrically necessary dislocation pile-up density boosted from high-mechanical mismatch interfaces, as well as higher planar faults, and martensitic phase transformation. Comparison with homogenous counterparts demonstrates the potential of HSMs as a new strategy to improve the mechanical performance of different materials, including medium-/high-entropy alloys for cryogenic applications.

Study on mechanical behaviour and microstructure evolution of wire-arc directed energy deposition Co-free maraging steel under dynamic compression

ABSTRACT The dynamic compression property of maraging steel is an important basis for determining the impact resistance of the structure, and the related studies are few. To enrich the relevant data and elucidate the relevant mechanisms, in this work, a new Co-free maraging steel component is fabricated by wire-arc direct energy deposition (DED), and the quasi-static tensile properties and dynamic compression properties are tested. The results show that the deposition direction exhibits the highest quasi-static tensile properties. Strain rate strengthening effect, grain refinement and grain boundary strengthening are the main strengthening mechanisms during dynamic compression. With the increase of strain rate, dynamic recrystallization intensifies, causing the grain size and dislocation density to decrease. Under dynamic condition, strain-induced martensite phase transformation reduces the austenite content; temperature rise and dynamic recrystallization limit the degree of martensite phase transformation. Strain rate sensitivity of the strength is independent of the direction.

Austenite-martensite interfacial patterns and energy dissipation of phase transformation in Ni-Mn-Ga single crystal

The martensitic phase transformation occurs in Shape Memory Alloys (SMA) via the nucleation/propagation of the Austenite-Martensite interface (A-M interface), which is a transition region (domain) between the two coexisting phases. For providing compatibility, the transition region consists of various martensitic twin structures (laminates), forming different interfacial patterns, such as parallel laminates and branching laminates. Due to the energy accumulation in the interfacial structures (e.g., elastic mismatch and twin-boundary surface energy), the interfacial patterns should be relevant to the driving force (energy dissipation) and the associated kinetics of the phase transformation. In this paper, we adopt a special thermal loading, small-temperature-gradient “heating-cooling-reheating”, to control the A-M interface's forward and reverse propagation to generate different interfacial patterns in a Ni-Mn-Ga single crystal SMA with the observation on the twin structures (by optical microscope and SEM) and the InfraRed measurement on the temperature hysteresis of the interface propagation (for characterizing the thermal driving force). Simple energetic analysis indicates that the thermal driving force (energy dissipation) is directly related to the stored energy in the interfacial structure, particularly the large mismatch elastic energy near the habit plane. This study not only provides the details of the various interfacial patterns and their dependence on the loading path, but also indicates the driving force and the associated mechanism about the pattern evolution to understand the phase transformation process.

Bending fatigue behavior of metastable and stable austenitic stainless steels with different surface morphologies

AbstractThe surface morphology has a significant influence on the fatigue behavior of components. For austenitic stainless steels (ASSs), this issue is even more pronounced due to their metastability. Based on the complex deformation mechanisms of metastable ASSs, which include dislocation slip, deformation twinning, and deformation‐induced martensitic phase transformation, the metastable stainless steel AISI 347 was investigated in this study together with the stable AISI 904L as a reference material. Four‐point bending fatigue tests with load ratio R = 0.1 and testing frequency f = 10 Hz at ambient temperature were carried out on specimens with five technically relevant surface morphologies: mechanical polished, milled, microshot peened, laser shock‐peened, and ultrasonic modified. Systematic material characterizations were carried out to elucidate the crucial role of surface roughness and deformation‐induced α′‐martensite in the fatigue behavior of both metastable and stable materials. While surface roughness is a well‐known key factor in conventional fatigue cases, deformation‐induced martensite layers implemented by various surface modification methods were proven to improve the fatigue life in metastable austenitic steels, opening new perspectives to extend the lifetime of ASS components.

Analysis of electrothermal shape memory alloy and disc-type magnetorheological fluid combined transmission

In this article, a disc-type magnetorheological fluid and electrothermal shape memory alloy spring-loaded slider friction combined transmission device is proposed. A heating model of the electrothermal shape memory alloy spring is used to calculate the relationship between current and spring temperature. Experiments are used to investigate the link between spring temperature and restoring force, as well as magnetorheological fluid temperature, magnetic flux density, and shear yield stress. The torque characteristics of the combined device were evaluated utilizing the coupled magnetic field and thermal field finite element method for the characteristics of the two materials. The results showed that the magnetorheological fluid showed an approximately linear decrease in shear yield stress at high temperatures, up to 37.94 %. The heating rate of the electrothermal shape memory alloy spring was influenced by the surrounding temperature, and the heating rate was too fast to easily cause the time lag of the martensite phase transformation, resulting in the spring restoring force becoming smaller, and its restoring force shows a non-linear increase when the temperature rises from 22 °C to 100 °C. By applying the two materials together, the torque of the combined transmission has been significantly increased, by 91.58 % compared to the same size magnetorheological transmission.

A deep insight of re-entrant martensitic transformation mechanism in Co2Cr(Ga,Si) shape memory alloys

Co2Cr(Ga,Si) shape memory alloys have a wide application temperature range due to the unique re-entrant martensite phase transformation (RMT) behavior. Nevertheless, the microscopic mechanism of RMT remains elusive and unsystematic. The heart of this investigation lies the comprehensive exploration of phase stability, phase transformation path, and martensite slip direction during RMT from martensite (D022-PM) to austenite (L21-FM). In this work, we systematically investigate the re-entrant martensitic transformation of Co2Cr(Ga,Si) SMAs using first-principles methods for the first time. Firstly, the density of states (DOS) calculation indicates that the stability of L21-FM is higher than D022-PM. The charge density calculation further indicates that the bonding strength between Co atoms and Cr (Si) atoms in the L21-FM phase is the highest. In addition, Fermi surface calculation further reveals that phase instability is due to the Fermi surface nesting caused by electron-phonon coupling. Moreover, the minimum energy path was calculated by the G-SSNEB method for the first time, which indicates the RMT can occur. Finally, the calculation of the elastic constants indicates that RMT is caused by the crystal plane slip of the D022-PM phase along the <110> direction. Our calculations provide the electronic-level and thermodynamic mechanism for RMT of Co2Cr(Ga,Si) alloy and shed some light on the revelation of the phase transformation mechanism.

A strategy for simultaneously enhancing the strength and ductility of metastable β titanium alloys: Coupling heterogeneous structure and TRIP effects

The applicability of metastable β titanium alloys is frequently constrained by their relatively low yield strength. This study has successfully designed a metastable β titanium alloy with heterogeneous microstructures (HS) comprising both deformed and recrystallized grains, achieved through simple cold rolling followed by short-term annealing. Compared to traditionally coarse-grained (CG) specimen that is entirely crystallized and equiaxed, the HS specimen exhibit not only a postponed initiation of double yielding but also superior yield strength (enhanced by 27.8 %) and ductility (enhanced by 7 %). The delayed double yielding and enhanced strength in the HS specimen are ascribed to the restriction of dislocation motion by α" martensite and the heterogeneous deformation induced (HDI) strengthening mechanisms. The ductility of the HS specimen exceeds that of the CG specimen, owing to the combined effect of HDI hardening and the transformation-induced plasticity (TRIP) effects. The more pronounced TRIP effect in the HS specimens results from the synergistic effect of the elevated HDI stress and the applied external stress, which promotes the occurrence of stress-induced martensitic phase transformation. This study offers a novel strategy for the development of high-performance metastable β titanium alloys.