Numerical simulation of microstructure evolution during directional solidification process in directional solidified (DS) turbine blades

Directional solidified(DS) turbine blades are widely used in advanced gas turbine engine. The size and orientation of columnar grains have great influence on the high temperature property and performance of the turbine blade. Numerical simulation of the directional solidification process is an effective way to investigate the grain's growth and morphology,and hence to optimize the process. In this paper,a mathematical model was presented to study the directional solidified microstructures at different withdrawal rates. Ray-tracing method was applied to calculate the temperature variation of the blade. By using a Modified Cellular Automation(MCA) method and a simple linear interpolation method,the mushy zone and the microstructure evolution were studied in detail. Experimental validations were carried out at different withdrawal rates. The calculated cooling curves and microstructure agreed well with those experimental. It is indicated that the withdrawal rate affects the temperature distribution and growth rate of the grain directly,which determines the final size and morphology of the columnar grain. A moderate withdrawal rate can lead to high quality DS turbine blades for industrial application.

Microstructures and mechanical properties of DZ125 directional solidified superalloy repaired by HIP technology

DZ125 directional solidified superalloys show excellent bearing temperature ability and creep resistance and have been widely used to manufacture the advanced aviation engine blades parts.However,the high temperatures and stresses for longtime service would cause a loss of mechanical properties and service life.In this paper,the damaged alloys were repaired using hot isostatic pressing combined with rejuvenation heat treatment technology,where the irregularγ'phases in damaged alloys are recovered to be cubic particles like original state and the creep cavities and casting porosities also reduce obviously compared with those in damaged state.The restorable alloys exhibit apparently higher tensile properties and hardness than the alloys in damaged state,which is close or even more than those of original alloy,and their elongation and rupture life can satisfy criterion completely.This method can be easily extent to repair other damaged superalloys.

Thermal cycling creep properties of a directionally solidified superalloy DZ125

Aero-engine turbine blades may suffer overheating during service,which can result in severe microstructural and mechanical degradation within tens of seconds.In this study,the thermal cycling creep under(950℃/15 min+1100℃/1 min)-100 MPa was performed on a directionally solidified superalloy,DZ125.The effects of overheating and thermal cycling on the creep properties were evaluated in terms of creep behavior and microstructural evolution against isothermally crept specimens under 950℃/100 MPa,950℃/270 MPa,and 1100℃/100 MPa.The results indicated that the thermal cycling creep life was reduced dramatically compared to the isothermal creep under 950℃/100 MPa.The plastic creep deformation mainly occurred during the overheating stage during the thermal cycling creep.The thermal cycling creep curve exhibited three stages,similar to the 1100℃isothermal creep,but its minimum creep rate occurred at a lower creep strain.The overheating events caused severe microstructural degradation,such as substantial dissolution ofγ'phase,earlier formation of raftedγ'microstructure,widening of theγchannels,and instability of the interfacial dislocation networks.This microstructural degradation was the main reason for the dramatic decrease in thermal cycling creep life,as the thermal cycling promoted more dislocations to cut intoγ'phase and more cracks to initiate at grain boundaries,carbides,and residual eutectic pools.This study underlines the importance of evaluating the thermal cycling creep properties of superalloys to be used as turbine blades and provides insights into the effect of thermal cycling on directionally solidified superalloys for component design.

Microstructure and crystal growth direction of Al-Mg alloy

The microstructures and crystal growth directions of permanent mould casting and directionally solidified Al-Mg al oys with different Mg contents have been investigated. The results indicate that the effect of Mg content on microstructure is basical y same for the al oys prepared by these two methods. The primary grains change from cel ular crystals to developed columnar dendrites, and then to equiaxed dendrites as the Mg content is increased. Simultaneously, both the cel ular or columnar grain region and the primary trunk spacing decrease. Al of these changes are mainly attributed to the constitutional supercooling resulting from Mg element. Comparatively, the cellular or columnar crystals of the directionally solidified alloys are straighter and more paral el than those of the permanent mould casting al oys. These have straight or wavy grain boundaries, one of the most important microstructure characteristics of feathery grains. However, the transverse microstructure and growth direction reveal that they do not belong to feathery grains. The Mg seemingly can affect the crystal growth direction, but does not result in the formation of feathery grains under the conditions employed in the study.