Transient liquid phase bonding of DD5 superalloy using a designed interlayer: microstructure and mechanical properties

Nickel based single crystal superalloy is currently widely used as the material for turbine blades in aerospace engines.However,metallurgical defects during the manufacturing process and damage during harsh environmental service are inevitable challenges for turbine blades.Therefore,bonding techniques play a very important role in the manufacturing and repair of turbine blades.The transient liquid phase(TLP)bonding of DD5 Ni-based single crystal superalloy was performed using the designed H1 interlayer.A new third-generation Ni-based superalloy T1 powder was mixed with H1 powder as another interlayer to improve the mechanical properties of the bonded joints.The res-ults show that,such a designed H1 interlayer is beneficial to the improvement of shear strength of DD5 alloy bonded joints by adjusting the bonding temperature and the prolongation of holding time.The maximum shear strength at room temperature of the joint with H1 interlayer reached 681 MPa when bonded at 1260℃for 3 h.The addition of T1 powder can effectively reduce holding time or relatively lower bond-ing temperature,while maintaining relatively high shear strength.When 1 wt.%T1 powder was mixed into H1 interlayer,the maximum room temperature shear strength of the joint bonded at 1260℃reached 641 MPa,which could be obtained for only 1 h.Considering the bonding temperature and the efficiency,the acceptable process parameter of H1+5 wt.%T1 interlayer was 1240℃/2 h,and the room tem-perature shear strength reached 613 MPa.

Time-dependent effects in transient liquid phase bonding of 304L and Cp-Ti using an Ag-Cu interlayer

One of the challenges for bimetal manufacturing is the joining process.Hence,transient liquid phase(TLP)bonding was performed between 304L stainless steel and Cp-Ti using an Ag-Cu interlayer with a thickness of 75μm for bonding time of 20,40,60,and 90 min.The bonding temperature of 860℃ was considered,which is under the β transus temperature of Cp-Ti.During TLP bonding,various intermetallic compounds(IMCs),including Ti_(5)Cr_(7)Fe_(17),(Cr,Fe)_(2)Ti,Ti(Cu,Fe),Ti_(2)(Cu,Ag),and Ti_(2)Cu from 304L toward Cp-Ti formed in the joint.Also,on the one side,with the increase in time,further diffusion of elements decreases the blocky IMCs such as Ti_(5)Cr_(7)Fe_(17),(Cr,Fe)_(2)Ti,Ti(Cu,Fe)in the 304L diffusion-affected zone(DAZ)and reaction zone,and on the other side,Ti_(2)(Cu,Ag)IMC transformed into fine morphology toward Cp-Ti DAZ.The microhardness test also demonstrated that the(Cr,Fe)_(2)Ti+Ti_(5)Cr_(7)Fe_(17) IMCs in the DAZ on the side of 304L have a hardness value of HV 564,making it the hardest phase.The maximum and minimum shear strength values are equal to 78.84 and 29.0 MPa,respectively.The cleavage pattern dominated fracture surfaces due to the formation of brittle phases in dissimilar joints.

A two-step transient liquid phase diffusion bonding process of T91 steels

In this study, a two-step heating process is introduced for transient liquid phase （ TLP） diffusion bonding fo r sound joints with T91 heat resistant steels. At first, a short-time higher temperature heating step is addressed to melt the interlayer, followed by the second step to complete isothermal solidification at a low temperature. The most critical feature of our new method is producing a non-planar interface at the T9／ heat resistant steels joint. We propose a transitional liquid phase bonding of T91 heat resistant steels by this approach. Since joint microstructures have been studied, we tested the tensile strength to assess joint mechanical property. The result indicates that the solidified bond may contain a primary solid-solution, similar composition to the parent metal and free from precipitates. Joint tensile strength of the joint is not lower than parent materials. Joint bend＇s strengths are enhanced due to the higher metal-to-metal junction producing a non-planar bond lines. Nevertheless, the traditional transient liquid phase diffusion bonding produces planar ones. Bonding parameters of new process are 1 260 °C for 0. 5 min and 1 230 °C fo r 4 min.

Transient liquid phase bonding of Al 2024 to Ti-6Al-4V alloy using Cu-Zn interlayer

Transient liquid phase bonding of two dissimilar alloys Al 2024 and Ti?6Al?4V using Cu?22%Zn interlayer was carried out at 510 °C under vacuum of 0.01 Pa for various bonding time. In order to characterize the microstructure evolution in the joint zone, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) were applied. The results show that joint formation is attributed to the solid-state diffusion of Cu and Zn into Ti?6Al?4V and Al 2024 alloys followed by eutectic formation and isothermal solidification along the Cu?Zn/Al 2024 interface. The hardness of the joints at the interface increases with an increase in bonding time which can be attributed to formation of intermetallic compounds such as Al2Cu, TiCu3, Al4.2Cu3.2Zn0.7, Al0.71Zn0.29, Ti2Cu, TiAl3 and TiZn16 in the joint zone. Moreover, shear strength of the joint reaches the highest value of 37 MPa at bonding time of 60 min.

Microstructural and mechanical properties assessment of transient liquid phase bonding of CoCuFeMnNi high entropy alloy

The transient liquid phase(TLP)bonding of CoCuFeMnNi high entropy alloy(HEA)was studied.The TLP bonding was performed using AWS BNi-2 interlayer at 1050℃ with the TLP bonding time of 20,60,180 and 240 min.The effect of bonding time on the joint microstructure was characterized by SEM and EDS.Microstructural results confirmed that complete isothermal solidification occurred approximately at 240 min of bonding time.For samples bonded at 20,60 and 180 min,athermal solidification zone was formed in the bonding area which included Cr-rich boride and Mn3Si intermetallic compound.For all samples,theγsolid solution was formed in the isothermal solidification zone of the bonding zone.To evaluate the effect of TLP bonding time on mechanical properties of joints,the shear strength and micro-hardness of joints were measured.The results indicated a decrement of micro-hardness in the bonding zone and an increment of micro-hardness in the adjacent zone of joints.The minimum and maximum values of shear strength were 100 and 180 MPa for joints with the bonding time of 20 and 240 min,respectively.

Transient liquid phase bonding of TiC particulate reinforced magnesium metal matrix composite (TiC_p/AZ91D)

Microstructures and mechanical properties of transient liquid phase （TLP） bonded magnesium metal matrix composite （ MMC） joints using copper interlayer have been investigated. With an increase of bonding times from 5 min to 50 min at bonding temperature of 510 ℃ , the average concentration of copper in the bonded zone decreased, the microstructure in the zone changed from Cu, α-Mg and CuMg2 to α-Mg, CuMg2 and TiC, and mechanical properties of the joint increased. The shear strength of the joint bonded at 510 ℃ for 50 min reached 64 MPa due to the metallurgical bonding of the joint and improving its homogeneity of composition and microstructure. It is favorable to increase the bonding time for improving mechanical properties of TLP bonded magnesium MMC joint.

Interfacial reactions and diffusion path in partial transient liquid-phase bonding of Si_3N_4/Ti/Ni/Ti/Si_3N_4

The interfacial reactions in partial transient liquid-phase bonding of Si3N4 ceramics with Ti/Ni/Ti interlayers were studied by means of scanning electron microscopy （SEM）, energy dispersive spectrometry （EDS） and X-ray diffractometry （XRD）. It was shown that the interfacial structure of Si3N4/TiN/Ti5Si3+Ti5Si4 + Ni3Si/ （NiTi ） /Ni3Ti/ Ni was formed after bonding. The activation energies for TiN layer and the mixed reaction layer of Ti5Si3 + Ti5Si4 + Ni3Si are 546. 8 kJ/mol and 543. 9 kJ/mol, respectively. The formation and transition processes of interface layer sequence in the joint were clarified by diffusion path. An important characteristic, which is different from the conventional brazing and soid-state diffusion bonding, has been found, i. e., during the partial transient liquid-phase bonding, not only the reaction layers which have formed grow, but also the diffusion path in the subsequent reaction changes because of the remarkable variation of the concentration on the metal side.

Bonding of Al_2O_3 ceramic and Nb using transient liquid phase brazing

The brazing of Al 2O 3 to Nb was achieved by the method of transient liquid phase (TLP) bonding. Ti foil and Ni 5V alloy foil were used as interlayers for the bonding. The base materials were brazed at 1 4231 573 K for 1120 min. The results show that the shear strength of the joint first increases and then decreases with increasing holding time and brazing temperature. The joint interface microstructure and elements distribution were investigated. It can be concluded that a composite structure, in which the base metals are solid solution Nb(V) and Nb(Ti) reinforced by Ni 2Ti, is formed when the brazing temperature is 1 473 K and holding time 15 min, and a satisfactory joint strength can be achieved. The interaction of Ti foil and Ni 5V foil leads to the formation of liquid eutectic phase with low melting point, at the same time the combination of Ti come from the interlayer with O atoms from Al 2O 3 results in the bonding of Al 2O 3 and Nb.

Improvement of Joint Strength of SiCp/Al Metal Matrix Composite in Transient Liquid Phase Bonding Using Cu/Ni/Cu Film Interlayer

The compact oxide on the surface of SiCp/Al metal matrix composite （SiCp/Al MMC） greatly depends on the property of the joint. Inlaid sputtering target was applied to etch the oxide completely on the bonding surface of SiCp/Al MMC by plasma erosion. Cu/Ni/Cu film of 5μm in thickness was prepared by magnetron sputtering method on the clean bonding surface in the same vacuum chamber, which was acted as an interlayer in transient liquid phase （TLP） bonding process. Compared with the same thickness of single Cu foil and Ni foil interlayer, the shear strength of 200 MPa was obtained using Cu/Ni/Cu film interlayer during TLP bonding, which was 89.7% that of base metal. In addition, homogenization of the bonding region and no particle segregation in interfacial region were found by analysis of the joint microstructure. Scanning electron microscopy （SEM） was used to observe the micrograph of the joint interface. The result shows that a homogenous microstructure of joint was achieved, which is similar with that of based metal.

Dynamic study in partial transient liquid phase bonding of Si_3N_4

Dynamics in partial transient liquid phase bonding (PTLP bonding) of Si_3N_4 ceramic with Ti/Cu/Ti multi-interlayer was systematically studied through micro-analysis of joint interfaces. The results show that growth of reaction layer and isothermal solidification procession do at the same time. Growth of reaction layer and moving of isothermal solidification interface obey the parabolic law governed by the diffusion of participating elements during the PTLP bonding. Coordination of the above two dynamics process is done through time and temperature. When reaction layer thickness is suitable and isothermal solidification process is finished, the high bonding strength at room temperature and high temperature are obtained.

A study on the two-step transient liquid phase diffusion bonding of K640 superalloy

A new technology, the two-step transient liquid phase diffusion bonding （TLP-DB） technology for cobalt-based K640 superalloy, was investigated. The method consists of a short-time high temperature heating to melt interlayer followed by isothermal solidification of liquid phase at a lower temperature than that of the conventional TLP-DB. The result indicates that the two-step TLP-DB can reliably produce an ideal joint with uniform chemical composition, which is superior to the joint welded by conventional TLP-DB in microstructure and mechanical properties. Bonding parameters of new process are 1 250℃ for 0. 5 h and 1 180℃ for 3 h. The high-temperature tensile strength of the joint by two-step TLP-DB reaches 74% of that of the base material on an equal basis, but the high-temperature tensile strength of the joint by conventional TLP-DB is only 58% of that of the base material.

Cellular Automata Simulation of Gap-Filler Dissolution during Transient Liquid Phase Bonding of Single Crystal Materials

A new numerical model is developed using a Cellular Automata (CA) method to study the liquid-phase dissolution behavior of gap-filler powder particles in interlayer powder mixture during transient liquid phase (TLP) bonding process. The model prediction of microstructural evolution in TLP joint between single crystal substrates show that formation of misoriented stray-grains results from incomplete liquation of the gap-filler powder particles. In contrast to what is generally assumed and reported, numerical calculations coupled with experimental verification show that under properly selected process parameters, complete melting of the gap-filler powder particles is possible. This is imperative to prevent the formation of misoriented stray-grains and maintain single crystallinity during TLP bonding of single crystal materials. The dependence of complete melting of the gap-filler particles on salient TLP bonding parameters are analyzed and discussed.

Microstructure - properties relationship of transient liquid phase diffusion bonded a third generation single crystal super alloy joint

Microstructure of transient liquid phase( TLP) diffusion bonded a third generation single crystal superalloy joint was investigated using scanning electron microscopy( SEM),and mechanical properties test of joint was carried out,for obtaining relationship between microstructure and mechanical properties of joint. The results showed that the joint contained bonding zone and base metal. The diffusion zone was obviously observed. When it was not finished for isothermal solidification process,the bonding zone would contain isothermal solidification zone and rapid solidification zone. Metallographic examination revealed that isothermal solidification zone was consisted of γ and γ' phase. Rapid solidification zone was consisted of two different structures,which were ternary eutectic of borides,γ and γ' phase developing at the edge of joint,binary eutectic of γ and γ' phase appearing in the portion of joint. When it was not enough for homogenization process under the condition of finishing isothermal solidification process,the bonding zone would contain isothermal solidification zone and borides at the interface. Under the conditions of relatively high welding temperature and long welding time,average tensile strength of joint was equivalent to that of parent material.

Features of microstructure and fracture in the transient liquid phase bonded aluminium-based metal matrix composite joints

Transient liquid phase (TLP) bonded aluminium based metal matrix composite (MMC) joints can be classified into three distinct regions, i.e. the particulate segregation region, the denuded particulate region and the base material region. The microstructure of the particulate segregation region consists of alumina particulate and Al alloy matrix with the Al 2Cu and MgAl 2O 4. It contains more and smaller alumina particulates compared with the base material region. The TLP bonded joints have the tensile strength of 150 MPa ～200 MPa and the shear strength of 70 MPa ～100 MPa . With increasing tensile stress, cracks initiate in the particulate segregation region, especially in the particulate/particulate interface and the particulate/matrix interface, and propagate along particulate/matrix interface, througth thin matrix metal and by linking up the close cracks. The particulate segregation region is the weakest during tensile testing and shear testing due to obviously increased proportion of weak bonds (particulate particulate bond and particulate matrix bond).

Effect of gap size on microstructure of transient liquid phase bonded IN-738LC superalloy

In order to investigate the microstructure evolution and gain complete isothermal solidification time, transient liquid phase （TLP） bonding of IN-738LC superalloy was carried out using powdered AMS 4777 as the filler metal. The influence of gap size and bonding time on the joints was investigated. For example, complete isothermal solidification time for 40μm gap size was obtained as 45 min. In the case of lack of completion of isothermal solidification step, the remained molten interlayer cooled in the bonding zone under non-equilibrium condition andγ–γ′ eutectic phase formed in that area. The relationship between gap size and holding time was not linear. With the increase in gap size, eutectic phase width became thicker. In the diffusion affected zone, a much larger amount of alloying elements were observed reaching a peak. These peaks might be due to the formation of boride or silicide intermetallic. With the increase in gap size, the time required for bonding will increase, so the alloying elements have more time for diffusion and distribution in farther areas. As a result, concentrations of alloying elements decreased slightly with the increase in the gap size. The present bi-phasic model did not properly predict the complete isothermal solidification time for IN-738LC-AMS 4777-IN-738LC TLP bonding system.

Formation process, microstructure and mechanical property of transient liquid phase bonded aluminium-based metal matrix composite joint

The formation process, microstructure and mechanical properties of transient liquid phase (TLP) bonded aluminium based metal matrix composite (MMC) joint with copper interlayer were investigated. The formation process of the TLP joint comprises a number of stages: plastic deformation and solid diffusion (stage 1), dissolution of interlayer and base metal (stage 2), isothermal solidification (stage 3) and homogenization (stage 4). The microstructure of the joint depends on the joint formation process (distinct stages). The plastic deformation and solid diffusion in stage 1 favoure the intimate contact at interfaces and liquid layer formation. The microstructure of joint consists of aluminium solid solution, alumina particle, Al 2Cu and MgAl 2O 4 compounds in stage 2. The most pronounced feature of joint microstructure in stage 3 is the alumina particle segregation in the center of the joint. The increase of joint shear strength with increasing bonding temperature is mainly attributed to improving the fluidity and wettability of liquid phase and decreasing the amount of Al 2Cu brittle phase in the joint. The principal reason of higher bonding temperature (>600 ℃) resulting in lowering obviously the joint shear strength is the widening of alumina particle segregation region that acts as a preferential site for failure. The increase of joint shear strength with increasing holding time is mainly associated with decreasing the amount of Al 2Cu brittle phase and promoting homogenization of joint.

Interfacial Microstructure and Properties of Ti(C, N)/Ni Bonded by Transient Liquid-phase Diffusion

Effects of the main process parameters（temperature and time） on microstructure and properties of Ti（C, N）/Ni interface bonded by （Cu＋Nb） interlayer in a vacuum diffusion bonding device were investigated. The interfacial microstructures consisted initially of Ni3Nb metallic compound and eutectic of Ni3Nb ＋ CuNiss, and finally transformed to （Ti, Nb） （C, N）＋Ni3Nb near Ti （C, N） and NiCuss ＋ Ni3Nb near Ni when diffusion bonding temperature was 1 523-1 573 K. It was clear that Cu was a constituent in the transient liquid phase （TLP） into which Ni was dissolved by forming Cu-Ni transition liquid. Nb was dissolved in Cu-Ni transition liquid rapidly. Ti （C, N） conld be wetted by resultant Ni-Nb-Cu transient liquid phase which was followed by a little （Ti, Nb） （C, N） solid solution formed at interface. This increased the interface combining capability. Ultimately the interface shear strength was able to reach 140 MPa. The theoretle analysis and experimental results show that the growth of interfacial reaction layer Ni3Nb accords with parabola law, and the activation energy of diffusion reaction is 115.0±0.5 kJ/mol, while the diffusion reaction speed constant is 12.53 mm/s^1/2.

Microstructural evaluation of Hastelloy-X transient liquid phase bonded joints:Effects of filler metal thickness and holding time

Transient liquid phase(TLP)bonding was investigated in Hastelloy-X samples with different filler metal thicknesses(20,35,50,65,and 100μm)and holding time(5,20,80,320,and 640 min)to obtain optimum bonding parameters.Microstructural evaluations using electron probe microanalysis(EPMA)and electron backscattered diffraction(EBSD)show that the central eutectic phases present in the athermally solidified zone(ASZ)are Ni_(3)B,Ni_(2)Si,and CrB,and the precipitates formed in the diffusion-affected zone(DAZ)are MoB,CrB_(2),and Mo_(2)B_(5).According to the results,decreasing the filler thickness as well as increasing the holding time helps realize the completion of isothermal solidification and reduction in the density of precipitates in the DAZ,leading to a joint with more uniform properties.Diffusion of boron and silicon to longer distances with increasing holding time causes the removal of Cr-rich borides in the DAZ and the formation of Mo-rich silicide at the joint interface.Decrease in hardness of ASZ and DAZ due to the elimination of brittle phases in these zones during long holding time causes more uniform hardness distribution in the joint area.The best results are obtained for the sample joined with the 35μm-thick filler metal for 640 min holding time.

Interface evolution of TiAl/Ti6242 transient liquid phase joint using Ti, Cu foils as insert metals

The interface evolution of TiAl/Ti6242 joint produced by transient liquid phase(TLP) bonding with Ti, Cu foils as insert metals was investigated. The results show that the surface oxide layer on TiAl plays a very important role in the formation process of the joint. A ‘bridge’ effect is observed because of the presence of the oxide layer on the surface of TiAl. The diffusion behavior of Cu atoms in TiAl is strongly controlled by the vacancies beneath the surface of TiAl. Based on the interface diffusion and interface wettability, a mechanism for the effect of bonding pressure, bonding temperature, holding time and stacking sequence of the insert foils on the joint formation process were proposed.

Effect of the formation process of transient liquid phase (TLP) on the interface structure of TiAl joints

TiAl has been joined employing the transient liquid phase （TLP） bonding with Ti combined with Cu, Ni or Fe foils. Experimental results showed that though the interface structures of the joints are quite different, all the joined zones are composed of five sublayers, i.e. two diffusion zones, two interfacial zones and an interlayer. It has been convinced that the formation process of the transient liquid phase controls the diffusion behavior of melting point depressant （MPD） Cu, Ni, and Fe atoms, which leads to form different interface structures of the joints.