Effect of solidification parameters on the microstructures of a single crystal Ni-based superalloy AM3

A single crystal Ni-based superalloy AM3 was processed at withdraw rates of 3.5, 10, 50, 100, 200, and 500 μm·s-1, respectively.The as-cast microstructures and solidification segregation ratio were characterized with various withdraw rates.The shape and size of carbide microstructures were determined.As expected, the primary and secondary dendrite arm spacings (PDAS and SDAS) decrease with the increase of withdraw rate.The highest volume fraction of eutectic γ/γ' is observed at the 100 μm·s-1 withdraw rate.The volume fraction of eutectic γ/γ' does not appear to be a strong function of the withdraw rate.With increasing withdraw rate, interface morphologies change in the sequence of planar, cellular, and dendrite.There is a general refinement of the microstructure as the withdraw rate increases.EPMA analysis showed that withdraw rate does not have obvious influence on the segregation of elements.

Effect of carbon additions on the microstructure of a single crystal Ni-based superalloy AM3

The microstructure of experimental nickel-base single crystal superalloys with different levels of carbon has been studied. The results indicated that with increasing carbon addition, the liquidus temperature decreased obviously and the as-cast microstructures exhibited a decrease in the amount of γ/γ′ eutectic structure and an increase in the volume fraction of carbides. The carbides formed in these alloys were most script-type MC carbides which appeared continuous dendritic networks in the interdendritic region. The segregation behavior of element W was influenced by the carbon addition.

An anisotropic micromechanics model for predicting the rafting direction in Ni-based single crystal superalloys

An anisotropic micromechanics model based on the equivalent inclusion method is developed to investigate the rafting direction of Ni-based single crystal superalloys. The micromechanical model considers actual cubic structure and orthogonal anisotropy properties. The von Mises stress, elastic strain energy density, and hydrostatic pressure in dif- ferent inclusions of micromechanical model are calculated when applying a tensile or compressive loading along the [001] direction. The calculated results can successfully pre- dict the rafting direction for alloys exhibiting a positive or a negative mismatch, which are in agreement with pervious experimental and theoretical studies. Moreover, the elastic constant differences and mismatch degree of the matrix and precipitate phases and their influences on the rafting direction are carefully discussed.

MICROMECHANICS OF THE DAMAGE-INDUCED CELLULAR MICROSTRUCTURE IN SINGLE CRYSTAL Ni-BASED SUPERALLOYS

An analytical method to investigate the morphological evolution of the cellular mi-crostructure is explored and proposed. The method is essentially based on the Es-helby 's micromechanics theory, and it is extended so as to be applied for a material system containing inclusions with high volume fraction, by employing the average stress field approximation by Mori and Tanaka. The proposed method enables us to discuss a stable shape of precipitate in the material system, which must be influenced by many factors: e.g., volume fraction of precipitate; Young's modulus ratio and lattice misfit between matrix and precipitate; external stress field in multiaxial state; and heterogeneity of plastic strain between matrix and precipitate. A series of numerical calculations were summarized on stable shape maps. The application of the method to predict the γ' rafting in superalloys during creep showed that the heterogeneity of plastic strain between matrix and precipitates may play a significant role in the shape stability of the precipitate. Furthermore, it was shown that the method was successfully applied to estimate the morphology of the cellular microstructure formed in CMSX-4 single crystal Ni-based superalloy.

Corrosion behavior of single-and poly-crystalline dual-phase TiAl–Ti3Al alloy in NaCl solution

To clarify the correlation of single-crystalline structure with corrosion performance in high-strength TiAl alloys, electrochemical and surface characterization was performed by comparing Ti–45Al–8Nb dual-phase single crystals with their polycrystalline counterparts in NaCl solution. Polarization curves show a lower corrosion rate and a higher pitting potential of ~280 mV for the dual-phase single crystals. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy and potentiostatic polarization plots revealed a higher impedance of the charge transfer through the compact passive film. Surface composition analysis indicated a compact film with more content of Nb, as twice as that in the film on the polycrystals.Our results reflect that the dual-phase Ti–45Al–8Nb single crystals possess a higher corrosion resistance in NaCl solution, compared with their polycrystalline counterpart, arising from a more homogeneous microstructure and composition distribution.

Effect of solidification rate on MC-type carbide morphology in single crystal Ni-base superalloy AM3

In order to study the effect of the withdrawing rate on carbide morphology,MC-type carbide in single crystal superalloy AM3 was systematically investigated with sample growth rates from 3.5 μm/s to 500 μm/s.The carbide morphologies were investigated by scanning electron microscopy(SEM),and the electron probe microanalysis(EPMA) was used to characterize the carbide composition.The results indicate that the solidification rate is the important factor governing MC carbide growth morphology,size and distribution,composition and growth mechanism.With the increase of withdrawing rate,nodular,rod-like,Chinese script types of carbide morphology are observed.For the low withdrawing rate,with the increase of withdrawing rate,the carbide size becomes larger.For the case of dendritic interface,the carbide size becomes smaller with refinement of dendrites as withdrawing rate increases.The volume fraction of carbides increases with the withdrawing rate increasing.

Effects of directional solidification parameters and crystal selector on microstructure of single crystal of Ni-base superalloys

The single crystal of nickel-base super alloy is widely used for making turbine blades.The microstructure of the alloy,especially the deviation of preferred orientation of single crystal,possesses the most important effects on the mechanical properties of the blades.In this study,the single crystal ingot and blade of DZ417G alloy are prepared by means of the spiral crystal selector as well as the directional solidification method,and the effect of the parameters(i.e.,the shape of samples,the withdrawal rate)and the structure of the spiral crystal selector on the formation of single crystal and the crystal orientation are investigated.This method can prepare not only the single crystal ingot with simple shape but also the single crystal blades with the complex shape,the simple with rod-shape can form the single crystal easily with a relatively fast withdrawal rate,but the blade with complex shape requires much slower withdrawal rate to form single crystal.The length of the crystal selector almost has no effect on the crystal orientation.However,the angle of selector plays an obvious role on the orientation;the selector with a smaller angle can effectively reduce the deviation of preferred orientation;the appropriate angle of selector to obtain optimal orientation is found to be around30°and the deviation of preferred orientation is about30°for this selector.

Effects of loading rate and peak load on nanoindentation creep behavior of DD407 Ni-base single crystal superalloy

Nanoindentation experiments were conducted under loading rates of 500–6000μN/s and applied peak loads of 4000-12000μN to measure the creep behavior of DD407 Ni-base single crystal superalloy at room temperature.Experimental results demonstrated that DD407 Ni-base single crystal superalloy had a good creep resistance,but its creep properties were sensitive to the loading rate and peak load.The fitting creep parameters significantly increased with increasing loading rate and peak load based on the Findley’s model,and the corresponding creep mechanism was governed by dislocation based on the calculation of creep stress exponent.During nanoindentation creep tests,it was found that the hardness and reduced modulus decreased with increasing the loading rate and peak load,and through a dimensionless analysis,it was also noted that the effect of the dimensionless loading rate was stronger than that of dimensionless peak load on the creep properties.

Structural Dependence of Creep/Fatigue Behaviour of Single Crystal Ni-base Superalloy

The effect of different initial microstructures deftned by γ' precipitate morphology has been investigated at the creep/fatigue conditions of 900℃ and 500 MPa. The wave form of stress as a function of time for cyclic load was of trapezoidal shape with a hold time of 10s at the upper stress level. The TEM was employed to examine the deformation process in strengthened γ' matrix in dependence of γ' precipitate morphology. The fracture lifetime and cycle number up to fracture were the criteria to evaluate the additional cyclic component efFect on the course of deformation

Effect of Ru on stress rupture properties of nickel-based single crystal superalloy at high temperature

Two experimental single crystal superalloys, Ru-free alloy and Ru-containing alloy with [001] orientation, other alloying element contents being basically kept same, were cast in the directionally solidified furnace. The effect of Ru on the stress rupture properties of the single crystal superalloy was investigated at （980 ℃, 250 MPa）, （1100 ℃, 140 MPa） and （1120 ℃, 140 MPa）. The results show that Ru can enhance high temperature stress rupture properties of single crystal superalloy. The improvement effect of Ru addition on stress rupture properties decreases with increasing test temperature. The γ′ coarsening and rafting directionally are observed in Ru-free alloy and Ru-containing alloy after stress rupture test. Needle shaped TCP phases precipitated in both of alloys after stress rupture test at （1100 ℃, 140 MPa） and （1120 ℃, 140 MPa） and no TCP phase was observed in both of alloys after stress rupture test （980 ℃, 250 MPa）. The precipitate volume fraction of TCP phases is significantly decreased by the addition of Ru. At last, the relationship between the microstructure change with Ru addition and improvement of stress rupture properties was discussed.

Isothermal oxidation behavior of single crystal superalloy DD6

The isothermal oxidation behavior of the second generation single crystal superalloy DD6 was studied at 1050 ℃ and 1100 ℃ in ambient atmosphere.Morphology of oxides was examined by SEM and their composition was analyzed by XRD and EDS.The experimental results show that DD6 alloy obeys subparabolic rate law during oxidation of 100 h at 1050 ℃ and 1100 ℃.The oxide scale exposed at 1050 ℃ is made up of an outer NiO layer with a small amount of Al2O3 and an inner Al2O3 layer.The oxide scale exposed at 1100 ℃ is made up of an outer Al2O3 layer with a small amount of NiO,an intermediate layer,mainly composed of Cr2O3 and TaO2,and an inner Al2O3 layer.The γ＇-free layer was formed under the oxide scale at two temperatures.

MC CARBIDE FLOATATION IN A HOT CORROSION RESISTANT SINGLE CRYSTAL Ni-BASE SUPERALLOY DURING DIRECTIONAL SOLIDIFICATION

The floating phenomenon of MC carbide(TiC)in a hot corrosion resistant single crystal Ni-base superalloy was observed during planar and cellular interface directional solidification.The explanation about the phenomenon is presented.

Superb creep lives of Ni-based single crystal superalloy through size effects and strengthening heterostructure γ/γ' interfaces

This study presents a design strategy to enhance the high-temperature creep resistance of Ni-based superalloys.This strategy focuses on two principles:(1)minimizing the dimensions ofγ/γ′interfaces andγchannels by reducing the size of theγ′phase;(2)key alloy composition control to strengthen the heterostructureγ/γ′interfaces.This strategy proved very effective by the designed three superalloys'prolonged creep lives.An alloy exhibits ultra-long creep life by 388 h at 1100°C/137 MPa,which runs at the highest level among those alloys without Ru addition.With Ru addition,an alloy that lasted for 748 h with a creep strain of~6%at 1110°C/137 MPa is developed.This study provides a new route of high-temperature creep lives through heterostructure interfacial design with size effects and key alloying elements.

Effects of Ru on the microstructure and phase stability of a single crystal superalloy

Two experimental single crystal superalloys, the Ru-free alloy and the Ru-containing alloy with [001 ] orientation, were cast in a directionally solidified furnace, while other alloying element contents were kept unchanged. The effects of Ru on the microstructure and phase stability of the single crystal superalloy were investigated, y＇ directional coarsening and rafting were observed in the Ru-free alloy and Ru-containing alloy after long-term aging at 1070~C for 800 h. Needle-shaped o topologically close packed （TCP） phases precipitated and grew along the fixed direction in both the alloys. The precipitating rate and volume fraction of TCP phases decreased significantly by adding Ru. The compositions ofy and y＇ phases measured using an energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscope （EDS） in transmission electron microscopy （TEM） analysis showed that the addition of Ru lessened the partition ratio of TCP forming elements, Re, W and Mo, and decreased the satu- ration degrees of these elements in y phase, which can enable the Ru-containing alloy to be more resistant to the formation of TCP phases. It is indicated that the addition of Ru to the Ni-based single crystal superalloy with high content of the refractory alloying element can enhance phase stability.

Microstructual evolution and stability of second generation single crystal nickel-based superalloy DD5

The microstructual evolution and stability of a second generation single crystal (SC) nickel-based superalloy DD5 with minor grain boundary (GB) strengthening elements (C, B and Hf) were studied as a function of as-cast, heat treatment and thermal exposure. The microstructure and composition of the alloy were investigated by optical microscopy, scanning electron microanalysis (SEM), electron probe microanalysis (EPMA), energy dispersive spectrometry (EDS) and extraction analysis. In the as-cast condition,the microstructure observations and composition analysis showed that γ phase was the primary solidification phase and there were three microsegregations in the metal matrix. The morphology of these microsegregations depended on element segregations. After heat treatment, the dendrite cores contained fine and cuboidal-shaped γ′ particles with an average edge length of about 0.5 μm, whileinterdendritic regions contained irregularly-shaped γ′ particles and MC/M23C6 carbides. The mass fraction of γ′ phases was 61.685%.After exposure at 980 °C for 1000 h, no TCP phase was observed in both dendritic and interdendritic regions, indicating a good microstructual stability of the DD5 alloy at 980 °C.

DENDRITE REFINING AND EUTECTIC TRANSFORMATION BEHAVIOR OF NICKEL-BASE SINGLE CRYSTAL (NBSC) SUPERALLOY

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Microstructural Stability of a Single Crystal Superalloy DD8 during Thermal Exposure

Microstructural stability of a nickel base single crystal alloy DD8 has been investigated.Standard heat treated specimen showed good microstructural stability at 950℃.While under the as-cast condition,a kind of rod-like phase precipitated in the interdendritic region of as-cast specimen during thermal exposure.The phase,which has bcc structure,was enriched with Cr.Thermo-calc also predicted precipitation of a bcc phase at around 950℃.The Cr-rich bcc phase was considered asα-Cr and formed due to the segregation of Cr under the as-cast condition.

Effect of long-term thermal exposure on microstructure and creep properties of DD5 single crystal superalloy

The effect of thermal exposure on the microstructure and creep properties of the Ni-based single crystal superalloy in different test conditions was studied.Long-term exposure was performed at 1,000 ℃ and 1,100 ℃ for 500 h prior to the creep tests.The creep lifetime is found to be improved after the long-term exposure at 1,000 ℃ for 500 h as a result of the formation of secondary M_(23)C_(6) in the interdendritic region.The coarsening of γ’ precipitates accompanied by the formation of TCP phase lead to the degradation of alloy,which is responsible for the reduction of the creep lifetime of Ni-base single crystal superalloy after long-term exposure at 1,100 ℃ for 500 h.The creep lifetime of 1,000 oC thermally exposed sample under the conditions of 1,093 ℃/137 MPa is lower than that of heat-treated state.Thermal exposure at 1,100 ℃ for 500 h causes the creep lifetime to drop drastically.

Three-dimensional constitutive model for magneto-mechanical deformation of NiMnGa ferromagnetic shape memory alloy single crystals

Existing experimental results have shown that four types of physical mechanisms, namely, martensite transformation, martensite reorientation, magnetic domain wall motion and magnetization vector rotation, can be activated during the magneto-mechanical deformation of NiMnGa ferromagnetic shape memory alloy (FSMA) single crystals. In this work, based on irreversible thermodynamics, a three-dimensional (3D) single crystal constitutive model is constructed by considering the aforementioned four mechanisms simultaneously. Three types of internal variables, i.e., the volume fraction of each martensite variant, the volume fraction of magnetic domain in each variant and the deviation angle between the magnetization vector, and easy axis are introduced to characterize the magneto-mechanical state of the single crystals. The thermodynamic driving force of each mechanism and the thermodynamic constraints on the constitutive model are obtained from Clausius's dissipative inequality and constructed Gibbs free energy. Then, thermodynamically consistent kinetic equations for the four mechanisms are proposed, respectively. Finally, the ability of the proposed model to describe the magneto-mechanical deformation of NiMnGa FSMA single crystals is verified by comparing the predictions with corresponding experimental results. It is shown that the proposed model can quantitatively capture the main experimental phenomena. Further, the proposed model is used to predict the deformations of the single crystals under the non-proportional mechanical loading conditions.

Research on Interlayer Alloys for Transient Liquid Phase Diffusion Bonding of Single Crystal Nickel Base Superalloy DD6

Transient Liquid Phase Diffusion bonding (TLP bonding) is an effective method to achieve excellent joint of DD6, which is a new generation single crystal superalloy to manufacture aero-engine turbine blades. In this paper, the interlayer alloys for DD6 TLP bonding were designed. The alloy foils with thickness 40 μm ~ 60 μm, width 4 mm were prepared by using a single roller rapid solidification apparatus and the TLP bonding of DD6 was conducted. Then the joint microstructure and alloying elements diffusion behaviors were analyzed. The results indicate that microstructures of interlayer alloys prepared are fine and homogeneous, the melting point range of alloys from 1070°C to 1074°C and their melting temperature interval is merely 20°C, when the chemical composition of alloys are 1.5 ~ 2.0Cr, 3.2 ~ 4.0W, 3.7 ~ 4.5Co, 2.2 ~ 3.0Al, 0.7 ~ 1.0Mo, 3.2B, remain Ni (wt%). When the welding parameters are bonding temperature 1200?C, holding time 8.0 hour and welding pressure 0.3 MPa, the compacted joints obtained and the microstructure of TLP bonding seams were similar to base metal. The bonding joint is composed of weld center zone, isothermal solidification zone and diffusion-affected zone. Within joint, the elements diffusion is sufficient and borides in the diffusion zone are fewer.