NiTi形状记忆合金动态压缩力学行为的实验研究

采用材料试验机和SHPB实验技术,对在不同初始温度(298～873K)和应变率(5×10-4、～2.3×103s-1)下的NiTi形状记忆合金的压缩力学行为进行了实验研究。结果表明:马氏体状态下的NiTi合金的力学行为对应变率的变化敏感,位错屈服段的硬化模量、相屈服段的硬化模量及马氏体重取向前的弹性模量对应变率的变化不敏感,而位错塑性变形前的弹性模量随应变率的提高迅速增大;奥氏体状态下的NiTi合金随着实验温度升高,无论是应力诱发马氏体相变应力还是奥氏体相屈服应力都逐渐下降,材料表现出温度软化效应。从超弹性温度范围内的卸载曲线中观察到了应力诱发马氏体到奥氏体的逆转变。     

梯度纳米晶NiTi形状记忆合金的超弹性和形状记忆效应相场模拟

通过建立考虑两个马氏体变体的二维相场模型,对梯度纳米晶镍钛(NiTi)合金系统的超弹性、单程和应力辅助双程形状记忆过程进行了模拟和预测.模拟结果显示: 在梯度纳米晶NiTi合金的超弹性过程中,较粗晶粒的区域保留了传统粗晶的马氏体相变和逆相变特征,即局部马氏体带的形核-扩展和缩减-消失, 而随着晶粒尺寸的减小,细晶粒区域表现为均匀相变的特点, 即无局部马氏体带产生; 此外,在超弹性和形状记忆过程中,马氏体相变和重取向都首先在较粗晶粒区域开始并逐步向细晶粒区域传播,而逆相变则相反.马氏体相变和重取向的逐步扩展使梯度纳米晶NiTi合金的应力-应变和应变-温度曲线呈现出“硬化状”,其可归因于纳米多晶NiTi合金中马氏体相变对晶粒尺寸的依赖性,即随着晶粒尺寸的减小, 相变或重取向壁垒逐渐增大,马氏体相变或重取向的形核、扩展越来越困难. 可见,梯度纳米晶结构具有比传统均匀晶粒尺寸NiTi合金更宽的相变应力区间、重取向应力区间和相变温度区间,可显著提高该合金非弹性变形的可控性.      

纳米单晶NiTi合金单程形状记忆效应的分子动力学模拟

采用基于第二近邻修正型嵌入原子势的分子动力学方法研究了纳米单晶NiTi合金的单程形状记忆效应,详细阐明了温度诱发马氏体相变和应力诱发马氏体重定向过程中纳米单晶的变形行为和微结构演化,进一步分析了加/卸载速率对NiTi合金单程形状记忆效应的影响。结果表明,NiTi纳米单晶在应力加载过程中发生马氏体重定向,卸载后存在残余应变;当加热到奥氏体转变结束温度以上时,马氏体逆相变为奥氏体相,残余应变逐渐减小,但未完全回复;随着应力加载速率的增加,重定向临界应力和模量逐渐增加;再次降温过程中不同加载速率下的原子结构演化各不相同。     

纳米单晶NiTi合金单程形状记忆效应的分子动力学模拟

采用基于第二近邻修正型嵌入原子势的分子动力学方法研究了纳米单晶NiTi合金的单程形状记忆效应，详细阐明了温度诱发马氏体相变和应力诱发马氏体重定向过程中纳米单晶的变形行为和微结构演化，进一步分析了加/卸载速率对NiTi合金单程形状记忆效应的影响。结果表明，NiTi纳米单晶在应力加载过程中发生马氏体重定向，卸载后存在残余应变；当加热到奥氏体转变结束温度以上时，马氏体逆相变为奥氏体相，残余应变逐渐减小，但未完全回复；随着应力加载速率的增加，重定向临界应力和模量逐渐增加；再次降温过程中不同加载速率下的原子结构演化各不相同。     

NiTi合金力学和阻尼性质研究及伪弹性退化分析

试验考察了NiTi合金在不同应变幅值循环载荷作用下的力学特性和阻尼性能,并引入了残余内应力分析伪弹性退化机理。用马氏体相变开始应力、残余应变等参数表征NiTi合金伪弹性特征,用等效阻尼比表征NiTi合金的阻尼性能。试验结果分析表明:应变幅值增加会加快NiTi合金伪弹性随循环次数的退化;当应变幅值处于马氏体相变开始和结束应变之间时,不同应变幅值下NiTi合金的马氏体相变平台随循环次数增加同步降低,且当NiTi合金在相变中段卸载时其阻尼性能最好;结合残余内应力与残余应变正相关线性关系可分析NiTi合金伪弹性退化内在机理。该研究可为循环载荷下NiTi合金伪弹性行为的准确描述提供依据,并可为NiTi合金阻尼器的设计提供参考。     

应变幅值对循环载荷下NiTi合金力学性质的影响

实验研究了应变幅值对循环载荷下NiTi合金伪弹性退化特征的影响规律,结果表明:当卸载发生在NiTi合金应力诱发马氏体相变阶段时,应变幅值对马氏体相变开始应力的退化规律影响较小,但此时应变幅值的增加会显著增大奥氏体弹性模量的退化程度,而其大变形可回复能力和阻尼特性在应变幅值大于6%时才有大幅度降低。对各参数退化程度进行定量分析,得到了NiTi合金具有较强可回复能力和阻尼性能的应变幅值范围。该研究可为NiTi合金阻尼器的设计提供参考。     

应力引起的镍钛单晶形状记忆合金相变的实验研究

在单晶形状记忆合金试样中，由于没有晶粒之间的约束，它的马氏体相界面移动比多晶容易，用实验方法研究其相变的特点，对建立新的理论模型有意义，因而对它的实验分析显得重要。本文利用高分辨率的CCD系统监测到NiTi单晶形状记忆合金在拉伸时的相变伪弹性的过程；利用X射线衍射法得到了NiTi单晶试样在拉伸方向的晶向；运用高分辨率的云纹干涉技术，获得了应力引起的NiTi单晶形状记忆合金相变时的变形场；利用高分辨率、高灵敏度的红外相机记录了NiTi单晶在拉伸状态下的温度变化规律；对低温下NiTi单晶的拉伸性能做了初步的研究，得到一些有意义的现象。     

具有层状微观结构的NiTi单晶本构模型

建立了应力诱发的具有层状微观结构的NiTi单晶本构模型. 模型考虑母相和马氏体相弹性各向异性性质的差异, 以NiTi单晶相变过程中可能出现的24个马氏体变体为基础, 利用相变驱动力和理想界面的连续条件推导了马氏体相变的发生及发展过程, 以及单晶相变过程中宏微观应力应变的演化, 数值模拟了在不同加载方向材料的应力应变响应.结果表明, 对于不同的加载方向, NiTi单晶既存在强化也存在软化现象.      

超弹性形状记忆合金管单向拉伸试验的数值模拟

NiTi形状记忆合金具有很强的超弹性行为，这种超弹性行为是由于材料在应力作用下发生可逆的马氏体相变所引起。最近Sun和Lee^[4]在NiTi形状记忆合金管单向拉伸试验中观测到，应力诱导马氏体相变具有螺旋带状的形貌特征，本文对此作了数值模拟研究。采用包含应变软化效应的三线性本构关系，建立了NiTi形状记忆合金管的三维有限元模型。通过迭代计算，成功地再现了试验中所观察到的螺旋状相变带从形成到长大的全过程。数值计算结果表明，产生这一独特现象的力学机制，在于NiTi形状记忆合金管在拉伸状态下出现的局部变形失稳极其传播。     

NiTi合金伪弹性退化规律及尺度效应的试验研究

以NiTi合金在结构振动控制中的应用为背景,试验研究了加卸载循环次数和直径尺度对NiTi合金丝伪弹性特征的影响规律。研究结果表明,NiTi合金丝的残余应变随循环次数的增加呈指数关系增加,而其马氏体相变开始应力、奥氏体弹性模量、相变应变和等效阻尼比随循环次数的增加呈指数关系降低;随着直径尺度增加,循环加卸载后,NiTi合金丝的伪弹性退化程度显著增加。此外,残余应变与残余内应力、奥氏体弹性模量以及相变应变之间的线性关系揭示了NiTi合金伪弹性退化的内在机理。     

Experimental investigation on macroscopic domain formation and evolution in polycrystalline NiTi microtubing under mechanical force

This paper reports the experimental results on macroscopic deformation instability and domain morphology evolution during stress-induced austenite → martensite (A→M) phase transformation in superelastic NiTi polycrystalline shape memory alloy microtubes. High-speed data and image acquisition techniques were used to investigate the dynamic and quasi-static events which took place in a displacement-controlled quasi-static tensile loading/unloading process of the tube. These events include dynamic formation, self-merging, topology transition, convoluted front motion and front instability of a macroscopic deformation domain. The reported phenomena brought up several fundamental issues regarding the roles of macroscopic domain wall energy and kinetics as well as their interplay with the bulk strain energy of the tube in the observed morphology instability and pattern evolution under a mechanical force. These issues are believed to be essential elements in the theoretical modeling of macroscopic deformation patterns in polycrystals and need systematic examination in the future.     

Stress-induced transformation behavior of a polycrystalline NiTi shape memory alloy: micro and macromechanical investigations via in situ optical microscopy

An experimental investigation of the micro and macromechanical transformation behavior of polycrystalline NiTi shape memory alloys was undertaken. Special attention was paid to macroscopic banding, variant microstructure, effects of cyclic loading, strain rate and temperature effects. Use of an interference filter on the microscope enabled observation of grain boundaries and martensitic plate formation and growth without recourse to etching or other chemical surface preparation. Key results of the experiments on the NiTi include observation of localized plastic deformation after only a few cycles, excellent temperature and stress relaxation correlation, a refined definition of “full transformation” for polycrystalline materials, and strain rate dependent effects. Several of these findings have critical implications for understanding and modeling of shape memory alloy behavior.     

纳米多晶NiTi形状记忆合金超弹性的晶粒取向依赖性相场研究

本文基于Ginzburg-Landau理论,建立了一个反映纳米多晶NiTi形状记忆合金取向依赖性的二维多晶相场模型,研究了晶粒取向对其超弹性性能的影响。结果表明,纳米多晶NiTi形状记忆合金的超弹性行为依赖于晶粒取向分布,即：多晶模型中在所研究的参数变化范围内,晶粒取向分布范围越广、晶粒间取向差越大（无明显织构）,超弹性性能越差;而晶粒取向分布范围越窄、晶粒间取向差越小（织构越强）,超弹性性能越好。该晶粒取向依赖性可解释为：由于晶粒取向的不同,马氏体相变过程中相邻晶粒间的变形不匹配程度不同,因此,多晶模型中在所研究的参数变化范围内,晶粒间取向差异越大,晶界处的变形失配越严重,由此而产生的局部内应力将阻碍其附近马氏体相变的扩展,进而导致纳米多晶NiTi形状记忆合金超弹性性能下降。     

The role of texture in tension–compression asymmetry in polycrystalline NiTi

The purpose of the present study is to thoroughly understand the stress–strain behavior of polycrystalline NiTi deformed under tension versus compression. To do this, a micro-mechanical model is used which incorporates single crystal constitutive relationships and experimentally measured polycrystalline texture into the self-consistent formulation. For the first time it is quantitatively demonstrated that texture measurements coupled with a micro-mechanical model can accurately predict tension/compression asymmetry in NiTi shape memory alloys. The predicted critical transformation stress levels and transformation stress–strain slopes under both tensile and compressive loading are consistent with experimental results. For textured polycrystalline NiTi deformed under tension it is demonstrated that the martensite evolution is very abrupt, consistent with the Luders type deformation experimentally observed. The abrupt transformation under tension is attributed to the fact that the majority of the grains are oriented along the [111] crystallographic direction, which is soft under tensile loading. Since single crystals of the [111] orientation are hard under compression it is also demonstrated that under compression the martensite in textured polycrystalline NiTi evolves relatively slower.     

Experimental characterization and micromechanical modeling of superelastic response of a porous NiTi shape-memory alloy

Porous shape-memory alloys are usually brittle due to the presence of various nickel-titanium intermetallic compounds that are produced in the course of most commonly used synthesizing techniques. We consider here a porous NiTi shape-memory alloy (SMA), synthesized by spark-plasma sintering, that is ductile and displays full shape-memory effects over the entire appropriate range of strains. The porosity however is only 12% but the basic synthesizing technique has potential for producing shape-memory alloys with greater porosity that still are expected to display superelasticity and shape-memory effects. The current material has been characterized experimentally using quasi-static and dynamic tests at various initial temperatures, mostly within the superelastic strain range, but also into the plastic deformation regime of the stress-induced martensite phase. To obtain a relatively constant strain rate in the high strain-rate tests, a novel pulse-shaping technique is introduced. The results of the quasi-static experiments are compared with the predictions by a model that can be used to calculate the stress-strain response of porous NiTi shape-memory alloys during the austenite-to-martensite and reverse phase transformations in uniaxial quasi-static loading and unloading at constant temperatures. In the austenite-to-martensite transformation, the porous shape-memory alloy is modeled as a three-phase composite with the parent phase (austenite) as the matrix and the product phase (martensite) and the voids as the embedded inclusions, reversing the roles of austenite and martensite during the reverse transformation from fully martensite to fully austenite phase. The criterion of the stress-induced martensitic transformation and its reversal is based on equilibrium thermodynamics, balancing the thermodynamic driving force for the phase transformation, associated with the reduction of Gibbs’ free energy, with the resistive force corresponding to the required energy to create new interface surfaces and to overcome the energy barriers posed by various microstructural obstacles. The change in Gibbs’ free energy that produces the driving thermodynamic force for phase transformation is assumed to be due to the reduction of mechanical potential energy corresponding to the applied stress, and the reduction of the chemical energy corresponding to the imposed temperature. The energy required to overcome the resistance imposed by various nano- and subnano-scale defects and like barriers, is modeled empirically, involving three constitutive constants that are then fixed based on the experimental data. Reasonably good correlation is obtained between the experimental and model predictions.     

Computational modeling of size-dependent superelasticity of shape memory alloys

We propose a nonlocal continuum model to describe the size-dependent superelastic responses observed in recent experiments of shape memory alloys. The modeling approach extends a superelasticity formulation based on the martensitic volume fraction, and combines it with gradient plasticity theories. Size effects are incorporated through two internal length scales, an energetic length scale and a dissipative length scale, which correspond to the gradient terms in the free energy and the dissipation, respectively. We also propose a computational framework based on a variational formulation to solve the coupled governing equations resulting from the nonlocal superelastic model. Within this framework, a robust and scalable algorithm is implemented for large scale three-dimensional problems. A numerical study of the grain boundary constraint effect shows that the model is able to capture the size-dependent stress hysteresis and strain hardening during the loading and unloading cycles in polycrystalline SMAs.