Nucleation of deformation twins in nanocrystalline fcc alloys

An earlier dislocation model for predicting the grain size effect on deformation twinning in nanocrystalline (nc) face-centred-cubic (fcc) metals has been found valid for pure metals but problematic for alloys. The problem arises from the assumption that the stacking-fault energy (γ_SF) is twice the coherent twin-boundary energy (γ_fcc), which is approximately correct for pure fcc metals, but not for alloys. Here we developed a modified dislocation model to explain the deformation twinning nucleation in fcc alloy systems, where γ_SF ≠ 2γ_twin. This model can explain the differences in the formations of deformation twins in pure metals and alloys, which is significant in low stacking-fault energy alloys. We also describe the procedure to calculate the optimum grain size for twinning in alloy systems and present a method to estimate γ_twin.     

Effect of twinning on recrystallisation textures in deformed magnesium alloy AZ31

The evolution of texture during the tensile deformation of Mg–3.1%Al–1.05%Zn was studied by microtexture and macrotexture techniques. The deformation texture is shown to be the direct consequence of the variant selection that occurs during primary (contraction) and secondary (extension) twinning. During subsequent annealing, the secondary twins have a higher rate of nucleation than the primary twins and expanded within the latter rather than in the matrix grains. As a result, the primary twins did not contribute significantly to the annealing texture.     

Grain boundary relaxation in fine-grained magnesium solid solutions

Grain boundary relaxation at elevated temperatures in fine-grained pure magnesium and Mg–Al solid solutions was investigated by measuring damping capacity at low frequencies. A sharp increase in damping capacity caused by grain boundary relaxation was observed at above a certain temperature. The onset temperature depended on aluminum content; the onset temperature increased with aluminum content. It was demonstrated that aluminum was effective in suppressing grain boundary relaxation in magnesium alloys. However, additional measurement of the damping capacity of a dilute Mg–Y alloy revealed that yttrium was more effective in suppressing grain boundary relaxation.     

Alloying effect on grain-size dependent deformation twinning in nanocrystalline Cu–Zn alloys

Grain-size dependency of deformation twinning has been previously reported in nanocrystalline face-centred-cubic metals, which results in an optimum grain-size range for twin formation. Here, we report, for the first time in experiments, the observed optimum grain sizes for deformation twins in nanocrystalline Cu–Zn alloys which slightly increase with increasing Zn content. This result agrees with the reported trend but is much weaker than predicted by stacking-fault-energy based models. Our results indicate that alloying changes the relationship between the stacking-fault and twin-fault energy and therefore affects the optimum grain size for deformation twinning. These observations should be also applicable to other alloy systems.     

Modelling of martensite slip and twinning in NiTiHf shape memory alloys

High-temperature shape memory alloy NiTiHf holds considerable promise for structural applications. An important consideration for these advanced alloys is the determination of the magnitude of the twinning stress. Theoretical stresses for twinning and dislocation slip in NiTiHf martensites are determined. The slip and twinning planes are (0?0?1) and (0?1?1) for monoclinic and orthorhombic crystals, respectively. The determination of the slip and twinning stress is achieved with a proposed Peierls–Nabarro-based formulation informed with atomistic simulations. In the case of the twin, multiple dislocations comprising the twin nucleus are considered. The overall energy expression is minimized to obtain the twinning and slip stresses. The magnitude of the predicted twinning stresses is lower than slip stresses which explains why the NiTiHf alloys can undergo reversibility without plastic deformation. In fact, the predicted critical resolved shear stress levels of 433?MPa for slip and 236?MPa for twinning in the case of 12.5% Hf agree very well with the experimental measurements. The high slip resistance confirms that these materials can be very attractive in load-bearing applications.     

A dislocation-based stress-strain gradient plasticity model for strength and ductility in materials with gradient microstructures

Although metallic materials with gradient microstructure exhibit notable performance in harsh environmental conditions, they can also exhibit unusual mechanical behaviour. This is attributed to both grain size and the gradient of grain size distribution in the structure. Metallic materials with a homogenous distribution of grain size follow the traditional Hall-Petch relationship, in which strength increases with decreasing grain size at the expense of ductility. However, studies show that materials with a gradient of grain size microstructure do not follow the Hall-Petch relationship, and thus have improved strength and ductility. This suggests that with creative design and engineering of microstructure, the strength-ductility trade-off can be reduced or prevented.

In this study, we developed and implemented a dislocation density based model to investigate the mechanical behaviour of nano-microstructure. We designed a multi-scale modelling framework, coupling VPSC (Viscoplastic Self Consistent model) with CDD (Continuum Dislocation Dynamics), applying crystal plasticity equations to simulate dislocation interaction in polycrystalline metallic materials. We also developed design parameters and a model to predict the strength and ductility of materials with gradient microstructure.     

A study of the hot and cold deformation of twin-roll cast magnesium alloy AZ31

Recent advances in twin-roll casting (TRC) technology of magnesium have demonstrated the feasibility of producing magnesium sheets in the range of widths needed for automotive applications. However, challenges in the areas of manufacturing, material processing and modelling need to be resolved in order to fully utilize magnesium alloys. Despite the limited formability of magnesium alloys at room temperature due to their hexagonal close-packed crystalline structure, studies have shown that the formability of magnesium alloys can be significantly improved by processing the material at elevated temperatures and by modifying their microstructure to increase ductility. Such improvements can potentially be achieved by processes such as superplastic forming along with manufacturing techniques such as TRC. In this work, we investigate the superplastic behaviour of twin-roll cast AZ31 through mechanical testing, microstructure characterization and computational modelling. Validated by the experimental results, a novel continuum dislocation dynamics-based constitutive model is developed and coupled with viscoplastic self-consistent model to simulate the deformation behaviour. The model integrates the main microstructural features such as dislocation densities, grain shape and grain orientations within a self-consistent viscoplasticity theory with internal variables. Simulations of the deformation process at room temperature show large activity of the basal and prismatic systems at the early stages of deformation and increasing activity of pyramidal systems due to twinning at the later stages. The predicted texture at room temperature is consistent with the experimental results. Using appropriate model parameters at high temperatures, the stress–strain relationship can be described accurately over the range of low strain rates.     

杂质对镁合金耐蚀性影响的电子理论研究

利用大角重位点阵模型建立了Mg合金［0001］对称倾斜晶界模型，应用实空间的连分数方法计算了杂质在晶界的偏聚能，杂质原子间相互作用能和不同体系的费米能级，讨论了杂质在晶界的偏聚行为，杂质间的相互作用与有序化的关系及杂质对镁合金腐蚀性能影响的物理本质. 计算结果表明，杂质原子偏聚于晶界，且主要偏聚于晶界的压缩区；杂质原子间相互排斥，因此在晶界区形成有序相；费米能级与材料的腐蚀电位存在这样的关系：材料的费米能级越高，其腐蚀电位就越低，容易被腐蚀，相反费米能级低，其腐蚀电位就高，不容易腐蚀. 体系中成分不同区域的费米能级差导致电子从费米能级高的区域流向费米能级低的区域，正是费米能级差构成了镁合金电化学腐蚀的电动势. 关键词： 电子理论 晶界偏聚 镁合金 腐蚀机理     

The effect of grain size distribution on the frequency dependence of the ultrasonic attenuation in polycrystalline materials

An expression has been derived for the effect of the grain size distribution in polycrystalline materials on the frequency dependence of the ultrasonic attenuation. It has been shown that two specimens with the same mean grain size can have significantly different ultrasonic attenuations if their grain size distributions are different and that no unique solution in terms of the grain size exists for a particular ultrasonic attenuation against frequency curve. Qualitative agreement has been found between the theory and some of the experimental data available.     

Texture weakening in pure magnesium during grain growth

The microstructure and texture evolution during annealing of rolled pure Mg, at temperatures ranging from 150 to 400°C, was characterised in the present study. A grain growth exponent of n?=?13 was observed and the activation energy for grain growth kinetics was found to be 95.6?kJ?mol^?1. Further, broadening of the normalised grain size distributions, indicating abnormal grain growth, was also observed at all temperatures of annealing. The sample had a dominant basal texture before annealing. However, after annealing up to a temperature of 300°C, the alleviation of basal texture was observed in the samples. On further annealing at a temperature of 400°C, a strong basal texture was developed in the samples. The mobility of high angle grain boundaries, which is proportional to correlated misorientation distribution, was observed to be responsible for texture strengthening of the material. The grain boundary mobility changes during grain growth led to the growth of either small or large grains. It was further observed that the growth of small grains caused the formation of basal fibre and large grains led to the weakening of basal texture.     

Prediction of flow stress and textures of AZ31 magnesium alloy at elevated temperature

The viscoplastic behaviour of magnesium alloys at high temperatures leads to highly temperature-dependent mechanical properties. While at high strain rates a notable strain hardening response is observed, at low strain rates the material shows a smooth plastic response with negligible amount of hardening. This complicated behaviour is due to different deformation mechanisms that are active at different strain rate regimes, resulting in different strain rate sensitivity parameters. In this study we show, by utilizing both numerical simulations and experiments, that this behaviour can be predicted by a model that combines two deformation mechanisms, grain boundary sliding mechanism and dislocation glide mechanism. We discuss the importance of each deformation mechanism at different strain rate regimes based on the findings of modelling and experimental results for AZ3 magnesium alloy. By developing a model that includes the above-mentioned two deformation mechanism, the prediction of flow properties is expanded to a wide range of strain rate regimes compared to previous study. The obtained numerical findings for the stress–strain behaviour as well as texture evolution show good agreement with the experimental results.     

Effect of long-period stacking ordered phase on thermal stability of refined grains in Mg-RE-based alloys

The refined grains in both as-cast Mg-10Y-1Zn-2Zr (WZ101?K, wt.%) and Mg-10Y-1Al (WA101, wt.%) alloys have been found to have superior thermal stability after solution treatment. Plate-shaped, but different polytypes of long-period stacking ordered (LPSO) phases distributed along grain boundaries are considered as the predominant inhibitors of grain growth. Based on the plate-shaped features of the LPSO phases, a modified Zener’s model is established and the predicted limiting grain sizes are in a good agreement with the experimental results. Therefore, this model has strong potential for designing advanced Mg-RE-based alloys with high strength and high creep resistance at high temperatures.     

Effect of solute atoms on fracture toughness in dilute magnesium alloys

The effect of alloying elements on the toughness and the fracture behaviour was investigated on seven kinds of Mg-0.3?at.% X (X?=?Ag, Al, Ca, Pb, Sn, Y and Zn) alloys with a grain size of 3–5?μm. The fracture toughness and fracture behaviour in magnesium alloys were closely related to the segregation energy. The Mg–Al and –Zn alloys that had small segregation energy showed high toughness and ductile fracture in most regions, while the Mg–Ca alloy with large segregation energy exhibited low toughness and intergranular fracture. These different tendencies resulted from solute segregation at grain boundaries (GBs). The change in the lattice parameter ratio was the influential material parameter regardless of whether the GB embrittlement was for enhancement or suppression.     

镁基合金自由枝晶生长的相场模拟研究

利用定量相场模型, 以Mg-0.5 wt.%Al合金为例模拟了基面((0001)面)内镁基合金的等温自由枝晶生长过程. 通过研究该合金体系数值模拟的收敛性, 获得了最优化值耦合参数λ = 5.5及网格宽度Δx/W₀ = 0.4, 并在该参数下系统研究了各向异性强度和过饱和度对枝晶尖端生长速度、尖端曲率半径、Péclet数及稳定性常数σ^* 的影响. 结果表明, 由微观可解性理论得到的稳定性系数σ^* 与ε₆ 拟合值σ^*≅ ε₆ ^1.81905, 更接近理想值σ ^* (ε₆) ≅ε₆ ^1.75. 此外, 当过饱和度Ω < 0.6时, 稳定性系数σ ^* 不随ε₆ 的变化而变化, 而当Ω > 0.6时, 稳定性系数σ ^* 随着ε₆ 的增加而减小. 这反映了枝晶的生长由扩散控制向动力学控制的转变. 随着过饱和度的增加, 枝晶形貌由雪花状枝晶向圆状枝晶转变.