To meet the
surface strengthening requirements of high-strength, high-toughness,
medium-heavy Ni–W alloys for warheads, the NiW750 alloy was investigated. The
alloy was prepared through vacuum melting, homogenization, forging, and
solution treatment. A composite-strengthened surface layer, characterized by
gradient nanostructures and high-density nanoprecipitates, was then constructed
in the NiW750 alloy through a combined ultrasonic shot peening (USP) and aging
treatment. The effects of different USP parameters (amplitude, time, shot
quantity, and diameter) and the aging process on the alloy’s surface hardening
behavior were investigated, and the microstructure evolution and hardening
mechanisms were analyzed. The results indicate that USP introduced three types
of crystal defects into the alloy’s surface layer: gradient dislocations,
gradient nanograins, and gradient nanotwins, which collectively formed a
gradient-hardening layer. This process approximately doubled the surface
hardness compared to the solid-solution state, with the hardened layer
exceeding 450 μm. Although the depth and hardness of the hardened layer could
be regulated within a certain range by adjusting USP parameters, the
strengthening effect exhibited a saturation limit. Following aging treatment,
the gradient structure, composed of these three types of crystal defects, was
retained in the surface layer, and the hardness continued to exhibit a gradient
distribution from the surface inward. Hardness at different depths further
improved by varying increments: the hardness of the outermost surface, the
gradient-hardened layer, and the core increased by 166.39, 59.25, and 115.30
HV, respectively. During aging, the crystal defects introduced by USP promoted
the nucleation of the Ni4W phase, leading to the formation of finer
and higher-density nano-dispersed precipitates. Concurrently, the density of
these three types of crystal defects decreased during aging. The competition
between aging-induced nanoprecipitation and the attenuation of these crystal
defects determined the hardness increments at different depths.