Effect of Ta Content on High Temperature Creep Deformation Behaviors and Properties of PM Nickel Base Superalloys
YANG Zhikun1, WANG Hao1(), ZHANG Yiwen2, HU Benfu1
1.School of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Beijing 100083, China 2.Beijing CISRI-Gaona Meterials Technology Co. Ltd. , Beijing 100081, China
Cite this article:
YANG Zhikun, WANG Hao, ZHANG Yiwen, HU Benfu. Effect of Ta Content on High Temperature Creep Deformation Behaviors and Properties of PM Nickel Base Superalloys. Acta Metall Sin, 2021, 57(8): 1027-1038.
The nickel base powder superalloy prepared by modern powder metallurgy (PM) technology is selected because it has the characteristics of compatibility with strength and damage tolerance. Moreover, it is the preferred material for the fabrication of a new generation of aero-engine turbine disks. In this study, experimental techniques, such as FESEM and TEM, are used to systematically evaluate the creep properties of powder metallurgy nickel base superalloys with different Ta contents under the conditions of 750°C and 600 MPa. Additionally, the characteristics of microstructure and defosrmation behavior during creep and the effect of stacking fault energy of the alloy on creep property are also investigated. The results show that with increase in Ta content, the energy associated with alloy stacking fault decreases, demonstrating a nonlinear relationship. The deformation behavior and dislocation configuration changes in each creep deformation stage are closely related to the stacking fault energy. The stacking fault energy of alloys with low Ta content is relatively high, the matrix dislocation a/2<110> is prevented at the γ/γ' interface, and the dislocation is not easy to decompose. Furthermore, it can directly enter the γ' phase to form antiphase boundary or to bypass the γ' phase through the Orowan ring bow bending mode. If the alloy contains a moderate amount of Ta, the stacking fault energy of the alloy is reduced, promoting the decomposition of matrix dislocations at the γ/γ' interface. This results in a/6<112> Shockley incomplete dislocations and starts to shear the γ' phase, forming superlattice stacking faults (superlattice intrinsic stacking faults (SISFs) or superlattice extrinsic stacking faults (SESFs)) and extended stacking faults (ESFs), which are then transformed into deformation twins. Therefore, presenting the co-strengthening effect of stacking faults and deformation twins, which improves the creep property. The stacking fault energy of alloys with high Ta content is very low, which is favorable to the simultaneous formation of wide-sized ESFs on different {111} slip planes. The occurrence of inter-crossing stacking faults inhibits the formation of deformation twins and accelerates the development of creep deformation cracks. These experimental results demonstrate that the addition of an appropriate amount of Ta to the alloy can effectively reduce the stacking fault energy, improve the ability to form both partial dislocation shear γ' phase and micro-twins, increase creep resistance, and effectively improve the alloy creep property.
Fig.1 The grain structures (a1-e1) and γ' phases (a2-e2) of powder metallurgy (PM) nickel base superalloys with different Ta contents
Fig.2 Schematic of stacking fault width measurement for PM nickel base superalloys with 4.8%Ta
Alloy
d / nm
γSF / (mJ·m-2)
0%Ta
6.03
36.44
1.2%Ta
6.51
33.75
2.4%Ta
10.40
21.13
3.6%Ta
12.70
17.30
4.8%Ta
13.49
16.28
Table 1 Stacking fault widths (d) and sacking fault energies (γSF) of PM nickel base superalloys
Fig.3 Creep curves of PM nickel base superalloys with different Ta contents (a) and its locally enlarged curves (b)
Allloy
σmax / %
/ %
Ts / h
Tf / h
0%Ta
3.3692
0.0094
75
139.8236
1.2%Ta
4.9896
0.0067
160
278.6950
2.4%Ta
4.2808
0.0066
240
370.0900
3.6%Ta
1.5652
0.0043
165
250.1142
4.8%Ta
0.3028
0.0036
80
85.9078
Table 2 Creep data of PM nickel base superalloys
Fig.4 Creep rate-time curves of PM nickel base superalloys containing 0%Ta (a), 1.2%Ta (b), 2.4%Ta (c), 3.6%Ta (d), and 4.8%Ta (e)
Fig.5 Low (a1-e1) and locally high (a2-e2) magnified OM images of the grain structures near the fracture surface of PM nickel base superalloys with different Ta contents
Fig.6 Low (a1-e1) and locally high (a2-e2) magnified SEM images of fracture morphologies of PM nickel base superalloys with different Ta contents
Fig.7 Low (a1-e1) and locally high (a2-e2) magnified SEM images of γ' phases of PM nickel base superalloys with different Ta contents (Arrows in Figs.7b2-e2 indicate the cutting traces)
Fig.8 TEM images of PM nickel base superalloys with different Ta contents after creep test (Insets show the corresponding SAED patterns; APB—antiphase boundary, SISF—superlattice intrinsic stacking fault, ESF—extended stacking fault)
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