Hydrogen-Induced Transformation Superplasticity of Titanium and Ti-6Al-4V

Northwestern University, Evanston IL

Investigators

Abstract

9987593 Dunand The recently discovered phenomena of transformation-mismatch plasticity and superplasticity induced by reversible chemical cycling are investigated experimentally and theoretically in titanium. As a general deformation mechanism, transformation-mismatch plasticity and superplasticity are known to occur as a result of biasing by an external stress of internal mismatch stresses produced during an allotropic transformation. These mechanisms are well known in metals subjected to a phase change by temperature cycling around their allotropic temperature. Recently, it was shown that the same mechanism could be induced by cycling the chemical composition at constant temperature, upon repeated addition and removal of hydrogen in titanium. This novel deformation phenomenon is examined in pure titanium and in a titanium alloy by performing unidirectional creep experiments, where the applied stress and the hydrogen cycling characteristics are systematically varied. Based on the fundamental mechanisms controlling the micromechanics of mismatch strain development and the diffusion of hydrogen in metals, continuum-mechanics, closed-form models and finite-element, numerical methods are developed to allow a quantitative, predictive description of the phenomenon. Experiments are targeted to support these models, which will describe the instantaneous and average strain-rate during deformation as a function of experimental parameters. %%% This is the first systematic investigation of the novel phenomenon of hydrogen-induced transformation-mismatch plasticity in a simple metal (titanium) and one of its alloys (Ti-6Al-4V) as a function of all relevant chemical and mechanical parameters. The program will demonstrate that superplasticity can be induced under chemical cycling (i.e., accumulation of strains in excess of 100% upon repeated cycling and linear proportionality between average strain rate and applied stress). Models will be developed that provide a theoretical and predictive understanding of this new deformation mechanism, based on the mechanics of internal stress creation and biased relaxation. This knowledge will advance the basic scientific understanding of plasticity and superplasticity under non-equilibrium conditions, and will eventually allow the development of superplastic industrial processes based on hydrogen-induced transformation-mismatch superplasticity. ***