Experimental study of the superplastic and hot deformation mechanisms of a Ti-6Al-2Sn-4Zr-2Mo Titanium Alloy

Abstract : To clarify the hot deformation characteristics of Ti alloys, flow behaviour, microstructural evolution and deformation mechanisms were investigated in a Ti-6Al-2Sn-4Zr-2Mo alloy with two initial microstructure: an ultra-fine grained (UFG) and a fine-grained (FG) microstructure (dα=0,8 μm and dα=3 μm respectively) by isothermal interrupted tensile tests, SEM observations and through electron back scatter diffraction experiments. Depending on the test conditions and on the initial α grain size, the flow behaviour can exhibit steady state flow and/or hardening and/or softening. The microstructure and texture evolutions have been studied mainly by using electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) technique and SEM observations. They evidenced in particular the occurrence of α grains growth as well as dynamic recrystallization (DRX). The different flow behaviour associated to the microstructure evolution is shown and discussed to clarify the main deformation mode that could be assume to occur depending on the microstructure, the temperature and the strain rate.