Nickel based superalloys

Nickel Based Superalloys

http://www.msm.cam.ac.uk/phase-trans/2003/Superalloys/superalloys.html

Nickel Based Superalloys
H. K. D. H. Bhadeshia A superalloy is a metallic alloy which can be used at high temperatures, often in excess of 0.7 of the absolute melting temperature. Creep and oxidation resistance are the prime design criteria. Superalloys can be based on iron, cobalt or nickel,the latter being best suited for aeroengine applications. The essential solutes in nickel based superalloys are aluminium and/or titanium, with a total concentration which is typically less than 10 atomic percent. This generates a two-phase equilibrium microstructure, consisting of gamma (γ) and gamma-prime (γ'). It is the γ' which is largely responsible for the elevated-temperature strength of thematerial and its incredible resistance to creep deformation. The amount of γ' depends on the chemical composition and temperature, as illustrated in the ternary phase diagrams below.

The Ni-Al-Ti ternary phase diagrams show the γ and γ' phase field. For a given chemical composition, the fraction of γ' decreases as the temperature is increased. This phenomenon is used in order to dissolve the γ'at a sufficiently high temperature (a solution treatment) followed by ageing at a lower temperature in order to generate a uniform and fine dispersion of strengthening precipitates. The γ-phase is a solid solution with a cubic-F lattice and a random distribution of the different species of atoms. Cubic-F is short for face-centred cubic. By contrast, γ' has a cubic-P (primitive cubic) lattice inwhich the nickel atoms are at the face-centres and the aluminium or titanium atoms at the cube corners. This atomic arrangement has the chemical formula Ni3Al, Ni3Ti or Ni3(Al,Ti). However, as can be seen from the (γ+γ')/γ' phase boundary on the ternary sections of the Ni, Al, Ti phase diagram, the phase is not strictly stoichiometric. There may exist an excess of vacancies on one of thesublattices which leads to deviations from stoichiometry; alternatively, some of the nickel atoms might occupy the Al sites and vice-versa. In addition to aluminium and titanium, niobium, hafnium and tantalum partition preferentially into γ'.

Crystal structure of γ

Crystal structure of γ'

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Nickel Based Superalloyshttp://www.msm.cam.ac.uk/phase-trans/2003/Superalloys/superalloys.html

The γ phase forms the matrix in which the γ' precipitates. Since both the phases have a cubic lattice with similar lattice parameters, the γ' precipitates in a cube-cube orientation relationship with the γ. This means that its cell edges are exactly parallel to corresponding edges of the γ phase. Furthermore, because their lattice parameters are similar, the γ' is coherentwith the γ when the precipitate size is small. Dislocations in the γ nevertheless find it difficult to penetrate γ', partly because the γ' is an atomically ordered phase. The order interferes with dislocation motion and hence strengthens the alloy. The small misfit between the γ and γ' lattices is important for two reasons. Firstly, when combined with the cube-cube orientation relationship, itensures a low γ/γ' interfacial energy. The ordinary mechanism of precipitate coarsening is driven entirely by the minimisation of total interfacial energy. A coherent or semi-coherent interface therefore makes the microstructure stable, a property which is useful for elevated temperature applications. The magnitude and sign of the misfit also influences the development of microstructure under theinfluence of a stress at elevated temperatures. The misfit is said to be positive when the γ' has a larger lattice parameter than γ. The misfit can be controlled by altering the chemical composition, particularly the aluminium to titanium ratio. A negative misfit stimulates the formation of rafts of γ', essentially layers of the phase in a direction normal to the applied stress. This can help reduce...