Microstructures and Tensile Properties of Ultrafine-Grained Ni-(1-3.5) wt% SiCNP Composites Prepared by a Powder Metallurgy Route

doi:10.1007/s40195-015-0261-5

Abstract

Abstract:

Silicon carbide nanoparticle-reinforced nickel-based composites (Ni-SiC_NP), with a SiC_NP content ranged from 1 to 3.5 wt%, were prepared using mechanical alloying and spark plasma sintering. In addition, unreinforced pure nickel samples were also prepared for comparative purposes. To characterize the microstructural properties of both the unreinforced pure nickel and the Ni-SiC_NP composites transmission electron microscopy (TEM) was used, while their mechanical behavior was investigated using the Vickers pyramid method for hardness measurements and a universal tensile testing machine for tensile tests. TEM results showed an array of dislocation lines decorated in the sintered pure nickel sample, whereas, for the Ni-SiC_NP composites, the presence of nano-dispersed SiC_NP and twinning crystals was observed. These homogeneously distributed SiC_NP were found located either within the matrix, between twins or on grain boundaries. For the Ni-SiC_NP composites, coerced coarsening of the SiC_NP assembly occurred with increasing SiC_NP content. Furthermore, the grain sizes of the Ni-SiC_NP composites were much finer than that of the unreinforced pure nickel, which was considered to be due to the composite ball milling process. In all cases, the Ni-SiC_NP composites showed higher strengths and hardness values than the unreinforced pure nickel, likely due to a combination of dispersion strengthening (Orowan effects) and particle strengthening (Hall-Petch effects). For the Ni-SiC_NP composites, the strength increased initially and then decreased as a function of SiC_NP content, whereas their elongation percentages decreased linearly. Compared to all materials tested, the Ni-SiC_NP composite containing 1.5% SiC was found more superior considering both their strength and plastic properties.

Key words: Ni-SiCNP, composite, Mechanical, alloying, Spark, plasma, sintering, Transmission, electron, microscopy, Tensile, test

Chao Yang, He-Fei Huang, Massey de los Reyes, Long Yan, Xing-Tai Zhou, Tian Xia, De-Liang Zhang. Microstructures and Tensile Properties of Ultrafine-Grained Ni-(1-3.5) wt% SiC_NP Composites Prepared by a Powder Metallurgy Route[J]. Acta Metallurgica Sinica (English Letters), 2015, 28(7): 809-816.

Figures/Tables 11

Fig. 1 SEM micrograph of a pure nickel powders and TEM image of b SiCNP powders

Fig. 2 SEM micrograph of the milled Ni-SiCNP powders

Fig. 3 XRD spectra of the milled composite powders with different content of SiCNP

Fig. 4 Bright-field TEM images of a unreinforced pure nickel and Ni-SiCNP composites with SiCNP content of b 1 wt%, c 2 wt%, d 2.5 wt%, e 3.5 wt%. High number densities of dispersed SiCNP (marked with red arrows) are visible in Ni-SiCNP composites

Fig. 5 Size distribution of SiCNP in the Ni-(1-3.5) wt% SiCNP composites

Fig. 6 Metallographic microscope image of the unreinforced nickel

Fig. 7 Bright-field TEM images of a the Ni-SiCNP composites with SiCNP content of 1 wt%, b selected area electron diffraction pattern (SAED) along [110] zone axes taken from the twin boundary

Fig. 8 Bright-field TEM image showing the distribution of SiCNP in matrix and twinning, on grain boundaries (GB) in the Ni-SiCNP composites with SiCNP content of 1 wt%

Fig. 9 Variation of Vickers hardness values of the unreinforced pure nickel and the Ni-SiCNP composites with different content of SiCNP. The uncertainties are given by the standard deviation

Fig. 10 Variation of a yield strength, b tensile strength of the unreinforced pure nickel and the Ni-SiCNP composites with different contents of SiCNP. The uncertainties are given by the standard deviation (2σ)

Fig. 11 Variation of elongation percentages of the unreinforced pure nickel and the Ni-SiCNP composites with different contents of SiCNP. The uncertainties are given by the standard deviation (2σ)

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