No abstract

No abstract

The kind and amount of alloying elements strongly affects the formation of ultrafine-grained microstructures. Aluminum alloys with different amounts of the alloying element magnesium, and a commercially pure aluminum alloy, have been investigated in order to evaluate how the obtained microstructures will affect the mechanical properties. X-ray profile analysis has been used to determine grain size and dislocation density. With increasing amounts of alloying elements, a smaller grain size and a higher dislocation density after severe plastic deformation (SPD) are obtained, which lead to higher hardness and improved fatigue properties.

No abstract

No abstract

The mechanical properties of ultrafine-grained metals processed by equal channel angular pressing is investigated by nanoindentations in comparison with measurements on nanocrystalline nickel with a grain size between 20 and 400 nm produced by pulsed electrodeposition. Besides hardness and Young’s modulus measurements, the nanoindentation method allows also controlled experiments on the strain rate sensitivity, which are discussed in detail in this paper. Nanoindentation measurements can be performed at indentation strain rates between 10-3 s-1 and 0.1 s-1. Nanocrystalline and ultrafine-grained fcc metals as Al and Ni show a significant strain rate sensitivity at room temperature in comparison with conventional grain sized materials. In ultrafine-grained bcc Fe the strain rate sensitivity does not change significantly after severe plastic deformation. Inelastic effects are found during repeated unloading-loading experiments in nanoindentations.

No abstract

Two different Mg alloys, AZ91 and MRI 230D, have been investigated with the objective to understand the differences in high-temperature deformation behavior. AZ91 is known for its rather poor creep resistance; in contrast to this, MRI 230D is known to have a rather high resistance against plastic deformation at elevated temperatures. The microstructure and mechanical properties of as-cast and crept specimens of two Mg alloys (AZ91 and MRI 230D) were characterized by nanoindenting atomic force microscopy (NI-AFM). In the cell interior, a significant higher hardness was found for MRI 230D in comparison to AZ91. Precipitates with an average size of about 50 nm found in the cell interior of MRI 230D after creep deformation are discussed as the major hardening component.