Insights into phase evolution and mechanical behavior of the eutectoid Ti-6.4(wt.%)Ni alloy modified with Fe and Cr

Titanium alloys gain increasing importance in industry due to the expansion of advanced manufacturing technologies such as additive manufacturing. Conventional titanium alloys processed by such technologies suffer from formation of large primary grains and anisotropy of mechanical properties. Therefore, novel alloys are required. Herein, the effect of ternary alloying elements Fe and Cr on the Ti-6.4(wt%)Ni eutectoid system is investigated. Both elements act as eutectoid formers. Fe and Cr show sluggish transformation behavior, whereas Ni is an active eutectoid-forming element. Thereby, sluggish refers to slow and active to fast transformation kinetics. The focus of this work is on the combined addition of such elements studied under different heat-treatment conditions. It is shown in the results that largely varying microstructures can be generated resulting in hardness values ranging from 239 to 556 HV0.1. Moreover, the formation of a substructure within the alpha phase of direct aged alloys is observed. The formation mechanism of this substructure is investigated in detail. The mechanical properties are discussed based on the microstructural characteristics. The presence of intermetallic Ti2Ni phase increases the Young's modulus, whereas the presence of omega phase results in embrittlement. The results shed light upon the complex phase formation and decomposition behavior of titanium alloys based on Ti-6.4Ni.