High-temperature “Inverse” Hall-Petch relationship and fracture behavior of TA15 alloy

The Hall-Petch relationship is important for material design at room temperature. However, it is not well studied at high temperatures. In this work, the influence of different microstructures on the high-temperature mechanical behavior and corresponding softening mechanisms of high-temperature titanium alloy TA15 (Ti-6.5Al-2Zr-1Mo-1 V, wt.%) were studied. Specimens with duplex, Widmanstätten, and coarse Widmanstätten microstructures were obtained through powder metallurgy. High-temperature tensile tests were carried out between 500 and 650°C. It was found that the fracture mode of the Widmanstätten microstructure was transgranular at 500 °C and 550 °C, but intergranular at 600 °C and 650 °C. EBSD analysis revealed that the high-temperature deformation was facilitated by several mechanisms including GB softening, GB migration, grains rotation, and activation of multiple slip systems. High temperature nanoindentation indicated sofenting of individual grains with increasing temperature. In-situ tensile testing under SEM revealed deformation was primarily in grain interior at room temperature, and GBs played a significant role at 650℃. The GB behavior at high temperatures is believed responsible for the inverse Hall-Petch relationship. These findings provide a new perspective for improving the high-temperature mechanical properties and microstructure control of titanium and its alloys.