Formation of Fine B2/ β + O Structure and Enhancement of Hardness in the Aged TiAlNb-Based Alloys Prepared by Spark Plasma Sintering.

TiAlNb-based alloys synthesized at 1223 K (950 °C) by spark plasma sintering were aged at 973 K, 1023 K, 1073 K, and 1123 K (700 °C, 750 °C, 800 °C, and 850 °C), respectively. Phase composition, microstructure, and microhardness of the aged alloys were investigated in this study. Equiaxed O grains and Widmanstätten B2/ β + O laths were formed in the aged alloys, and the microhardness was improved in contrast with the spark plasma-sintered alloy without aging. The microhardness relies largely on the O-phase content, as well as the length and width of the O laths. In particular, complete Widmanstätten B2/ β + O laths, with locally finely dispersed β precipitates, were obtained in the alloy aged at 1073 K (800 °C), and the alloy exhibited the best microhardness performance. Such fine structure is due to the temperature-dependent transformations O→O + B2/ β , O→O + B2/ β , and B2/ β →O. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]