EFFECT OF THE TWO-PHASE SOLUTION ANNEALING AND AGING ON ALPHA PRECIPITATES AND TENSILE PROPERTIES OF Ti-3Al-8Mo-7V-3Cr ALLOY

Metastable beta titanium alloys have the ability to achieve different microstructures as a result of various heat treatment cycles. The aim of the present study was to create a combination of fine spherical and needle-shaped alpha phase in a metastable beta Titanium alloy (Ti-3Al-8Mo-7V-3Cr) using two-phase solution annealing and aging to improve tensile properties. In this regard, one strip of the alloy was solution annealed in the two-phase region (α+β) at 750°C. Then, some of the solution treated specimens were aged in one step and the others in two steps. The microstructural observation and phase analysis were studied by scanning electron microscope (SEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD), respectively followed by investigating tensile properties using tensile test. The results exhibited that the microstructure of the alloy after annealing in the two-phase region (α+β) consisted of a spherical primary alpha phase of 1 μm in the beta matrix. One-step aging at 600°C resulted in a microstructure without secondary alpha layers. This heat treatment cycle resulted a yield strength of 980 MPa and fracture strain of 13.9%. Two-step aging at 300°C and 600°C led to formation of the secondary alpha layers with 0.1 μm thickness and increased the yield strength and fracture strain to 1007 MPa and 15.8%, respectively.