Abstract
Low temperature embrittlement, recrystallization embrittlement and radiation embrittlement in tungsten and its alloys are critical issues for use as high heat flux components and high-power density structural materials. In order to establish a process for microstructural control to improve the resistance to such embrittlement, modification of powder-metallurgical processing is proposed to avoid three microstructural factors giving detrimental effects on the ductility: (1) precipitation of the brittle W2C phase, (2) heterogeneity in grain size and particle distributions, and (3) loss of carbon which is a constituent of transition metal carbides. The processing was applied to fabricate W-0.3 mass%TiC alloys with a microstructure of fine grains and nano-sized dispersoids of TiC. Transmission electron microstructural observations and three-point bending tests at room temperature were performed on the alloys in the unirradiated state. It is demonstrated that the developed alloys are almost free from the three microstructural factors and exhibit appreciable room-temperature ductility before fracture in the as-forged and as-rolled states, but not in the as-HIPed state. This beneficial effect of plastic working on ductility improvement is strongly dependent on grain size and becomes prominent with decreasing grain size. Success in fabricating consolidated bodies with grain sizes as small as 0.17∼0.4 μm and a high relative density of around 99% is presented.
