Abstract
The annealing behavior of Cu-14.2 at% Al alloys was investigated by means of X-ray diffraction, supplemented with micro-Vickers hardness and specific heat measurements. Samples filed at room temperature were step-annealed from room temperature up to 500°C. Effective domain sizes and rms microstrains were determined as functions of annealing temperature from diffraction line profiles by Fourier analysis. Stacking fault probabilities and lattice parameters were calculated from shifts in the peak maximum position by the least squares analysis. The effects of cold-working and the variation of the physical properties during annealing were discussed, especially with the view of investigating the effects of short range ordering and clustering of solute atoms.
The results obtained are interpreted as follows:
(1) The increase of the lattice parameter of αCu–Al alloys on deformation might be due to the destruction of short range order (SRO).
(2) Filing is more efficient in producing a disordered state in αCu–Al alloys at room temperature than quenching from a high temperature.
(3) Step-annealing treatment shows that the recovery of SRO, the annihilation of stacking faults and the growth of coherent domains take place in turn with increasing temperature.
(4) The increase in asymmetry of the diffraction line profile in filed αCu–Al alloys on annealing might involve the effect of the local ordered segregation of solute atoms which is considered as the cause of anneal-hardening.
(5) Kinetic study shows that the effective order and activation energy for the reaction which describe the variation of stacking fault probability in the second stage of annealing process are approximately 2 and 43 kcal/g·atom, respectively.
