Microstructure, Phase Composition, and Microhardness of the NiCr/Al Gradient Material Produced by Wire-Feed Electron-Beam Additive Manufacturing

• Published in: Russian physics journal 2023-07, Vol.66 (3), p.341-349
• Main Authors: Reunova, K. A., Zagibalova, E. A, Astapov, D. O., Astafurov, S. V., Kolubaev, E. A., Astafurova, E. G.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: 3D printing; Additive manufacturing; Aluminum; Billets; Bimetals; Chromium alloys; Composite materials; Condensed Matter Physics; Electron beams; Hadrons; Hardness; Heat treating; Heavy Ions; Intermetallic compounds; Intermetallic phases; Lasers; Manufacturing; Mathematical and Computational Physics; Microhardness; Nickel aluminides; Nickel base alloys; Nickel compounds; Nuclear Physics; Optical Devices; Optics; Phase composition; Photonics; Physics; Physics and Astronomy; Post-production processing; Production methods; Prototyping; Solid solutions; Technology application; Theoretical; Video post production; Wire
• ISSN: 1064-8887; 1573-9228
• DOI: 10.1007/s11182-023-02945-w

Metal additive manufacturing is one of the new industrial technologies for fast prototyping of the metal components with a complex internal architecture, gradient composition, or functionally gradient properties. Intermetallic alloys are hard-to-work materials, their conventional production and post-production processing are very complex and expensive routine. New production methods, such as an additive manufacturing, are promising for fast and relatively simple fabrication of the intermetallic billets with the desired phase composition and architecture. Multiple-wire electron-beam additive manufacturing is among them. In this work, we fabricated a bimetallic material (plain wall) using the industrial NiCr and Al wires. For the as-built state, we provided the elemental and phase analyses of the NiCr lower part and Al upper part of the billet with the focus on the intermediate gradient layers between two materials. During the additive manufacturing of the NiCr part of the billet, the Ni-based fcc solid solution forms. Scanning electron microscopical analysis, X-ray diffraction analysis, and energy dispersive spectroscopy confirm the formation of NiAl and Ni 3 Al intermetallic phases in the transition zone under electron beam additive manufacturing of the bimetallic material. This intermetallic zone has high microhardness (up to 10 GPa). The Al 3 Ni intermetallic phase has been found in the Al-based part of the billet, but the microhardness of the composite material (Al + Al 3 Ni) is just a bit higher than that in the upper Al-based part of the billet.