Phase decomposition in an Fe-40 at.% Cr alloy after isothermal aging and its effect on hardening

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Abstract

The phase decomposition process of an Fe-40 at.% Cr alloy was studied after isothermal aging at 475 and 500 °C using a high-resolution transmission electron microscope, as well as hardness measurements. High-resolution transmission electron microscope observations showed that the hardening behavior is associated with the formation of the nanometric coherent decomposed Cr-rich and Fe-rich phases with irregular shape and interconnected as expected for a spinodally-decomposed alloy. As the aging progressed, coherent rounded Cr-rich phase precipitates were observed in the Fe-rich phase matrix. The coarsening process of the Cr-rich phase was observed for aging times up to 750 h. Nevertheless, no decrease in hardness with time was observed because of the nanometric size of the Cr-rich phase, less than 10 nm. Aging hardening was higher at 500 °C because of the higher decomposition kinetics.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)789-792
Number of pages4
JournalMaterials Characterization
Volume62
Issue number8
DOIs
StatePublished - Aug 2011
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • Fe-Cr alloys
  • Hardening behavior
  • Phase decomposition

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