Part VI – June 1969 - Papers - The Embrittlement and Fracture of Ti-8 pct Al Alloys

The yield and fracture characteristics of a Ti-8 pct A1 alloy have been examined at room temperature as a function of exposure temperatures to 1700°F. Em-brittlenzent of the alloy is observed to occur following exposures below 1280°F, the critical temperature for formation of ordered Ti3Al particles. Presence of Ti3Al particles results in an increase in the yield and flout stresses which, for a given exposure time, are a maximum at the critical temperature. Embrittlement is attributed to the occurrence of plastically induced fracture controlled by the increase inflow stress. This interpretation is compatible with the decreasing ductility and increasing crack popagation rates observed with increasing exposure time below the critical temperature. Slip line observations and measurements of the gain size dependence of the yield stress indicate that the slip character of the alloy is not influenced by exposure treatments below the critical temperature. ThE potential usefulness of Ti-A1 alloys in structural applications has prompted considerable interest in studies of their microstructure and mechanical characteristics. The relatively recent surge of interest in the system and at the same time its complexities are indicated by the fact that despite numerous recent efforts14 there has not even been general agreement upon a phase diagram for the system. However, most of the Ti-A1 alloys of commercial interest range in aluminum content from 5.0 to 8.5 wt pct where most investigators achowledge the existence of the ordered Ti41 phase. Goldak and parrs confirmed the existence of Ti41 from X-ray diffraction analysis of the stoichiometric composition while Blackburn6 has determined its presence in commercial Ti-8 pct A1 alloys by electron diffraction analysis and dark field transmission microscopy. The embrittlement of Ti-8 pct A1 alloys was initially reported by Crossley and carew7 who showed that aging in the temperature range of 750" to 1110°F resulted in extreme brittleness. This behavior was later confirmed and correlated by Soltiss to the presence of long-range order in the commercial Ti-8 pct Al-1 pct Mo-1 pct V alloy (Ti-8-1-1) which exhibited anomalous creep and yield strength behavior at 950°F. This investigation was designed to study the mechanical characteristics of a binary Ti-8 pct A1 alloy in order to further examine the nature of the embrittlement behavior reported for the alloy system. EXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURE A Ti-8 pct A1 binary alloy was obtained from the Wah Chang Co. in the form of 0.050 in. sheet. The chemical composition of the alloy is given in Table I. Heat-treatment of the alloy was conducted in evacuated vycor capsules for the tensile sDecimens (1.25 bv 0.25 in. gage section) and in evacuated stainless steel jackets for the crack growth-rate panels. All specimens were annealed at 1700°F for 24 hr and water quenched before an exposure at elevated temperatures. Tensile testing was conducted at room temperature in an Instron testing machine equipped with a pushbutton control for instantaneous control of the cross-head motion. In this manner the change in stress, Aa, accompanying an increase in strain-rate by a factor of 10 was measured immediately after yielding. The crack growth-rate panels used were 3 by 18 in. with a precrack 0.33 in. long cut into the center of the panel. The panels were cycled at a maximum gross stress of 40,000 psi at a maximum to minimum tension stress ratio of 20. Cycling of the specimens was continued until the crack propagated the width of the panels. The crack length was intermittently measured during slow crack growth. EXPERIMENTAL RESULTS Correlation of Embrittlement to the Critical Temperature for Ordering. Blackburn6 has found that the critical temperature, T,, for the formation of Ti41 in a Ti-8 pct A1 alloy with an interstitial content on the order of that given in Table I is approximately 1245°F. The relationship between the ductility of the binary alloy used in this investigation and T, was estimated from tensile tests on specimens which were exposed for 24 hr at various temperatures followed