Formation and dissolution of’ precipitates in IN792 superalloy at elevated temperatures

Abstract

Precipitation of γ’ phase in nickel-base superalloy IN792-5A was studied using in-situ Small Angle Neutron Scattering (SANS). It was found that additional precipitates are formed after reheating above 600°C when the material is previously fast cooled (100 K/min) from 900°C. The size distribution and volume fraction of the additional’ precipitates as well as of the already present medium-size precipitates in dependence on temperature were evaluated. The small precipitates can influence mechanical properties of the alloy, which exhibits an anomaly in the temperature dependence of the yield stress. Volume fraction of all precipitate populations above 900°C was estimated as well.