Study of microstructure and mechanical properties of pure titanium processed by new route of equal channel angular pressing

Abstract

In this study, samples of pure titanium were processed by equal channel angular pressing (ECAP) up to four passes at 573 K to produce a refined microstructure under different deformation routes. A new route B135 was developed by defining 135° clockwise rotation of samples in each pass. In order to study the deformed structures, optical micrograph (OM) and electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) analysis were performed, and the mechanical property was evaluated by the microhardness tests. The OM and EBSD results reveal that the mean grain size of ECAPed samples is much finer than that of the initial sample. Furthermore, it also reveals that B135 is much effective in terms of grain refinement. The microhardness test results show that ECAP process via both route B135 and BC causes a much increase in hardness.