Microstructure and mechanical properties of ultrafine-grained copper by accumulative roll bonding and subsequent annealing

Abstract

Recently, the accumulative roll bonding (ARB) technique has made significant progress in the production of various ultrafine-grained (UFG) metals and alloys. In this work, a UFG copper sheet was produced by ARB and subsequent annealing at 300◦C for 60 min to optimize strength and ductility. It was found that homogeneous lamellar UFG materials with a thickness of 200–300 nm were formed after six ARB passes. The microhardness and tensile strength of as-ARBed Cu increased, while the ductility and strain hardening decreased with the cumulative deformation strain. The as-ARBed specimens fractured in a macroscopically brittle and microscopically ductile way. After annealing, discontinuous recrystallization occurred in the neighboring interface with high strain energy, which was prior to that in the matrix. The recrystallization rate was enhanced by increasing the cumulative strain. UFG Cu ARBed for six passes after annealing manifested a completely recrystallized microstructure with grain sizes approximately ranging from 5 to 10 µm. Annealing treatment reduced the microhardness and tensile strength but improved the ductility and strain hardening of UFG Cu. As-annealed UFG-Cu fractured in a ductile mode with dominant dimples and shear zones. Our work advances the industrial-scale production of UFG Cu by exploring a simple and low-cost fabrication technique.