Effects of Intermediate Heat Treatment on the Corrosion and Mechanical Properties of Zr Alloy Strip Incorporating Nb

In order to investigate the effects of intermediate heat treatment between cold rolling passes on the hardness and corrosion properties of a Zr alloy incorporating Nb (Zr-1.49Nb-0.38Sn-0.20Fe-0.11Cr) strip, three different intermediate heat treatment processes ($580^{\circ}C{\times}4hrs$, $600^{\circ}C{\times}2hrs$ and $620^{\circ}{\times}1hrs$) were designed based on a recrystallization map and an accumulated annealing parameter. Test samples from the different processes were investigated by a hardness test, corrosion test, and microstructure analysis and appropriate heat-treatment conditions were thereupon proposed. The sample subjected to an intermediate heat treatment of $580^{\circ}C{\times}4hrs$ was harder than that undergoing $600^{\circ}C{\times}2hrs$ and $620^{\circ}C{\times}1hr$ while the corrosion resistance of the sample that received an intermediate heat treatment of $580^{\circ}C{\times}4hrs$ was superior to that of the other specimens. Considering the trade-off of hardness and corrosion resistance, an intermediate heat treatment process of $600^{\circ}C{\times}2hrs$ is proposed to improve the manufacturing process of the alloy strip.

니오븀이 첨가된 Zr 합금 스트립의 부식 및 기계적 특성에 대한 중간열처리 영향