Improvement of Microstructure and Creep Properties of Ti-6Al-4V alloy by Plasma Carburization

In order to improve the wear resistance of Ti-6Al-4V alloy, plasma carburization treatment was newly carried out without consumption of its good specific strength and fatigue life over the temperature. Effect of the plasma carburization was analyzed and compared with the non-treated alloy by microstructural observation, structure characterization and mechanical test. The plasma treated alloy formed a carburized layer of about $150{\mu}m$ in depth from the surface, where a fine and hard particles of TiC and $V_4C_3$ were homogeneously dispersed through the layer. The steady-static creep behaviors of Ti-6Al-4V alloy, using the constant stress creep tester, were investigated over the temperature range of $510{\sim}550^{\circ}C$(0.42~0.44Tm) and the stress range of 200~275 MPa. Stress exponent(n) was decreased from 9.32 of non-treatment specimen to 8.95 of carburized, however, the activation energy(Q) increased from 238 to 250 kJ/mol with the same condition as indicated above. From the above results, it can be concluded that the static creep deformation for Ti-6Al-4V alloy was controlled by the dislocation climb over the ranges of the experimental conditions.

Ti-6Al-4V 합금의 미세조직 및 크리프 특성에 미치는 플라즈마 침탄 처리의 영향