Analysis of the Fundamental Mechanisms and Efficiency of the Deformation Methods of Nanostructuring

Deformation methods of nanostructuring (DMNs) of materials are proposed to classify into severe plastic deformation (SPD) and mild plastic deformation (MPD) methods according to fundamentally different low- and high-temperature grain refinement mechanisms they exploit. A general analysis of the fundamentals and nanostructuring efficiency of three most developed DMNs, high pressure torsion (HPT), equal-channel angular pressing (ECAP), and multiple isothermal forging (MIF) is done with a particular attention to ECAP and MIF. It is demonstrated that MIF is the most efficient method of DMNs allowing one to obtain the bulkiest nanostructured samples with enhanced mechanical properties.