Combination of ECAP and Hydrostatic Extrusion for UFG Microstructure Generation in Nickel

An ultra-fine grained microstructure was obtained in high purity nickel by a combination of (a) equal-channel angular pressing (ECAP) and (b) hydrostatic extrusion (HE) with a cumulative true strain of ~11.2. The resulting microstructure was examined by light and TEM microscopy. Mechanical properties have been measured by tensile and hardness tests. It was found that HE of ECAP-ed samples leads to a significant grain size refinement (from 330 to 160nm) and to an increase in microstructural homogeneity. SPD nickel, made by a combination of the ECAP and hydrostatic extrusion methods, has high strength and ductility (i.e.: YS=1120MPa and εf = 11%). The microstructure transformation was accompanied by a strength increase of 78% compared to ECAP alone. The results obtained fit well with the Hall-Petch relationship. A combination of ECAP and HE has achieved much better properties than either single process and show it to be a promising procedure for manufacturing bulk UFG nickel.