Abstract
In the present paper, the aging precipitation and coarsening of disk-like δ-Ni2Si particles in Cu and Cu-10Zn alloys aged at 450 °C have been investigated by hardness, electric resistivity measurement and transmission electron microscopy observation. The coarsening dynamics of the average diameter of the δ-Ni2Si particles coincides with the t 1/3 time law for both alloys. The coarsening of the diminution of supersaturation related to aging time t coincides with the t −1/3 time rule. Adding Zn to the Cu-Ni-Si alloy increases the growth and coarsening rate of the particles mainly because of the increased diffusivity D of the δ-Ni2Si particles in the matrix. The value of D of the δ-Ni2Si particles in the Cu-xZn (x = 0, 10 wt.%) matrix and the Cu/δ-Ni2Si interfacial energy γ are independently calculated by using the Lifshitz–Slyozov–Wagner theory which was extended to include disk-like particles by Boyd and Nicholson. The values of D and γ increase from 0.77 × 10−19 to 2.21 × 10−19 m2/s and 0.19 to 0.63 J/m2, respectively, when Zn is added to the Cu-Ni-Si alloy. These calculations and the analysis show that the properties of Cu-Ni-Si-Zn alloy can significantly be enhanced by reducing the aging temperature.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Z. Cai, C. Zhang, R. Wang, C. Peng, K. Qiu, and N. Wang, Effect of Solidification Rate on the Coarsening Behavior of Precipitate in Rapidly Solidified Al-Si Alloy, Prog. Nat. Sci., 2016, 26, p 391–397
Y. Zhang, B.H. Tian, A.A. Volinsky, H.L. Sun, Z.P. Liu, X.H. Chen, and Y. Liu, Microstructure and Precipitate’s Characterization of the Cu-Ni-Si-P Alloy, J. Mater. Eng. Perform., 2016, 25, p 1336–1341
E. Gumbmann, W. Lefebvre, F. De Geuser, C. Sigli, and A. Deschamps, The Effect of Minor Solute Additions on the Precipitation Path of an Al Cu Li Alloy, Acta Mater., 2016, 115, p 104–114
C. Liu, H. Chen, and J.F. Nie, Interphase Boundary Segregation of Zn in Mg-Sn-Zn Alloys, Scr. Mater., 2016, 123, p 5–8
R. Monzen, T. Tada, and K. Kita, Effect of Sb on Coarsening of Fe Particles in a Cu-Fe Alloy, Philos. Mag. Lett., 2003, 83, p 433–440
B.P. Gu, G.L. Liedl, T.H. Sanders et al., The Influence of Zirconium on the Coarsening of δ′(Al3Li) in an Al-2.8 wt% Li-0.14 wt% Zr Alloy, Mater. Sci. Eng., 1985, 76, p 147–157
G.W. Greenwood, The Mechanism of Phase Transformations in Crystalline Solids, Institute of Metals, London, 1969
I.M. Lifshitz and V.V. Slyozov, The Kinetics of Precipitation from Supersaturated Solid Solutions, J. Phys. Chem., 1961, 19, p 35–50
C. Wagner, Theory of Precipitate Change by Redissolution, Z. Elektrochem., 1961, 65, p 581–591
R.A. Oriani, Ostwald Ripening of Precipitates in Solid Matrices, Acta Metall., 1964, 12, p 1399–1409
Y. Watanabe, M. Kato, and A. Sato, Growth Kinetics and Martensitic Transformation of Large Fe Particles in a Cu-1.5 Mass% Fe Alloy, J. Mater. Sci., 1991, 26, p 4307–4312
T. Ezawa, Size Distribution of gamma-Iron Precipitates in Cu-Fe Alloys, Z. Metallkd., 1988, 79, p 572–578
R. Monzen and K. Kita, Ostwald Ripening of Spherical Fe Particles in Cu-Fe Alloys, Philos. Mag. Lett., 2002, 82, p 373–382
R. Monzen, K. Takada, and C. Watanabe, Coarsening of Spherical Cu Particles in an α-Fe Matrix, ISIJ Int., 2004, 44, p 442–444
T. Fujii, M. Kato, and T. Mori, Coarsening of Incoherent α-Fe Particles in a Cu-Fe Alloy, Mater. Trans. JIM, 1991, 32, p 229–236
P.K. Rastogi and A.J. Ardell, The Coarsening Behavior of the γ′ Precipitate in Nickel-Silicon Alloys, Acta Metall., 1971, 19, p 321–330
C. Watanabe and R. Monzen, Coarsening of δ-Ni2Si Precipitates in a Cu-Ni-Si Alloy, J. Mater. Sci., 2011, 46, p 4327–4335
G.R. Speich and R.A. Oriani, The Rate of Coarsening of Copper Precipitate in an Alpha-Iron Matrix, Trans. Metall. Soc. AIME, 1965, 233, p 623–630
J.D. Boyd and R.B. Nicholson, The Coarsening Behaviour of θ″ and θ′ Precipitates in Two Al-Cu Alloys, Acta Metall., 1971, 19, p 1379–1391
S.A. Lockyer and F.W. Noble, Precipitate Structure in a Cu-Ni-Si Alloy, J. Mater. Sci., 1994, 29, p 218–226
F.X. Huang, J.S. Ma, H.L. Ning, Y.W. Cao, and Z.T. Geng, Precipitation in Cu-Ni-Si-Zn Alloy for Lead Frame, Mater. Lett., 2003, 57, p 2135–2139
S. Suzuki, N. Shibutani, K. Mimura, M. Isshiki, and Y. Waseda, Improvement in Strength and Electrical Conductivity of Cu-Ni-Si Alloys by Aging and Cold Rolling, J. Alloys Compd., 2006, 417, p 116–120
Q. Lei, Z. Li, J. Wang, J.M. Xie, X. Chen, S. Li, Y. Gao, and L. Li, Hot Working Behavior of a Super High Strength Cu-Ni-Si Alloy, Mater. Des., 2013, 51, p 1104–1109
V.C. Srivastava, A. Schneider, V. Uhlenwinkel, and K. Bauckhage, Effect of Thermomechanical Treatment on Spray Formed Cu-Ni-Si Alloy, Mater. Sci. Technol., 2004, 20, p 839–848
Y.G. Kim, T.Y. Seong, and J.H. Han, Effect of Heat Treatment on Precipitation Behaviour in a Cu-Ni-Si-P Alloy, J. Mater. Sci., 1986, 21, p 1357–1362
Y.L. Jia, M.P. Wang, C. Chen, Q.Y. Dong, S. Wang, and Z. Li, Orientation and Diffraction Patterns of δ-Ni2Si Precipitates in Cu-Ni-Si Alloy, J. Alloys Compd., 2013, 557, p 147–151
Q. Lei, Z. Li, C. Dai, J. Wang, X. Chen, J.M. Xie, W.W. Yang, and D.L. Chen, Effect of Aluminum on Microstructure and Property of Cu-Ni-Si Alloys, Mater. Sci. Eng. A, 2013, 572, p 65–74
T. Hu, J.H. Chen, J.Z. Liu, Z.R. Liu, and C.L. Wu, The Crystallographic and Morphological Evolution of the Strengthening Precipitates in Cu-Ni-Si Alloys, Acta Mater., 2013, 61, p 1210–1219
L.N. Shen, Z. Li, Z.M. Zhang, Q.Y. Dong, Z. Xiao, Q. Lei, and W.T. Qiu, Effects of Silicon and Thermo-Mechanical Process on Microstructure and Properties of Cu-10Ni-3Al-0.8Si Alloy, Mater. Des., 2014, 62, p 265–270
A.J. Ardell, An Application of the Theory of Particle Coarsening: The γ’ Precipitate in Ni-Al Alloys, Acta Metall., 1968, 16, p 511–516
P.P. Prosini, M. Lisi, D. Zane, and M. Pasquali, Determination of the Chemical Diffusion Coefficient of Lithium in LiFePO 4, Solid State Ion., 2002, 148, p 45–51
W. Chen, M. Wang, Z. Li, Q. Dong, Y. Jia, Z. Xiao, R. Zhang, H. Yu, and A. Novel, Cu-10Zn-1.5Ni-0.34Si Alloy with Excellent Mechanical Property Through Precipitation Hardening, J. Mater. Eng. Perform., 2016, 25, p 4624–4630
Q. Lei, Z. Li, Y. Gao, X. Peng, and B. Derby, Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of a High Strength Cu-Ni-Si Alloy Treated by Combined Aging Processes, J. Alloys Compd., 2017, 695, p 2413–2423
Acknowledgments
The authors would like to acknowledge the financial supply supported by the Project supported by the National Key Technology Support Program (2014BAC03B08) and the Project of Innovation-driven Plan in Central South University.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Chen, W., Li, Z., Xie, H. et al. Influence of Zinc on Coarsening of δ-Ni2Si Particles, Aging Behavior and Hardness in a Cu-Ni-Si Alloy. J. of Materi Eng and Perform 26, 2459–2464 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11665-017-2738-z
Received:
Revised:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11665-017-2738-z