Microstructure and mechanical properties of Ti-2Al alloyed with Mo formed in laser additive manufacture.

A series of Ti-2Al- y Mo ( y = 2,5,7,9,12) alloy samples were produced from blended elemental Ti, Al and Mo powders using the laser solid forming technology. The influence of the β stabilizer Mo on the morphology of the grains, the size and the distribution of the α laths, the Vickers hardness and the tensile properties of Ti-2Al- y Mo alloys were explored under designated laser processing parameters. It was found that the microstructure in Ti-2Al-5Mo, Ti-2Al-7Mo, Ti-2Al-9Mo, and Ti-2Al-12Mo deposited layers were composed of irregular columnar grains that grow epitaxially, with some small equiaxed grains in the upper region, while that of the Ti-2Al-2Mo alloy was composed of large columnar grains. The grain size decreased, while the thickness of equiaxed grains layer increased with increasing Mo content. This indicates a tendency towards columnar-to-equiaxed transition with increasing Mo. The dominant β grains form a basketweave microstructure composed of primary α laths, secondary α laths and retained β phase. It was also observed that with increasing Mo content, both the size of primary α laths and secondary α laths decreased significantly, while the number of secondary α laths increased sharply, and the Ti-2Al-12Mo is also constituted of α phase and β phase. The Young's modulus of Ti-2Al-7Mo, Ti-2Al-9Mo, and Ti-2Al-12Mo were basically the same within experimental error. Tensile testing of the specimens showed that Ti-2Al-7Mo exhibits a good combination of strength and elongation to failure. As a result, this material can be considered suitable as a viable feedstock for laser additive manufacturing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]