Ti-6Al-4V Recycled From Machining Chips by Equal Channel Angular Pressing

Ti-6Al-4V machining chips have been recycled into fully dense material by a solid-state process based on equal channel angular pressing (ECAP). The as-recycled material possessed a refined microstructure and contained a series of oxide layers associated with the boundary of each machining chip. The chip boundaries were observed to dissolve into interstitial solid solution following static annealing. A series of static heat treatments within the temperature range 700 to 1000 degrees C, for durations of between 1 and 20 hours, were performed. The effect of thermomechanical processing on microstructure and mechanical properties is discussed and compared to the as-recycled and commercially available materials.