Investigation on the Production of Thixotropic Semisolid Ti Alloys

This work investigates the viability of production of thixotropic semisolid Ti-Cu alloys by controlled partial melting. Samples were submitted to different holding times at temperatures above solidus, from different initial microstructure conditions. In some cases, deformation by rolling before heating to semisolid was imposed. It is investigated the influence of deformation ratio and holding time in the obtained structure. Results show that thixotropic semisolid can be easily produced; pre-deformation leads to fine, globular primary phase in the liquid for short holding times. Therefore, thixoforming of Ti alloys is feasible, and can bring a whole new concept on forming complex shapes of these alloys, at low energy consumption, and new possibilities in engineering components with special properties.