Effect of Ta Content on High Temperature Creep Deformation Behaviors and Properties of PM Nickel Base Superalloys

The nickel base powder superalloy prepared by modern powder metallurgy (PM) technology is selected because it has the characteristics of compatibility with strength and damage tolerance. Moreover, it is the preferred material for the fabrication of a new generation of aero-engine turbine disks. In this study, experimental techniques, such as FESEM and TEM, are used to systematically evaluate the creep properties of powder metallurgy nickel base superalloys with different Ta contents under the conditions of 750 degrees C and 600 MPa. Additionally, the characteristics of microstructure and defosrmation behavior during creep and the effect of stacking fault energy of the alloy on creep property are also investigated. The results show that with increase in Ta content, the energy associated with alloy stacking fault decreases, demonstrating a nonlinear relationship. The deformation behavior and dislocation configuration changes in each creep deformation stage are closely related to the stacking fault energy. The stacking fault energy of alloys with low Ta content is relatively high, the matrix dislocation a/2 < 110 > is prevented at the gamma/gamma' interface, and the dislocation is not easy to decompose. Furthermore, it can directly enter the gamma' phase to form antiphase boundary or to bypass the gamma' phase through the Orowan ring bow bending mode. If the alloy contains a moderate amount of Ta, the stacking fault energy of the alloy is reduced, promoting the decomposition of matrix dislocations at the gamma/gamma' interface. This results in a/6 < 112 > Shockley incomplete dislocations and starts to shear the gamma' phase, forming superlattice stacking faults (superlattice intrinsic stacking faults (SISFs) or superlattice extrinsic stacking faults (SESFs)) and extended stacking faults (ESFs), which are then transformed into deformation twins. Therefore, presenting the co-strengthening effect of stacking faults and deformation twins, which improves the creep property. The stacking fault energy of alloys with high Ta content is very low, which is favorable to the simultaneous formation of wide-sized ESFs on different {111} slip planes. The occurrence of inter-crossing stacking faults inhibits the formation of deformation twins and accelerates the development of creep deformation cracks. These experimental results demonstrate that the addition of an appropriate amount of Ta to the alloy can effectively reduce the stacking fault energy, improve the ability to form both partial dislocation shear gamma' phase and micro-twins, increase creep resistance, and effectively improve the alloy creep property.