Texture Development in High-Silicon Iron Sheet Produced by Simple Shear Deformation

Sheet processing of high Si-Fe alloys (up to 6.5 wt pct Si) is demonstrated by application of highly confined shear deformation in cutting-extrusion. This alloy system, of major interest to electromagnetic applications, is characterized by poor workability. By a suitable interactive combination of simple shear, high strain rates, near-adiabatic heating, and large hydrostatic pressure in the deformation zone, flow localization, and cracking inherent to this alloy system are suppressed. This enables creation of sheet and foil forms from bulk ingots, cast or wrought, in a single deformation step, unlike rolling. The sheet is characterized by strong shear textures, described by partial {110} and aOE (c) 111 > fibers, and fine-grained microstructures (similar to 20 A mu m grain size). The orientation (inclination) of these fibers, with respect to the sheet surface, can be varied over a range of 35 deg through selection of the deformation path. In contrast to rolling textures, the current shear deformation textures are negligibly influenced by recrystallization annealing. A recovery-based continuous recrystallization mechanism is proposed to explain the texture retention. Some general implications for shear-based processing of alloys of limited workability are discussed.