Mechanical behaviour of induction sintered blended elemental powder metallurgy Ti alloys

Powder metallurgy Ti alloys are commonly processed via vacuum sintering, which is a lengthy and energy intensive process that contributes to the high cost of the final product. In this comparative study, we demonstrate that induction sintering, where consolidation of blended elemental Ti alloys is achieved by means of high-frequency induction heating, is a promising alternative to consolidate both wrought-equivalent (Ti-6Al-4V and Ti-3Al-2V) and low-cost Fe-bearing (Ti-5Fe and Ti-5SS) powder metallurgy Ti alloys more efficiently. It is found that high relative density values and chemical homogeneity are achieved regardless of the sintering technique or chemistry of the alloy. With respect to vacuum sintered materials, the induction sintered alloys have slightly lower relative density, finer microfeatures, lower oxygen content and comparable tensile behaviour, making them suitable candidates for structural engineering products manufactured at lower cost. With the right processing parameters, low-cost Fe-bearing powder metallurgy Ti alloys have comparable properties to those of wrought-equivalent alloys where cost reduction is obtained via reducing the intrinsic cost of the material.