Comparison of low and high strain rate deformation mechanisms and texture evolution for a textured Ti6Al4V alloy

This article is a first attempt to determine the influence of the initial texture and strain rate on the dynamic anisotropic behaviour of a material with a (mainly) hexagonal crystal structure. For this research a commercial Ti6Al4V alloy was used, composed mainly of a hexagonal a-phase. By quasi-static (servo-hydraulical) and dynamic (SHPB) compression testing along different axes on the initially textured material, the influence of the texture on the mechanical anisotropy was investigated. To determine the influence of twinning on the overall deformation behaviour, a microstructural investigation was done using different characterization techniques (optical, SEM, EBSD, TEM). This study will show that for the material used in this study, the initial texture and the associated activation of twinning as a deformation mechanism have a profound effect on the mechanical behaviour for both the quasi-static as for the dynamic loading conditions.