Correlation between Microstructures and Oxidation Resistance in Zr-Nb-Ti Alloys

Oxidation behavior of Zr-10Nb-10Ti and Zr-10Nb-20Ti (compositions are in atomic percent) alloys has been investigated in air between 300 °C and 700 °C. Higher Ti content in the alloy enhances the oxidation resistance. The calculated isotherms by PANDAT[1,2] show that 20Ti enters a three-phase (αZr-hcp, βNb-bcc, and βZr-bcc) region at 500 °C, while 10Ti alloy continues to be a two-phase (αZr and βNb) alloy until 550 °C and then enters the three-phase (αZr, βNb, and βZr) region. Both alloys have a single-phase βZr solid solution at 700 °C, which is detrimental for the oxidation resistance. The βNb phase greatly contributes to the oxidation resistance in these two alloys. The common oxidation products have been identified as TiO2, ZrO2, and Nb2O5. Both alloys suffer from pest oxidation at temperatures between 500 °C and 550 °C, respectively (20Ti and 10Ti), up to 700 °C. X-ray diffraction (XRD) indicates strong peaks for monoclinic structure of ZrO2 at temperatures above 600 °C.