Characterization of a New Precipitate Phase and its Effect on the Work Characteristics of a Near-Stoichiometric Ni30Pt20Ti50 High-Temperature Shape Memory Alloy

A new phase observed in a nominal Ni₃₀Pt₂₀Ti₅₀ (at.%) high temperature shape memory alloy has been characterized using transmission electron microscopy and 3-D atom probe tomography.  This phase forms homogenously in the B2 austenite matrix by a nucleation and growth mechanism and results in a concomitant increase in the martensitic transformation temperature of the base alloy.  Although the structure of this phase typically contains a high density of faults making characterization difficult, it appears to be trigonal (-3m point group) with a_o~1.28 nm and c_o~1.4 nm.  Precipitation of this phase increases the microhardness of the alloy substantially over that of the solution-treated and quenched single-phase material.  The effect of precipitation strengthening on the work characteristics of the alloy has been explored through load-biased strain-temperature testing in the solution-treated condition and after aging at 500 ºC for times ranging from 1 to 256 hours.  Work output was found to increase in the aged alloy as a result of an increase in transformation strain, but was not very sensitive to aging time.  The amount of permanent deformation that occurred during thermal cycling under load was small but increased with increasing aging time and stress.  Nevertheless, the dimensional stability of the alloy at short aging times (1-4 hours) was still very good making it a potentially useful material for high-temperature actuator applications.