Modelling of hipping consolidation applied to ni₃al powders

Densification of Ni₃Al powders has been simulated using a model that describes consolidation by the additive effects of plastic flow, power law creep, boundary diffusion, and Nabarro–Herring and Coble creep. The model has been used to develop maps that describe densification for any combination of time, temperature, and pressure. Using the best available material property data, and parameters from experiments, maps have been developed that describe hipping consolidation experiments with reasonable accuracy. Mechanical property characterisation has shown that although densification is possible through many combinations of consolidation parameters, the ductility is a sensitive function of the hipping temperature and pressure. Finite element models were developed as an extension of the hipping map approach to provide detailed simulations of particle deformation during densification. Preliminary results for both monosized and bimodal particle distributions indicate that this particle level approach is useful for simulating microstructural development resulting from different combinations of consolidation parameters. PM/0516.