Experimental Study at the Phase Interface of a Single-Crystal Ni-Based Superalloy Using TEM

The single-crystal Ni-based superalloys, which have excellent mechanical properties at high temperatures, are commonly used for turbine blades in a variety of aero engines and industrial gas turbines. Focusing on the phase interface of a second-generation single-crystal Ni-based superalloy, in-situ TEM observation was conducted at room temperature and high temperatures. Intensity ratio analysis was conducted for the measurement of two-phase interface width. The improved geometric phase analysis method, where the adaptive mask selection method is introduced, was used for the measurement of the strain field near the phase interface. The strained irregular transition region is consistent with the calculated interface width using intensity ratio analysis. An intensity ratio analysis and strain measurement near the interface can corroborate and complement each other, contributing to the interface structure evaluation. Using TEM in-situ heating and Fourier transform, the change of dislocation density in the γ phase near the two-phase interface of the single-crystal Ni-based superalloy was analyzed. The dislocation density decreases first with the increase in temperature, consistent with the characteristics of metal quenching, and increases sharply at 450 °C. The correlation between the variation of dislocation density at high temperatures and the intermediate temperature brittleness was also investigated.