The thin-wall debit of a typical cast polycrystalline M951 alloy

The effect of specimen thickness on the rupture properties of cast Ni-based polycrystal superalloy M951 was investigated in this paper. The results of the rupture tests in air under 980 degrees C/90 MPa revealed that the rupture life and elongation obviously decreased with decreasing specimen thickness. The thin-wall effect for polycrystal superalloy M951 is associated with several factors. First, the surface oxidation and internal nitridation induce the reduction in the load-bearing section, which accelerates the rupture fracture of thin specimens. Second, the combined effect of oxidation and stress at the surface grain boundary facilitates the premature initiation and propagation of the surface cracks in thin specimen. Third, the through-grain boundaries introduce by specimens machining are detrimental for rupture property. A direct comparison of rupture properties of thin-wall samples with different grain morphologies indicate that thin-wall effect can be diminished by avoiding through-grain boundary introduction.