Feasible evolution process of tensile property dominant effect factor in annealed high purity nickel by a combination of in situ tensile technique and EBSD

Multiple factors, such as crystallographic orientation, twins, dislocation, and grain size, significantly affect the tensile properties of alloys; however, it is difficult to identify the dominant factor from only the initial and final conditions. To mitigate this limitation, a combination of in situ tensile technique and electron backscattering diffraction (EBSD) was used to analyze the dominant factors affecting the tensile properties of pure nickel during the stretching process at different annealing temperatures. This process consists of two parts. The first is the analysis of the dominant factor candidate from the initial alloy condition. The second part is the confirmation step that uses the in-situ EBSD tensile technique via real-time analysis of the microstructural transformation during plastic deformation while measuring the tensile properties. Four pure nickel samples with different initial states and mechanical properties were tested in this study. Using EBSD characterization, the distribution of kernel average misorientation gradually concentrates in the regions of accumulated fine grain as the tensile stress proceeds. The grain size of pure nickel was confirmed to be the most significant factor influencing the tensile properties. Our results reveal a feasible evaluation process for the primary effect factor of the tensile properties of pure nickel owing to grain size.