Superior strength-ductility combination in TiC/TC4 composites via In situ construction Ti2Cu nanoparticles

Synergistic improvement of strength and ductility is challenging in the engineering applications of titanium matrix composites (TMCs). Herein, we fabricated the TC4 matrix composites reinforced with grain boundary micron-TiC and intragranular nano-Ti2Cu using spark plasma sintering (SPS) and hot rolling (HR) to achieve a good balance between strength and ductility. An interfacial reaction between Ti and C would form the grain boundary TiC, and the vast majority of intragranular nano-Ti2Cu would precipitate to accommodate the severe lattice distortion caused by the solid solution of Cu in β-Ti. Benefiting from Ti2Cu nanoprecipitates and their ability to effectively suppress dislocation motion, precipitation strengthening, and dislocation strengthening are the main factors, in addition to grain refinement strengthening due to deformation processing, that contribute to the realization of the superior yield strength (YS) of 1360 MPa and ultimate tensile strength (UTS) of 1504 MPa in composites than TC4 matrix (YS = 986 MPa, UTS = 1160 MPa). Meanwhile, the interfacial strain-delocalization effect of TiC/Ti2Cu with Ti matrix, the shear-lag effect of TiC, and the sustained strain-hardening effect provided by TiC/Ti2Cu empower the composites with an outstanding ductility (fracture elongation of 8.44 %), it could be comparable to that of TC4 matrix (10.05 %). This study highlights the untapped potential for improving the mechanical properties of Ti matrix composites.