Effect of carbon additions on the as-cast microstructure and defect formation of a single crystal Ni-based superalloy

In an effort to reduce grain defects in large single crystal Ni-base superalloy components, carbon is intentionally added. In this study, the effect of carbon additions on the microstructure and solidification defect formation of a model Ni-based superalloy, LMSX-1, was examined. The results show that the tendency of the alloy to form all types of solidification defects decreased as the carbon content increased. The as-cast microstructures also exhibited a decrease in the amount of gamma-gamma' eutectic structure and an increase in the volume fraction of carbides and porosity, as the carbon content was increased. The carbides formed in these alloys were mostly of script-type MC carbides which formed continuous, dendritic networks in the interdendritic region. Microprobe analysis of the as-cast structures showed that the partitioning coefficients did not change with carbon additions. Therefore, the reduction in defect formation with increasing carbon content could not be attributed to changes in segregation behavior of alloying elements. Instead, the presence of these carbides in the interdendritic regions of the alloy appeared to have prevented the thermosolutal fluid flow. (C) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.