Mechanical properties and microstructure of W/CuY and W/CuCrZr composites produced by hot isostatic pressing

Fully dense W-15 wt%CuY and W-15 wt%CuCrZr composites have been produced by a powder metallurgy route and hot isostatic pressing. The consolidated materials show homogeneous distributions of pre-alloyed CuY and CuCrZr embedded in W phase. Y-enriched particles were found inside the CuY phase. Their mechanical behavior was studied under uniaxial compression from room temperature to 500 degrees C. W/CuY exhibited a higher value of the yield strength, but W/CuCrZr presented a larger compressive deformation. Both composites manifested strain hardening during plastic deformation. The deformed microstructure at 250 degrees C and 500 degrees C was characterized by electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) measurements and nanoindentation. The correlation between the plastic deformation, grain size and misorientation distributions, has been revealed.