The effect of α plus β forging on the mechanical properties and microstructure of binary titanium alloys produced via a cost-effective powder metallurgy route

Titanium and its alloys have been studied intensively in the last decades due to their superb mechanical properties; however, the high production costs of titanium and its alloys is considered to be one of the enormous obstacle which limits the use of these outstanding alloys in engineering applications. This study focuses on a cost-effective method of producing Ti-x Cu/Mn alloys (x = 0.5, 2.5 and 5 wt,%/1, 5 and 10 wt% respectively) via the powder metallurgy route. The samples were uniaxially cold pressed and sintered, and then subjected to one-step forging in the alpha+beta field. The effect of the alpha+beta forging on the microstructures and the mechanical properties was investigated, and the relationship between them discussed. It has been found that even with lower forging temperatures (below the beta transus), these alloys have similar ultimate tensile strength (647-1035 MPa and 741-1442 MPa respectively) and Vickers hardness (238-315 HV and 234-388 HV respectively) to that of beta forged Ti-Cu/Mn alloys.