Thermophysical and Mechanical Properties of Advanced Single Crystalline Co-base Superalloys

A set of advanced single crystalline gamma' strengthened Co-base superalloys with at least nine alloying elements (Co, Ni, Al, W, Ti, Ta, Cr, Si, Hf, Re) has been developed and investigated. The objective was to generate multinary Co-base superalloys with significantly improved properties compared to the original Co-Al-W-based alloys. All alloys show the typical gamma/gamma' two-phase microstructure. A gamma' solvus temperature up to 1174 degrees C and gamma' volume fractions between 40 and 60 pct at 1050 degrees C could be achieved, which is significantly higher compared to most other Co-Al-W-based superalloys. However, higher contents of Ti, Ta, and the addition of Re decrease the long-term stability. Atom probe tomography revealed that Re does not partition to the gamma phase as strongly as in Ni-base superalloys. Compression creep properties were investigated at 1050 degrees C and 125 MPa in < 001 > direction. The creep resistance is close to that of first generation Ni-base superalloys. The creep mechanisms of the Re-containing alloy was further investigated and it was found that the deformation is located preferentially in the gamma channels although some precipitates are sheared during early stages of creep. The addition of Re did not improve the mechanical properties and is therefore not considered as a crucial element in the design of future Co-base superalloys for high temperature applications. Thermodynamic calculations describe well how the alloying elements influence the transformation temperatures although there is still an offset in the actual values. Furthermore, a full set of elastic constants of one of the multinary alloys is presented, showing increased elastic stiffness leading to a higher Young's modulus for the investigated alloy, compared to conventional Ni-base superalloys. The oxidation resistance is significantly improved compared to the ternary Co-Al-W compound. A complete thermal barrier coating system was applied successfully.