Metal Science and Heat Treatment Vol. 50, Nos.

5 6, 2008

UDC 669.295.788:621.78

MECHANOHYDROGEN TREATMENT OF TITANIUM ALLOYS

WITH ROUGH TURNING

B. A. Kolachev1 and Yu. B. Egorova1

Translated from Metallovedenie i Termicheskaya Obrabotka Metallov, No. 6, pp. 7 11, June, 2008.

The effect of hydrogen on machining of titanium alloys VT3-1 and VT5L with rough machining of wrought
semifinished products and shaped castings over the skin is studied. Two ways of improving machinability are
possible: preliminary hydrogenation by a specific regime and reaction of hydrogen with an already existing
gas-impregnated layer during hydrogenation annealing.

INTRODUCTION In a cut defective layer there are non-metallic inclusions,

The main purpose of mechanohydrogen treatment is im-
provement of cutting titanium alloys by based on use of
phase and structural changes, and also favorable engineering
effects caused by alloying materials with hydrogen [1 3].
Mechanohydrogen treatment of titanium alloys includes: hy-
drogenation annealing (alloying with hydrogen); machining;
vacuum annealing. Alloying titanium alloys with hydrogen
leads to a reduction in temperature in the cutting zone, a re-
duction in cutting forces, improvement of shaving formation
and an increase in tool life [1 3].
During cutting of titanium alloys the most labor inten-
sive is rough machining intended for removing defective sur-
face layers from wrought semifinished products and casting
skins from molded castings. During performance of the ma-
jority of production operations (casting, hot pressing, heat
treatment) there is intense contamination of the surface lay-
ers whose thickness and hardness depends on heating tem-
perature and its duration.
On heating titanium and its alloys in air they react with
oxygen and water vapor. Nitrogen has little effect on the
metal due to the slow reaction rate. Therefore, although there
is three time more nitrogen than oxygen in air, up to 1000C
titanium alloys react mainly with oxygen. Titanium starts to
react rapidly with oxygen at above 700C, as a result of
which an oxide film forms at the metal surface consisting
mainly of rutile TiO2. With an increase in temperature and
exposure time as a result of mutual diffusion of titanium and
oxygen at the rutile metal boundary there may be forma-
tion of a thin layer of intermediate oxides.
cracks, growths and other defects. Its physical and mechani-
cal properties are distinguished from the standard properties
of treated material. This layer has an increased hardness,
lower ductility and impact strength. The microhardness of
some titanium compounds, present in a gas-impregnated
layer, reaches 1200 HV for TiO and 1300 HV for TiO2 and
Ti2O3. All of this leads to rapid cutter wear during rough ma-
chining of titanium alloys over the skin [4, 5].
The aim of this work is to study the possibility of im-
proving cutting of titanium alloys during rough machining
by alloying with hydrogen.
METHODS OF STUDY
The chemical composition of the test alloys is provided
in Table 1. Cutting properties were studied on forged bars
of alloy VT3-1 ( 40 mm) and specimens of alloy VT5L
( 40 mm, l = 200 mm) prepared by mold casting from dis-
pensable models.
Specimens of alloy VT3-1 were subjected to vacuum an-
nealing at 800C for 3 h. After vacuum annealing no oxide
layer was detected at the surface of alloy VT3-1 specimens.
Before hydrogenation annealing specimens of alloy VT5L
were sand blasted for partial breakdown of the casting skin.
TABLE 1. Alloy Chemical Composition
Alloying element content, wt.% Impurity content, wt.%
Alloy
Al Mo Cr Fe Si N C H

1 VT5L 5.8 0.20 0.04 0.2 0.005

Stupino Branch of the K. . Tsiolkovskii Russian State Aviation
Technological University (MATI), Moscow, Russia. VT3-1 6.3 2.7 1.3 0.5 0.25 0.10 0.2 0.005

265
0026-0673/08/0506-0265 2008 Springer Science + Business Media, Inc.
266
HV, kgf/mm2
1000
800
2 oxide TiO2 forms on the surface, beyond which there follow
4
600
1 3
400
200
0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5
h, mm
Fig. 1. Microhardness distribution through the thickness of a gas-
impregnated layer of a VT3-1 specimen with a hydrogen content of
0.005 (1, 2 ) and 0.03% (3, 4 ) after oxidation at 800 (1, 3 ) and
1000C (2, 4 ) (h is distance from the surface).
Specimens of both alloys were hydrogenated at 800C for
10 h to the following hydrogen concentrations: VT3-1 to
0.1 0.8%, VT5L to 0.1 and 0.5%.2
The original and hydrogenated (to 0.3 and 0.5% H) spe-
cimens of alloy VT3-1 were loaded into a furnace with an air
atmosphere in order to prepare a gas-impregnated layer. The
annealing temperature was 800, 1000, 1050C, and the expo-
sure time was from 0.5 to 3 h. after annealing specimens
were air cooled.
Some of the evacuated specimens of alloy VT3-1 were
hydrogenated after application of the gas-impregnated layer.
Hydrogenation annealing was performed at 800C for 10 h to
a hydrogen concentration of 0.5%.
The temperature of (a + b) b transition was deter-
mined by test quenching. In order to study the phase compo-
sition x-ray studies were performed in Dron-3, Dron-4-07
and Dron-UM1 diffractometers. The thickness of the gas-im-
pregnated layer was evaluated metallographically in a Neo-
phot microscope, and also from the results of hardness mea-
surement in a PMT-3 instrument.
In studying cutting of titanium alloys the cutting tools
used were a straight-turning tools with mechanical fastening
of an alloy VK8 blade. Cutting was evaluated by measuring
cutter wear over the rear face and cutting life to a given wear.
Cutter wear was determined by means of a tool microscope
UIM-23. the cutting regime during turning of alloy VT3-1
was as follows: v = 30 m/min, S = 0.5 mm/rev; t = 3.0 mm;
for turning alloy VT5L, v = 70 85 m/min; S = 0.2 mm/rev;
t = 0.5 30 mm.
2
Here and subsequently in the text the hydrogen content is shown
in wt.%.
B. A. Kolachev and Yu. B. Egorova
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
According to microstructural analysis data and micro-
hardness measurements with oxidation of both unhydro-
genated and hydrogenated specimens a thin layer of titanium
transitional gas-impregnated layers: alpha and diffusion. The
alpha layer is a- and b-phases, and here the amount of
a-layer enriched in oxygen decreases with distance from the
surface. Then there is a diffusion layer that in microstructure
is indistinguishable from the basic metal. Its presence and
depth of penetration may be assessed by a higher microhard-
ness compared with the basic metal. In accordance with ge-
neral features [6] the thickness of these layers with a constant
temperature increases with time by a rule close to parabolic.
With an increase in oxidation temperature the thickness of
the oxide and gas-impregnated layers increases.
Microhardness distribution curves through the thickness
of the gas-impregnated layer were constructed for different
oxidation regimes. Data are provided for the example in
Fig. 1 for alloy VT3-1 with a different hydrogen content
(0.005 and 0.3%) after oxidation at 800 and 1000C for
0.5 h. The dependence of microhardness on layer thickness
consists of two branches: rapidly descending and flat. The
layer with a high microhardness corresponds to a two-phase
structure revealed by metallographic analysis, consisting of
a-phase, enriched with oxygen, and a converted matrix. The
titanium oxide TiO2 itself does not dissolve hydrogen, and if
the oxide layer were continuous, then there would be an area
with a constant microhardness, equal to approximately
1200 1300 HV. With an oxidation temperature of 800 to
1000C it was not possible to detect the oxidized layer due to
a very small thickness (less than 0.03 mm). The maximum
thickness (about 0.05 mm) of the oxidized layer with a
microhardness of 1200 1699 HV was only observed with a
very high test temperature of 1050C and the maximum ex-
posure of 3 h (Fig. 2).
The microhardness and thickness of gas-impregnated
specimens of alloy VT3-1 with an oxygen content of 0.005
an 0.3% are provided in Table 2. The thickness of the alpha
layer was taken as that with a microhardness corresponding
to the transition of it from a sharp reduction to more uniform.
The thickness was clarified by means of metallographic ana-
lysis.
Preliminary hydrogenation of titanium alloys leads to the
following effects. Hydrogen reduces the temperature of the
(a + b) b transition of titanium alloys, and increases the
amount of b-phase, leading to formation of hydrides [3]. Ac-
cording to experimental data, for a given melt of alloy VT3-1
the Ac3 temperature for the (a + b) b transition is 990C
with 0.005% H. With an increase in hydrogen content the Ac3
temperature decreases and reaches 770C with a hydrogen
concentration of 0.8% (Table 3).
Being a b-stabilizer, hydrogen increases the amount of
b-phase from 20% in the original condition to about 47%
Mechanohydrogen Treatment of Titanium Alloys with Rough Turning 267

with a content of about 0.3% (Table 3). A TABLE 2. Microhardness and Alpha Layer Thickness on Specimens of Alloy VT3-1 after
reduction in the amount of b-phase in spec- Oxidation at Different Temperatures
imens with 0.5 and 0.8% of hydrogen is Layer thickness, mm, after
HV, kgf/mm2, after oxidation at temperatures, C
most likely connected with development of Oxygen oxidation at temperatures, C
hydride, and this was detected by an x-ray content,
800 1000 800 1000
method. %
800 1000
The (a + b) b transition temperature Core At distance 0.03 mm
for specimens with a hydrogen content of 0.005 350 355 600 950 0.05 0.20
0.3% was 900C, and therefore oxidation of 0.3 320 360 450 1000 0.05 0.26
these specimens at 800C occurred in the
(a + b)-region, whereas oxidation of speci- Note. Oxidation duration 0.5 h carried out after hydrogenation annealing.
mens with the original hydrogen content
occurred in the b-region. For specimens
with a hydrogen content of 0.3% the microhardness of the HV, kgf/mm2
surface layer is lower than for the original. For example, at a 1600
distance of 0.03 mm from the surface the microhardness of
the original specimens was 600 HV, but with a hydrogen con-
tent of 0.3% it was 450 HV. This may be connected with the
fact that during oxidation of specimens with 0.3% hydrogen 1200
in the transitional (a + b)-layer the amount of softer b-trans-
formed phase is greater than in the original specimens. Most
likely this also leads to a lower hardness.
At 1000C oxidation of the original specimens occurred 800
at the boundary of the (a + b)- and b-regions, and for speci-
mens with a hydrogen content of 0.3% in the b-region. After
oxidation at 1000C the microhardness of the surface layers 1 2 3
of both the original and hydrogenated specimens is higher 400
than with 800C. oxidation at 1000C promotes more rapid
occurrence of diffusion processes in b-phase with a bcc
structure, exhibiting lower atom packing density, in view of 0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0
which a gas-impregnated layer forms with a higher hardness. h, mm
Rough turning characteristics are given in Table 4 for
Fig. 2. Microhardness distribution through the thickness of a gas-
oxidized specimens of alloy VT3-1: wear on the rear face h3
impregnated layer of a VT3-1 alloy after oxidation at 1050C for
after cutter operation for 5 min and cutter life with wear 3 h: 1 ) oxidized specimen with 0.005% H; 2 ) oxidized specimen
h3 = 0.4 mm. with 0.5% H; hydrogenation annealing to 0.5% H of an oxidized
An increase in surface microhardness worsens the cut- specimen.
ting machinability of alloy VT3-1. After gas impregnation at
800C the machinability of the skin of alloy VT3-1, contain-
ing 0.3% H, is better than for alloy with the original hydro- for 3 h and then given a hydrogenation anneal at 800C for
gen content since the surface microhardness of hydrogenated 2 h to a concentration of 0.5% H. The oxide film slows down
specimens is lower. However, an increase in oxidation tem- specimen hydrogenation, but does not exclude it. During hy-
perature leads to an increase in surface layer microhardness drogenation of specimens with an oxide film in the surface
of hydrogenated specimens, and this is accompanied by an layer there is formation of microcracks through which hydro-
increase in cutter wear compared with that for turning an
original billet.
Under hydrogen plastification conditions [3] the heating TABLE 3. Effect of Hydrogen on the (a + b) b Tran-
sition Temperature and Amount of b-Phase in Alloys VT3-1
temperature for hot deformation of alloy VT3-1 with a hy-
drogen content of 0.3% may be reduced from 1000 to 800C, Hydrogen content, wt.% Ac3, C nb , %
and this should promote an increase in the capacity to form a 0.0045 990 20
thinner and less hard gas-impregnated skin and facilitate al- 0.1 960 30
loy cutting during rough machining. 0.2 920 30
In the series of experiments described above specimens
0.3 900 47
were first hydrogenated, and then subjected to gas impregna-
0.5 780 32
tion. In another series of experiments the sequence of opera-
0.8 770 40
tions was reversed: first specimens were oxidized at 1050C
268 B. A. Kolachev and Yu. B. Egorova

TABLE 4. Wear and Alloy VK8 Cutter Life in Turning Oxidized TABLE 6. Wear of VK8 Cutter during Turning of Alloy VT5L over
Specimens of Alloy VT3-1 with a Different Hydrogen Content the Cast Skin
Hydrogen Oxidation Surface layer Cutter Hydrogen Billet Cutting depth Cutting rate v, Cutter wear,
Cutter life,**
content, temperature, microhardness era h3,* content, wt.% diameter, mm t, mm m/min h3, mm
min
wt.% C HV, kgf/mm2 mm
First pass with variable depth
0.005 800 600 0.31 7 0.005 38 41 1.0 2.5 75 81 0.07
0.3 500 0.22 13 0.1 37 42 0.5 3.0 73 83 0.10
0.005 1000 950 0.40 5 0.5 37.5 40 1.0 3.0 75 83 0.065
0.3 1000 0.45 4 Second pass with constant depth
* With operating time 5 min. 0.005 36.0 2.0 71 0.35
0.1 36.5 2.0 72 0.10
** With wear of 0.4 mm.
0.5 36.5 2.0 72 0.08

Note. Feed during turning S = 0.2 mm/rev.

TABLE 5. Microhardness HV and Alpha Layer Thickness h on Spe-
cimens of Titanium Alloy VT3-1 after Oxidation at 1050C for 3 h
HV, kgf/mm2 for specimens with 0.008% H, Ra = 4.9 mm, but for speci-
Hydrogen h, mm mens with 0.1% H, Ra = 2.2 mm.
content, Core At distance 0.03 mm
wt.%
According to microstructural analysis data, after hydro-
HO + O O + HO HO + O O + HO HO + O O + HO genation annealing at the surface of a specimen there is
0.005 370* 1500* 0.2* microcrack formation due to diffusion of hydrogen into sur-
0.5 380 360 730 390 0.22 0.03
face layers and breakdown of the alpha skin, that most likely
gives rise to the higher machinability indices for alloy VT5L
* Specimens after oxidation in the original condition. over the skin.
Notations: HA is hydrogenation anneal; O is oxidation.
CONCLUSIONS

Hydrogen may be useful for improving cutting of

gen penetrates into the metal. However, there is not total
breakdown of the oxide layer and separation from the metal.
In this series of experiments it was detected (Table 5;
Fig. 2, curve 3 ) that the microhardness of specimens oxi-
dized and then hydrogenated to 0.5% H (O + HA) is less than
that of the original metal. This occurs apparently due to the
fact that hydrogen loosens the surface gas-impregnated layer
which leads to alleviation of cutting titanium alloys over the
skin. This conclusion is confirmed by the results of experi-
ments for cutting cast skins provided below for alloy VT5L.
Specimens of alloy VT5L with a cast skin had a variable
diameter (37 42 mm) that made it impossible to measure
the cutting force due to severe wobble during turning. The
depth of the alpha layer was 0.8 2.3 mm, and therefore for
total removal of the cast skin turning was performed in two
passes. The cutting depth during the first pass was variable.
The cutting blade was replaced after the first pass. The re-
sults of experiments are given in Table 6.
During the first pass the billet was not turned under uni-
form conditions since for hydrogenated billets there was con-
siderable wobble connected with considerable nonuniformity
of the cut layer thickness. It is possible to draw the following
conclusions from the results of the second pass: a) cutter
wear during turning of hydrogenated billets is less by a factor
of three; b) during turning of hydrogenated billets shaving
breakdown is observed; c) after machining hydrogenated bil-
lets have less roughness under identical cutting conditions;
wrought semifinished products and mold castings of titanium
alloys through the oxidized layer (alpha skin). Two direc-
tions are possible for improving cutting: a) prior hydrogena-
tion by a specific regime is carried out to reduce the thick-
ness of the oxide and gas-impregnated layers an softening of
it; b) during reaction of hydrogen with an already existing
oxide layer during hydrogenation annealing there may be
loosening of the gas-impregnated layer and deterioration of
its adhesion to the metal.
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