In situ observation of texture evolution during α → β and β → α phase transformations in titanium alloys investigated by neutron diffraction

Texture changes during recrystallization and the α–β–α phase transformation in two titanium alloys were investigated in situ by time-of-flight neutron diffraction by heating in a vacuum furnace to 950 °C. In commercially pure titanium, a strong texture memory effect is observed. This effect is a direct consequence of an orientation-selective α → β transformation, favoring new orientations produced during nucleation and grain growth. The β–α transformation favors β orientations with minimal misorientations, resulting in a strong final α texture that emphasizes the grain growth component. In Ti–6Al–4V, the texture memory effect is less pronounced. The high-temperature β texture is obtained by growth of pre-existing β nuclei. In a similar way, during cooling, the growth of α domains is controlled by high-temperature α orientations inherited from the β grains with Burgers orientation relation.