The mechanism of grain refinement of titanium by silicon

A recently developed model of grain refinement was used to clarify the role of silicon as a solute element in the titanium system. A refinement in the as-cast prior-β grain size is observed when silicon is added, and this is attributed to silicon’s high growth-restricting effect. However, it was also determined that the identification and presence of potent nuclei for β-Ti is required to accurately predict the degree of refinement with a given silicon addition.