Dynamic recrystallization behavior of biomedical Co-29Cr-6Mo-0.16N alloy

• DRX behavior of Co-29Cr-6Mo-0.16N alloy was analyzed.
• High strain rates were effective for obtaining fine and fully DRXed microstructure.
• The Σ3n boundaries evolve into general high-angle grain boundaries (HAGBs).

The dynamic recrystallization (DRX) behavior of the biomedical Co-29Cr-6Mo-0.16N (CCMN) alloy was analyzed in detail by performing compressive tests at strain rates of 1.0 s− 1 and 30 s− 1, with the temperature ranging from 1273 K to 1473 K. It was found that the deformation bands in the non-DRXed region were stacking fault (SF) bands along the {111} planes that intersected each other or with the pre-existing grain boundaries even at low strain levels, and the dominant DRX mechanism was ascribed to the repeated formations of Σ3n boundaries from these dense SF bands. High strain rates were very effective for obtaining a fine and fully DRXed microstructure. The Σ3n boundaries evolve into general high-angle grain boundaries (HAGBs) because of the external stress applied to the sample during compression, and it becomes difficult for these boundaries to form inside DRXed grains at high strains because of the finer grain size obtained as a result of the DRX process.