Enhanced grain refinement and microhardness of Ti-Al-V alloy by electropulsing ultrasonic shock

The effect of electropulsing ultrasonic shock (EUS) on the microhardness and microstructure of Ti6Al4V alloy was studied. It was found that electropulsing improved the microhardness dramatically, compared with the only ultrasonic-shocked sample. It is indicated that refined surface layer were obtained on account of dynamic recrystallization (DRX) and phase change, which was implemented at low temperature and high strain rate/capacity due to the coupling of the thermal and athermal effects of EUS. It is different from conventional experiments and theory.