Evolution of microstructure and phase composition of Ti-3Al-5Mo-4.5V alloy with varied β phase stability

The microstructure evolution and phase composition of an α + β titanium alloy, Ti-3Al-5Mo-4.5V (wt.%), have been investigated. Electron probe micro analysis (EPMA) quantitative results manifest that the stability of β phase decreases with increasing quenching temperature, which is influenced by the significant variation of β-stabilizing elements concentration. Detailed microstructure analysis shows that the β → ω phase transformation does occur when quenching at 750 °C and 800 °C. The ω-reflections change from incommensurate ω-spots (750 °C) to ideal ω-spots (800 °C) as the β stability of the alloy decreases. Further the decrease of β phase stability encourages the formation of athermal α′′ martensite, which has the following orientation relationships: [111]β//[110]α′′, [100]β//[100]α′′ and [-110]β//[00-1]α′′ with respect to the β matrix.