The effect of microstructure and chemistry on the kinetics of passive layer growth and passivity breakdown of some Ti-based alloys, namely Ti-6Al-4V, Ti-6Al-7Nb and TC21 alloys, was studied. The rate of pitting corrosion was evaluated using cyclic polarization measurements. Chronoamperometry was applied to assess the passive layer growth kinetics and breakdown. Microstructure influence on the uniform corrosion rate of these alloys was also investigated employing dynamic electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (DEIS). Corrosion studies were performed in 0.9% NaCl solution at 37 °C, and the obtained results were compared with ultrapure Ti (99.99%). The different phases of the microstructure were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Chemical composition and chemistry of the corroded surfaces were studied using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) analysis. For all studied alloys, the microstructure consisted of α matrix, which was strengthened by β phase. The highest and the lowest values of the β phase’s volume fraction were recorded for TC21 and Ti-Al-Nb alloys, respectively. The susceptibility of the investigated alloys toward pitting corrosion was enhanced following the sequence: Ti-6Al-7Nb < Ti-6Al-4V << TC21. Ti-6Al-7Nb alloy recorded the lowest pitting corrosion resistance (R_pit) among studied alloys, approaching that of pure Ti. The obvious changes in the microstructure of these alloys, together with XPS findings, were adopted to interpret the pronounced variation in the corrosion behavior of these materials.

Fabrication of Al-Al₃Ti functionally graded materials (FGMs) under the centrifugal force has recently attracted some attention. The controlled compositional gradient of the fabricated FGMs, the low cost of the process, and the good mold filling, are the main advantages of the centrifugal method (CM). Using the conventional CM techniques such as the centrifugal solid-particle method and centrifugal in-situ method, FGMs rings with gradually distributed properties could be achieved. As a more practical choice, the centrifugal mixed-powder method (CMPM) was recently proposed to obtain FGMs containing nano-particles selectively dispersed in the outer surface of the fabricated parts. However, if a control of the particles morphology, compound formulas or sizes, is desired, another CM technique is favored. As a development of CMPM, our novel reaction centrifugal mixed-powder method (RCMPM) has been presented. Using RCMPM, Al‑Al₃Ti/Ti₃Al FGMs with good surface properties and temperature controlled compositional gradient could be achieved. In this short review, this novel method will be discussed in detail and the effect of RCMPM processing temperature on the reinforcement particles morphology, size and distribution through the fabricated samples, will be reviewed.

In the current work, several heat treatments were carried out below and above the beta-transition temperature of the Ti–6Al–4V alloy followed by aging at 550 °C for 6 hours. The resultant microstructures and their effects on the mechanical properties of Ti–6Al–4V alloy were investigated. The results showed that solution treatment of Ti–6Al–4V samples followed by water quenching from β and α/β fields raised the alloy hardness from 380 to 575 and 656 HV, respectively, while no remarkable changes were observed after aging. The hot tensile strength of the as-forged sample increased from 671 to 756 MPa after water quenching from the ß- or α/ß- field, while the air cooling from β-phase field decreased the tensile strength to 644 MPa. The fracture mode of the tensile samples was more ductile in case of the solution-treated samples compared to the as-forged samples. A subsurface layer was formed due to the diffusion of oxygen into the surface at high temperatures. This layer which is known as ‘oxygen diffusion layer’ masked the differences of wear behaviour of the specimens.