The effect of quasi-continuous (QC) equal-channel angular pressing (ECAP) in various pre-aged states on the structure formation and mechanical and functional properties of a hyper-equiatomic titanium nickelide (TiNi) shape memory alloy is studied. QC ECAP with a channel intersection angle of 110° is carried out at a temperature of 450 °C after aging for 1 and 5 h for three passes. To investigate the obtained structure and properties, the following research methods are applied: transmission electron microscopy, XRD analysis, calorimetric study, tension and hardness tests, and a special technique for the determination of functional properties. QC ECAP allows for the considerable refinement of structural elements and results in obtaining a mixed fine-grade structure, with structural elements of average sizes of 92 nm after pre-aging for 1 h and 115 nm after pre-aging for 5 h. Pre-aging for 5 h before QC ECAP, in combination with QC ECAP and post-deformation aging at 430 °C for 1 h, provides the best combination of mechanical and functional properties: a dislocation yield stress of 1410 MPa, ultimate tensile strength of 1562 MPa, and total recoverable strain of 11.6%. These values are comparable with the best results obtained for titanium nickelide and expand opportunities for the application of smart shape memory devices.
The effect of thermomechanical processing (TMP) parameters on the structural-phase evolution and properties of Ni-enriched Ti–50.8 at.% Ni shape memory alloy was investigated. Compression deformation was performed at T = 300–500 °C, accompanied by the development of dynamic aging (DA) processes, to true strains of e = 0.5–1.3, followed by post-deformation static aging (SA) at 430 °C for 1 and 10 h. The structural-phase state and properties were characterized using optical and transmission electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, differential scanning calorimetry, and Vickers hardness measurements. The results confirmed that DA processes were activated during compression but proved insufficient for pronounced Ti3Ni4 precipitate growth compared with SA. The temperature range of 430–500 °C promoted the most intensive DA processes and facilitated ultrafine-grained structure formation. The processing route combining DA at 500 °C with short-term SA (1 h) resulted in the finest precipitates of Ti3Ni4 phase and most homogeneous substructure. These findings demonstrate that the proposed TMP strategy enables effective tailoring of precipitate dispersion, evolution of transformation temperatures and mechanical properties (hardness), providing a viable manufacturing pathway for tailoring TiNi SMA performance in advanced biomedical and engineering applications.