Published online by Cambridge University Press: 15 February 2011
Nanocrystalline TiAl powder was formed by the modified HDDR (hydrogenation-disproportion-dehydrogenaton-recombination) method utilizing ball milling in a hydrogen atmosphere. That is, TiAl compound powder decomposed into TiH2 and Al-rich TiAl powders by mechanical grinding in a hydrogen atmosphere (HD process). Dehydrogenaton-recombination (realloying) resulted in the formation of nanocrystalline TiAl powder when heated to about 700 K in an argon atmosphere (DR process). Almost fully dense nanocrystalline TiAl compacts were prepared by a combination of HDDR and hot-pressing at 873 K which is lower than the usual consolidation temperature by about 300 K. The TiAl compact thus made was brittle in the as-pressed state but showed compressive ductility after annealing.