Tensile behavior change depending on the microstructure of a Fe–Cu alloy produced from rapidly solidified powder

The relationship between consolidating temperature and the tensile behavior of iron alloy produced from Fe–Cu rapidly solidified powder is investigated. Fe–Cu powder fabricated by high-pressure water atomization was consolidated by heavy rolling at 873–1273 K. Microstructural changes were observed and tensile behavior was examined. Tensile behavior varies as the consolidating temperature changes, and these temperature-dependent differences depend on the morphology of the microstructure on the order of micrometers. The sample consolidated at 873 K shows a good strength/elongation balance because the powder microstructure and primary powder boundaries are maintained. The samples consolidated at the higher temperatures have a microstructure of recrystallized grains, and these recrystallized samples show the conventional relationship between tensile behavior and grain size in ordinal bulk materials.