High shape recovery Ni–Ti SMA wire produced from electron beam melted ingot

► It was obtained a remarkable complete shape recovery up to 9% pre-strain. ► Shape recovery higher than 9% was obtained for a pre-strain up to 15%. ► These good results are attributed to a high purity NiTi SMA wire produced from EBM ingot. Shape recovery of a 2mm in diameter shape memory alloy (SMA) wire produced from EB melted NiTi ingot is presented. The results indicate complete shape recovery as high as 9% and a shape recovery higher than 9% for a pre-strain between 10 and 15%. These excellent results are attributed to the high purity of starting ingot with carbon content of 0.016wt%. It was observed no change in reverse martensitic transformation temperature for pre-strain up to 9% and for higher pre-strain there was a 50°C increase in reverse martensitic transformation peak temperatures indicating some work hardening of the material.