Deformation characteristics of Cu-30 % Zn alloy subjected to dynamic equal channel angular pressing (DECAP)

In this study, the applicability of dynamic equal channel angular pressing for grain refinement and improvement in the properties of a two-phase Cu-30 %Zn alloy was investigated. Simulation and experiments were performed to study the deformation characteristics. The parameters for the multi-pass extrusion simulation were consistent with those in the experiments. The experimental results are in good agreement with the simulation. A homogeneous microstructure and grain refinement are readily achieved. The hardness increases rapidly by 170 % compared to the annealed samples, and its distribution is approximately uniform throughout the 2-pass deformation. Microstructural analysis indicates nanotwins of ~5–10 nm width and high-density dislocations.