Effects of annealing temperature on the microstructure and mechanical properties through thickness of a cold-rolled Cu-3.0Ni-0.7Si alloy were investigated in detail. The copper alloy with thickness of 3 mm was rolled to 50 % reduction at ambient temperature without lubricant and subsequently annealed for 0.5h at 200~900 oC. The microstructure of the copper alloy after annealing was different in thickness direction depending on an amount of the shear and compressive strain introduced by rolling; the recrystallization occurred first in surface regions shear-deformed largely. The hardness distribution of the specimens annealed at 500~700 oC was not uniform in thickness direction due to partial recrystallization. This ununiformity of hardness corresponded well with an amount of shear strain in thickness direction. The average hardness and ultimate tensile strength showed the maximum values of 250Hv and 450MPa in specimen annealed at 400 oC, respectively. It is considered that the complex mode of strain introduced by rolling effected directly on the microstructure and the mechanical properties of the annealed specimens.

Effects of conventional rolling(CR) and differential speed rolling(DSR) on the microstructure and mechanical properties of Cu-Ni-Si alloy were investigated in detail. The copper alloy with thickness of 3 mm was rolled to 50 % reduction at ambient temperature without lubricant with a differential speed ratio of 2:1. The conventional rolling in which the rolling speed of upper and lower rolls is identical was performed under identical rolling conditions. The shear strain introduced by the CR showed positive values at positions of upper roll side and negative values at positions of lower roll side. However, it showed zero or positive values at all positions for the samples rolled by the DSR. The microstrucure and texture development of the as-rolled copper alloy did not show any significant difference between CR and DSR. The tensile strength of the DSR processed specimen was larger than that of the CR processed specimen. The effects of rolling methods on the microstructure and mechanical properties of the as-rolled copper alloy are discussed in terms of the shear strain.

The γ/γ´ two-phases, commonly known as a eutectic structure, are observed in the γ interdendritic region of a Nibase superalloy. However, the growth behavior of the γ/γ´ two-phases, whether it is of eutectic or peritectic nature, has not been decidedly established. Directional solidifications were, thus, performed with the planar interface at a low growth rate of 0.5 μm/s in order to promote macro segregation. Directional solidification started with the γ planar interface and the γ´ phase nucleated on the γ planar interface at the solidification fraction of 0.75. The γ/γ´ two-phases showed the γ´ rod structure as major phase and the γ minor phase between γ´ rods, and the volume fraction of the γ phase changed continuously with an increasing solidification fraction. The two-phase γ/γ´ is seen as the coupled peritectic.

Alumina dispersion strengthening copper(ADSC) alloy has great potential for use in many industrial applications such as contact supports, frictional break parts, electrode materials for lead wires, and spot welding with relatively high strength and good conductivity. In this study, we investigated the oxidation behavior of ADSC alloys. These alloys were fabricated in forms of plate and round type samples by surface oxidation reaction using Cu-0.8Al, Cu-0.4Al-0.4Ti, and Cu-0.6Al-0.4Ti(wt%) alloys. The alloys were oxidized at 980 oC for 1 h, 2 h, and 4 h in ambient atmosphere. The microstructure was observed with an optical microscope(OM) and a scanning electron microscope(SEM) equipped with energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy(EDS). Characterization of alumina was carried out using a 200 kV field-emission transmission electron microscope(TEM). As a result, various oxides including Ti were formed in the oxidation layer, in addition to γ-alumina. The thickness of the oxidation layer increased with Ti addition to the Cu-Al alloy and with the oxidation time. The corrected diffusion equation for the plate and round type samples showed different oxidation layer thickness under the same conditions. Diffusion length of the round type specimen had a value higher than that of its plate counterpart because the oxygen concentration per unit area of the round type specimen was higher than that of the plate type specimen at the same diffusiondepth.

The effects of conventional rolling (CR) and differential speed rolling (DSR) on the microstructure and mechanical properties of a copper alloy sheet were investigated in detail. A copper alloy with thickness of 3 mm was rolled to a 50% reduction at ambient temperature without lubrication with a differential speed ratio of 2:1; sample was then annealed for 0.5h at various temperatures from 100 to 800˚C. Conventional rolling, in which the rolling speed of the upper and lower rolls is identical, was performed under the same rolling conditions. The shear strain introduced by the CR showed positive values at positions on the upper roll side and negative values at positions on the lower roll side. However, the shear strain showed a zero or positive value at all positions for the samples rolled by the DSR. The microstrucure and mechanical properties of the as-rolled copper alloy did not show very significant differences between the CR and DSR for the microstructure and mechanical properties. However, those properties showed very significant differences in the case of the annealed samples. The effects of rolling method on the microstructure and mechanical properties of the as-rolled and subsequently annealed materials are discussed in terms of the shear strain.

A Cu-Fe-P copper alloy was processed by accumulative roll-bonding (ARB) for ultra grain refinement and high strengthening. Two 1mm thick copper sheets, 30 mm wide and 300 mm long, were first degreased and wire-brushed for sound bonding. The sheets were then stacked on top of each other and roll-bonded by about 50% reduction rolling without lubrication at ambient temperature. The bonded sheet was then cut into two pieces of the same dimensions and the same procedure was repeated for the sheets up to eight cycles. Microstructural evolution of the copper alloy with the number of the ARB cycles was investigated by optical microscopy (OM), transmission electron microscopy(TEM), and electron back scatter diffraction(EBSD). The grain size decreased gradually with the number of ARB cycles, and was reduced to 290 nm after eight cycles. The boundaries above 60% of ultrafine grains formed exhibited high angle boundaries above 15 degrees. In addition, the average misorientation angle of ultrafine grains was 30 degrees.

분말야금법으로 제조된 Cu-7.5Ni-5Sn 합금의 용체화 및 시효 열처리 조건에 따른 기계적 특성의 변화를 관찰하였다. As-received 상태의 Cu-7.5Ni-5Sn 합금을 시효한 경우에는 시효 20분 후에 γ' 상의 석출에 의한 강도 증가를 나타내는데 반해, 재용체화 처리된 시편에서는 시효 수십초부터 스피노달 분해에 의한 급격한 강도의 증가를 나타내고 있다. 그러나 전체적인 인장강도는 재용체화 처리를 행한 경우에 비해 as-received 상태에서 등온 시효한 경우가 더욱 우수한 것으로 나타났다. 이러한 현상은 재용체화 처리에 의한 결정립 성장에 기인한 것으로 사료된다. As-received 상태의 Cu-7.5Ni-5Sn 합금을 장시간 시효하게 되면 결정립계에 불연속 석출물이 생성되었으며, 이러한 불연속 석출물의 생성과 성장은 열처리 조건에 영향을 받는 것으로 관찰되었으며, 합금의 최종 기계적 성질에 크게 영향을 미치는 것으로 판단된다.