Severe Plastic Deformation by Equal Channel Angular Pressing and Rolling: The Influence of the Deformation Path on Strain Distribution

Abstract

The present work compares two deformation techniques, rolling and Equal Channel Angular pressing (ECAP), and the response offered by three different materials that differ in Stacking Fault Energy (SFE): AA1010 Al, commercially pure Cu, and an austenitic stainless steel. The objective of this investigation is to study the effect of each deformation mode on tensile behavior, deformation mechanism, texture, and microstructure and to establish the influence of the stacking fault energy on said effects. The results show that the different strain paths of ECAP and rolling do not affect the strength, but rolling leads to an accentuated texture and thus to elastic and plastic anisotropy. This finding has practical relevance for micro manufacturing techniques. Furthermore, it is observed that lower SFE results in smaller domain size and higher dislocation density, which are microstructural details related to strength and to the work hardening capacity. Finally, both techniques are able to produce a high amount of high angle grain boundaries, a feature that characterizes refined microstructures. These processes operate at different strain rates; thus, in low SFE materials, a more effective grain fragmentation by deformation-induced twins is observed after the ECAP process.