Calorimetric study of spinodal decomposition in β-Cu–Al–Mn

Abstract

We report data obtained from the spinodal decomposition in samples of two compositions of intermetallic Cu–Al–Mn shape memory alloys. Detailed experimental information has been collected by means of differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). Spinodal decomposition was induced by isothermal treatments at different temperatures within the miscibility gap. To determine the precipitation kinetics, after each isothermal treatment particle dissolution curves were obtained by DSC. From the dissolution curves, various aspects of the precipitation process were determined, such as particles dissolution enthalpy; initial precipitate volume fraction evolution; non-isothermal dissolution characteristics; dissolution activation energy and particle distribution information. Regardless of the composition, the determined activation energy was 77 kJ mol−1. Diffusion of Mn atoms seems to be the fundamental factor that controls the studied processes.