THE INFLUENCE OF ULTRASOUND ACTIVATION ON MICROSTRUCTURE AND HARDNESS OF POROUS Ni-Ti SHAPE MEMORY ALLOYS

A Ni-Ti shape memory alloy with a porous structure is obtained by the method of self-propagating high-temperature synthesis (SHS) and investigated the possibility of changing its microstructure and hardness. The research aimed to study the changes in the microstructure and hardness of the Ni-Ti shape memory alloy with a porous structure when the Ni and Ti metal powders are preliminarily subjected to ultrasound activation for different periods. The microstructure of the alloy surfaces was studied with using a Hitachi scanning electron microscope (SEM), and the hardness was measured with a Brinell electronic hardness tester. The results of the experiments showed that the porosity and hardness of the Ni-Ti alloy enlarged with an increase in the time of ultrasound activation of the components. The innovative aspect of this study is that prior to the synthesis of powder elements with a purity of Ni 99.9% and Ti 99.9% with an average particle size of 40 μm, they were previously subjected separately to ultrasound activation at different periods.