Phase field modeling of the aspect ratio dependent functional properties of NiTi shape memory alloys with different grain sizes

It is well known that coarse-grained super-elastic NiTi shape memory alloys (SMAs) exhibit localized rather than homogeneous martensite transformation (MT), which, however, can be strongly influenced by either internal size (grain size, GS) or the external size (geometric size). The coupled effect of GS and geometric size on the functional properties has not been clearly understood yet. In this work, the super-elasticity, one-way, and stress-assisted two-way shape memory effects of the polycrystalline NiTi SMAs with different aspect ratios (length/width for the gauge section) and different GSs are investigated based on the phase field method. The coupled effect of the aspect ratio and GS on the functional properties is adequately revealed. The simulated results indicate that when the aspect ratio is lower than about 4:1, the stress biaxiality and stress heterogeneity in the gauge section of the sample become more and more obvious with decreasing the aspect ratio, which can significantly influence the microstructure evolution in the process involving external stress. Therefore, the corresponding functional property is strongly dependent on the aspect ratio. With decreasing the GS and the aspect ratio (to be lower than 4:1), both the aspect ratio and GS can affect the MT or martensite reorientation in each grain and the interaction among grains. Thus, due to the strong internal constraint (i.e., the constraint of grain boundary) and the external constraint (i.e., the constraint of geometric boundary), the capabilities of the functional properties of NiTi SMAs are gradually weakened and highly dependent on these two factors.