Internal Oxidation of Textured Thin Tapes of Binary Copper-Based Alloys

Abstract

Transmission electron microscopy was used to perform a structural analysis of a number of binary copper alloys with 3d transition elements after short-term annealing in an oxidative atmosphere (5 and 30 min) at a temperature of 700°C. It has been established that the textured tapes of Cu–Cr and Cu–Fe alloys sustain not only surface oxidation in the process of additional annealing, but also internal oxidation. Electron diffraction analysis has shown that a layer of complex spinel-type CuМ₂O₄ oxide (М = Cr, Fe) forms on alloying element particles under annealing, while the precipitation of dispersed copper oxides, predominantly, Cu₂O with a small admixture of CuO occurs in the copper matrix. Microhardness analysis has demonstrated that internal oxidation in the tapes of the studied binary alloys does not have an adverse effect on their mechanical properties.