Effect of ball-milling conditions on microstructure during production of Fe–20Mn–6Si–9Cr shape memory alloy powders by mechanical alloying

Phase transitions associated with Fe–20 wt% Mn–6 wt% Si–9 wt% Cr alloy during mechanical alloying and after subsequent annealing of that are studied experimentally. The conventional powder metallurgy route was used in preparing the sample. The milling time ranged from 5 to 20 h. Changes in microstructure as a function of milling time were investigated by using X-ray diffraction analysis, differential scanning calorimeter, and scanning electron microscopy. The grain sizes of powder milled are determined. The critical temperatures associated with the transformations are found to change with increasing ballmilling time.