Probing Martensitic Transition in Nitinol Wire: A Comparison of X-ray Diffraction and Other Techniques

Martensitic to austenite transformation in Nitinol wire can be measured by a number of techniques such as XRD (X-Ray Diffraction), DSC (Differential Scanning Calorimetry), BFR (Bend and Free Recovery) and Vickers indentation recovery. A comparison of results from these varied characterisation techniques is reported here to obtain a greater understanding of the thermal-elastic-structural changes associated with martensitic transformation. The transformation temperatures measured by DSC were found to correspond well with the structural and mechanical information obtained from XRD, BFR and Vickers indent recovery methods. Indent recovery is a relatively new and accurate method of monitoring stress induced martensitic transformations in NiTi and is one of only a few methods of stress inducing martensitic transformation in large scale samples. It is especially useful for NiTi in the as-cast billet form, where tensile testing is impossible. BFR is uniquely popular in the NiTi wire manufacturing sector and is recognised as the most accurate method of measuring the transformation temperature. Here the material is stressed to a representative in-service stress level during the test. No other test uses the shape memory effect for measuring the transformation temperature of NiTi. The results show that the DSC thermogram and XRD diffractogram have a peak overlap which is a common occurrence in NiTi that has been extensively processed. The XRD method further explains the observations in the DSC thermogram and in combination they confirm the transformation temperature.