Communication: a relationship between hardness and flow stress of ordered Zr3Al polycrystals

The purpose of this note is to describe a relationship between hardness and flow stress for the ordered L1$sub 2$ phase Zr$sub 3$Al, a possible structural material for use in nuclear power reactors. Experimental data obtained with the Zr-8.9% Al alloy lead to the conclusion that the hardness of polycrystalline Zr$sub 3$Al obeys an expression of the Hall-Petch form. When combined with a similar expression for flow stress, established previously, a simple relationship is obtained for flow stress in terms of hardness of well annealed material. Hardness measurements thus provide a rapid and inexpensive assessment of the strength of Zr$sub 3$Al. 8 refs