Electron beam melting of boron-modified Ti–2Al–2Sn–4Zr–2Mo–0.1Si alloy with superior tensile strength and oxidation resistance at elevated temperatures

The effectiveness of applying an electron beam melting (EBM) additive manufacturing process to Ti–6Al–2Sn–4Zr–2Mo–0.1Si–1B alloy by comparing the EBM alloy with a corresponding wrought alloy was demonstrated. The EBM alloys exhibited microstructures that had much finer whisker-like TiB precipitates with nanometer width dispersed more uniformly than those of the wrought alloy formed due to the rapid solidification process. The EBM alloys had higher tensile strength than the wrought alloy at elevated temperatures up to 873 K. Furthermore, the oxidation resistance at 1073 K of the EBM alloys was significantly improved because of the dense oxide film formation.