Ductilization of L1₂ Intermetallic Compound Ni₃Al by Microalloying with Boron

Many intermetallic compounds have attractive high-temperature mechanical properties; however, poor ductility at room temperature severely restrict their use as high-temperature structural materials. The brittleness in an L12 intermetallic compound Ni3Al, caused by the intergranular fracture, has been dramatically overcome by microalloying with boron. Ductilization of Ni3Al has renewed a great interest in the intermetallic compounds as a new category of structural materials. Full details of the discovered ductilizing boron effect in Ni3Al are given in this paper.