Understanding the recrystallisation behaviour of Zircaloy-4

Recrystallisation is a complex phenomenon widely utilised to obtain a good balance between strength and ductility in engineering alloys. Recrystallisation is strongly influenced by the microstructural state inherited from deformation, yet the role of local deformation heterogeneity in hexagonal close-packed alloys is not well understood. In this work, we combine ex-situ and in-situ electronbackscatter diffraction with crystal plasticity and phase-field modelling to investigate how the deformed microstructure of Zircaloy-4 shapes its recrystallisation behaviour. We show that heterogeneous deformation produces distinct local environments, with different stored-energy levels, defect structures, and orientation gradients, that lead to orientation-dependent differences in primary recrystallisation. These early recrystallisation differences give certain grains a local size advantage, which then influences how grain growth proceeds during annealing By linking these steps, we demonstrate how local deformation conditions strongly influence the resulting texture evolution primarily during grain growth.