Thermomechanical work efficiency of high-temperature shape memory alloys under nontraditional loading paths

Thermomechanical loading paths involving a simultaneous increase of stress and decrease of temperature (i.e., out-of-phase paths) were investigated for a NiTiHf High-Temperature Shape Memory Alloy (HTSMA). Isothermal and isobaric loadings were first performed to characterize the fundamental shape memory properties and establish the stress-temperature phase diagram. Fully-transforming out-of-phase loadings were then performed for different maximum stress levels. The obtained mechanical responses exhibited significant recoverable strains, indicating reversible martensitic transformations, contrary to the mechanical responses under pure isothermal mechanical loading. The out-of-phase responses were compared to those under isobaric paths to analyze the phase-transformation characteristics and identify the role of loading paths on the transformation reversibility and the possible interactions between deformation modes. The out-of-phase paths produce strain responses similar to the ones obtained from isobaric actuation tests. However, the strain recovery can be observed from both strain-temperature and stress–strain perspectives. Since recovery can occur from a stress–strain perspective, it is denominated as ”non-isothermal superelasticity”. The transformation temperatures obtained for these paths showed similar values to the ones corresponding to isobaric loading. A general definition of the work output is proposed to capture it under varying stresses, as opposed to the classical definition under constant stress levels in isobaric actuation experiments. An analysis of the work inputs and outputs, using this new definition, revealed that out-of-phase loadings produce a lower but relatively constant work output as a function of the stress level for a significantly lower work input, enabling new possibilities for HTSMA actuators in environments with limited work input available.