Relationship Between Recrystallization Kinetics and the Inhomogeneity of Stored Energy

A new analytic method based on the microstructural path method with nucleation rate and growth rate as descriptors is proposed, which provides a link between the nonhomogeneous distribution of stored energy in plastically deformed materials and the recrystallization rate. The proposed approach uses easily measured recrystallization rates to provide information about the deformation history and the inhomogeneity of stored energy. The theory was evaluated by comparing direct differential scanning calorimetry measurements of inhomogeneity factor, m, on deformed samples of pure Cu at 498 K (225 °C), to those extracted from hardness measurements. Excellent agreement between the model and the experiment was found. In addition, it is shown how any given probability function describing the initial distribution of stored energy can be used to predict the evolution of the residual stored energy as recrystallization proceeds.