Observations on Historical and Contemporary Developments in Superplasticity

Abstract

ABSTRACTThe history of superplasticity is reviewed. The first scientific observation of superplasticity dates back to 1912. Sporadic reports of subsequent observations appear in the literature up to the review by Underwood in 1962. Since that time there have been a number of milestone achievements that have propelled the technology of superplasticity forward. These include commercial developments based on nickel, titanium, iron, and aluminum alloys. In more recent times the advent of superplasticity in ceramics and intermetallics has stimulated yet further interest in the field. At the present time there are major research efforts underway in the USA, USSR, Japan, China, and Europe to apply superplastic forming technology to the manufacture of complex components.