Comparison of Various Metallography Preparation Methods of Binary NiTi-shape Memory Alloy Specimens

In this paper, the results of different selected mechanical and electrolytic preparation methods are compared with regard to the successful visualization of Nitinol microstructure. The results indicate that a commonly specified preparation route may result in false microstructure and therefore in false interpretation of the material, its behavior, and its lifetime condition. An electrolytic preparation is defined that may provide superior metallographic sample preparation results for drawn NiTi materials.