Materials Characterization 145 (2018) 545–555

Contents lists available at ScienceDirect

Materials Characterization
journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/matchar

Review

The microstructure and property variations of metals induced by electric T

current treatment: A review
⁎
Chien-Lung Liang, Kwang-Lung Lin
Department of Materials Science and Engineering, National Cheng Kung University, No.1, University Road, Tainan 70101, Taiwan

A R T I C LE I N FO A B S T R A C T

Keywords: Heat treatment has been widely applied for manipulating the microstructure and properties of metals with
Microstructure thermal energy. The thermal energy triggers the atomic diffusion accompanied by dislocation movement and
Mechanical property results in the subsequent property variations in metals. One of the attractive efforts in the past decades is the
Electric current development of a direct treatment of metals with electric current stressing as an alternative method for con-
Recrystallization
ventional heat treatment. Electric current treatment provides thermal energy from Joule heat (thermal effect)
Phase transformation
and kinetic energy from electron momentum (athermal effect). This article reviewed the practices of electric
Grain refining
current treatment, microstructure-property variations and the physical metallurgy involved in a variety of
metals. Both thermal and athermal effects have been well recognized in the literatures. An appropriate ma-
nipulation of the electric current treatment enables the control of both effects and thus the microstructure and
properties of metals.

1. Background: Conventional Heat Treatment and Electric Current
Treatment
Properties of materials are closely correlated with the micro-
structures. Microstructures of metals can be manipulated by hard
working incorporated with the following heat treatments, such as se-
quential homogenization and annealing processes. The microstructural
variations generally occur through the recovery and recrystallization of
the metal matrices [1] which eliminate the dislocations produced by
hard working. The recrystallization forms strain-free equiaxed grains.
The thermal energy provided from heat treatment activated the re-
covery and recrystallization processes.
The heat treatment is generally conducted in a thermal furnace
which provides the heat (thermal energy) in need through conduction
or radiation. However, the conventional heat treatment using a thermal
furnace takes long time and is a rather energy-consuming process. In
addition, the heat treatment process is not an energy efficient process
which may involve a large energy loss during the prolonged heating
and cooling procedures. It is always desirable to improve the process
and energy efficiency of the microstructure and property manipula-
tions.
The direct treatment of metals with electric current stressing as an
alternative method for the conventional heat treatment has been dis-
closed in the literatures. The effects of electric current treatment are
twofold: (i) the Joule heat resulting from the intrinsic electrical re-
sistivity of metal conductors contributes the thermal energy, and (ii) the
high density electric current carries high momentum electrons resulting
in atomic migration known as “electromigration”.
In the 1970's to 1980's, Conrad and his group reported a series of
studies on the electroplastic and recrystallization in pure metal wires
using electropulsing treatment [2–7]. The electropulsing treatment
could manipulate the microstructures and mechanical properties by
altering the recrystallization kinetics. Ever since then, many attempts
have been made for manipulating the microstructures and mechanical
properties of a variety of metals with electric current treatment (see
Table 1 for details). For example, the electroplastic effect has been
applied in cold-rolled 5052-H32 Al alloys to improve the formability of
the alloys [21]. The treatments of metals as investigated generally in-
volved a hard working pre-treatment incorporated with the following
imposition of electropulsing or alternating current [5–29]. The effec-
tiveness of the methods using electropulsing or alternating current
treatment for the microstructure and property manipulation is affected
by the dislocations produced. Recent studies have revealed the possi-
bility of a non-deformation direct current treatment of metals without
the need of a hard working pre-treatment for inducing dislocation, re-
crystallization, and property variations [30–44]. It is generally believed
that the critical current densities for inducing the electric current-in-
duced phenomena exist and are determined by various factors, such as

⁎
Corresponding author.
E-mail addresses: n58031015@mail.ncku.edu.tw (C.-L. Liang), matkllin@mail.ncku.edu.tw (K.-L. Lin).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.matchar.2018.08.058
Received 1 July 2018; Received in revised form 13 August 2018; Accepted 29 August 2018
Available online 30 August 2018
1044-5803/ © 2018 Published by Elsevier Inc.
C.-L. Liang, K.-L. Lin Materials Characterization 145 (2018) 545–555

Table 1
Experimental conditions of the electric current treatments of metals. AC: alternating current; Ann: annealed; CD x%: cold drawn to x% reduction; CR x%: cold rolled
to x% reduction; DC: direct current; EP: electropulsing; HR x%: hot rolled to x% reduction; NA: not available; Th: thickness; ϕ: diameter.
Metal Geometric shape Pre-treatment Electric current treatment Ref.

Mode Condition, A/cm2

Al/Cu/Ni/Fe/Nb/W/Ti Not mentioned NA EP 4–5 × 105, 60 μs [2]

Fe/Ti Wire (ϕ: 0.12–0.51 mm) Ann 1073 K, 30 min EP 0–8 × 105, < 100 μs [3]
Ti Wire (ϕ: 0.12–0.51 mm) Ann 1073 K, 30 min EP 0–1.2 × 106, 80 μs [4]
Cu Wire (ϕ: 0.8 mm) CR 50% EP 8 × 104, 90 μs [5]
Cu Wire (ϕ: 0.8 mm) CR 24–76% EP 8 × 104, 90 μs [6]
Cu Wire (ϕ: 0.8 mm) CD 24% EP 8 × 104, 90 μs [7]
Cu Rod (ϕ: 12 mm) Extrusion to 12 mm EP 5.3–6.2 × 102 [8]
Cu40.6Zn0.3Pb Strip (Th: 1 mm) CR 33% EP 1.8–1.9 × 106, 800 μs [9]
ZA27 Zn alloy Wire (ϕ: 1.18 mm) CD EP 2.79–13.36 × 103, 2300 μs, 100 Hz [10]
Ni49.2at%Ti Wire (ϕ: 100 μm) CD 45 ± 5% EP 125 W, 1–18 ms [11]
Ni49.2at%Ti Strip (Th: 1.32 mm) CR 40% EP 9.5–11.4 × 103, 80 μs, 150–350 Hz [12]
Ni49.2at%Ti Strip (Th: 1.32 mm) CR 40% EP 9.5–11.4 × 103, 2.5–15 min, 150–350 Hz [13]
Fe3Si Strip (Th: 0.3 mm) CR 23% EP 70 V, 92–250 Hz [14]
Fe3Si Strip (Th: 0.3 mm) CR 75% EP 2.85–3.62 × 104, 70 μs, 98–173 Hz [15]
Pearlitic steel Wire CD (strain: 1.61) EP 9.61 × 105, < 150 μs [16]
22MnB5 boron steel Strip (Th: 1.5 mm) CR EP 8.901 × 104, 60–180 ms, 50 Hz [17]
IF steel/AZ31 Mg alloy Strip (Th: 2 mm) CR 50% EP 1.2–2.1 × 103, 5–960 s for IF steel; 4–8 × 103, 60–1800 s for AZ31 Mg alloy [18]
Mg3Al1Zn Strip (Th: 3 mm) HR 60% EP 2.481–3.508 × 105, 20–40 μs, 100–150 Hz [19]
6061 Al alloy Strip (Th: 0.8 mm) CR 60% EP 2.18–2.24 × 105, 15 s, 500–800 Hz [20]
5052-H32 Al alloy Strip (Th: 2 mm) CR EP 6–12 × 103, 0.5–1 s [21]
5052-H32 Al alloy Strip (Th: 2 mm) CR 30% EP 1.1 × 105, 0.5 s, 0.03 Hz [22]
2024 Al alloy Strip (Th: 0.5 mm) CR EP 8–16 × 103, 0.5 s [23]
2024 Al alloy Strip (Th: 2 mm) HR 30% AC 2 × 106, 0.24 s, 50 Hz [24]
2024 Al alloy Strip (Th: 2 mm) HR 30% AC 8.5–25.5 × 103, 0.1 s, 50 Hz [25]
7075 Al alloy Strip (Th: 2 mm) CR < 30% AC 2 × 105, 0.22 s, 50 Hz [26]
7075 Al alloy Strip (Th: 2 mm) HR < 30% AC 2 × 105, 0.22 s, 50 Hz [27]
3xxx Al alloy Strip (Th: 1.5 mm) CR (strain: 1.6,3) AC 3.3 × 103 [28]
α-Ti Strip (area: 2 mm2) CR 64% AC/DC 0–1 × 103 [29]
Al0.5Cu Thin line (Th: 500 nm) NA AC/DC 3 × 106, 100 Hz for AC; 3 × 106 for DC [30]
Al Thin film (Th: 500 nm) Ann 653 K, 6 h DC 1.5–3.0 × 105 [31]
Cu Thin film (Th: 300 nm) Ann 673 K, 1 h DC 1–2 × 106 [32]
Cu36Zn Strip (Th: 25 μm) Ann 723 K, 12 h DC 4–18 × 103 [33]
Sn Strip (Th: 50 μm) Ann 403 K, 24 h DC 5.5–7.5 × 103 [34]
Sn9Zn Joint Ann 373 K, 24 h DC 2.6 × 103 [35]
Sn9Zn Strip (Th: 25 μm) Ann 423 K, 24 h DC 2–8 × 103 [36]
Sn9Zn Strip (Th: 25 μm) Ann 423 K, 24 h DC 5–10 × 103 [37]
Sn0.7Cu Joint NA DC 1 × 104 [38]
Sn0.8Cu/Sn1Cu Strip (Th: 25 μm)/joint NA DC 1 × 104 for strip; 2.6 × 103 for joint [39]
Sn5Bi Strip (Th: 50 μm) NA DC 4–6 × 103 [40]
Sn3.5Ag Strip (Th: 50 μm) NA DC 5–7 × 103 [41]
Pb5Sn Joint Ann 398 K, 24 h DC 2.1–5.0 × 104 [42]
Pb5Sn Wire (ϕ: 246 μm)/joint NA DC 5–10 × 103 for wire; 4.2 × 104 for joint [43]
Pb3Sn/Pb5Sn Strip (Th: 25 μm)/joint NA DC 6 × 103 for strip; 4.2 × 104 for joint [44]

the effective charge number (Z*) of metals, the pre-treatment methods
(annealing, cold rolling, hot rolling…), and the modes of the electric
current treatments (electropulsing, alternating current (AC), direct
current (DC)). For example, the critical current densities for inducing
lattice strain in annealed Cu36Zn and Sn9Zn alloys were reported to be
6.40–7.36 × 103 A/cm2 [33] and 2.0–4.0 × 103 A/cm2 [36], respec-
tively, under a DC treatment. The present work gives a review on the
practices of the electric current treatments and the related micro-
structure-property variations in metals. The mechanisms of the varia-
tions are also presented and discussed.
2. Practices of Electric Current Treatment
The mode of the electric current treatment of metals includes
electropulsing, alternating and direct current, as presented in Table 1.
The electropulsing and alternating current treatments are generally
incorporated with a hard working pre-treatment, such as rolling and
drawing. However, the direct current treatment can be applied for in-
ducing microstructure and property variations in metals without the
need of a hard working pre-treatment. The experimental conditions of
the electric current treatments of metals are summarized in Table 1. The
current density applied falls in the range of 102–106 A/cm2; the range of
the frequency of alternating current is 50–800 Hz; the pulse mode is
various as shown in the table.
3. Microstructure-Property Variations and the Physical
Metallurgy
Electric current treatment of metals provides thermal energy from
Joule heat (thermal effect) and kinetic energy from electron wind force
(athermal effect) which together promote the dislocation mobility. The
enhancement in the dislocation mobility further results in the accel-
eration of homogenization, recovery, recrystallization, grain growth,
and microstructure and phase transformation processes. The atomic
diffusion enhanced by the electric current treatment is generally be-
lieved to be a result of the athermal effect of electromigration besides
the thermal effect [13,14]. The net diffusion flux (j) driven by the
thermal and athermal effects can be described by the following equa-
tions [13]:
j = jt + ja (1)
D
jt = τΩ
kT (2)

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C.-L. Liang, K.-L. Lin
Fig. 1. EBSD grain maps and DFTEM images of cold rolled 5052-H32 Al alloy strips before and after electropulsing treatment: (a) cold rolled (EBSD), (b) electro-
pulsing treatment (EBSD), (c) cold rolled (DFTEM); (d) electropulsing treatment (DFTEM) [22].
D recovery from the Joule heating effect [22]. The recovery behavior
ja = (K ew ΩJ + NρeZ ∗J )
kT (3)
where jt is the diffusion flux driven by the thermal effect, ja is the dif-
fusion flux driven by the athermal effect (the electromigration force), D
is the diffusion coefficient, k is Boltzmann constant, T is the absolute
temperature, τ is the external stress, Ω is the atomic volume, Kew is the
electron wind force coefficient, J is the electric current density, N is the
number of lattice atoms per unit volume, ρ is the electrical resistivity, e
is electron charge, and Z∗ is the effective charge number. The energy
provided from electric current treatment also triggers the dissolution of
the second phases in the metal matrices. The microstructure-property
variations and the physical metallurgy involved in metals induced by
electric current treatment are presented and discussed in the following
paragraphs.
3.1. Recovery
The electric current treatment facilitates the movement and re-
arrangement of dislocations, which forms subboundaries, known as the
polygonization process, through recovery. Fig. 1 shows the electron
backscatter diffraction (EBSD) grain maps ((a) and (b)) and the dark
field transmission electron microscope (DFTEM) images of cold rolled
5052-H32 Al alloy strips before and after electropulsing treatment [22].
It can be seen in Fig. 1(a) and (b) that the electropulsing treatment does
not induce significant microstructural changes in both grain size and
grain orientation aspects. However, the DFTEM investigation further
shows the annihilation of dislocations accumulated in the metal ma-
trices by cold rolling, as evidenced by Fig. 1(c) and (d). This experi-
mental finding indicates that the electropulsing treatment can induce
recovery in highly deformed cold rolled structures and lower the dis-
location density. The insignificant microstructural changes further
confirm that the Joule heating effect is not dominant and the electric
current treatment plays a distinct role in inducing annealing and
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Materials Characterization 145 (2018) 545–555
induced by electropulsing treatment was also reported for mechanically
deformed Cu rod [8] and NiTi alloy wire [11]. The recovery induced by
electric current treatment eliminates the dislocations produced by hard
working and relieves the high strain energy in the metal matrices. The
lack of strengthening from hardworking of the metal matrices results in
a decrease in the tensile strength, hardness, and electrical resistivity
while an increase in the elongation [6,11,22].
3.2. Recrystallization in Mechanically Deformed Metals
The electric current treatment also facilitates the coalescence of
subgrains and forms new and strain-free equiaxed grains through re-
crystallization. Fig. 2(a)–(c) show the EBSD grain maps of cold rolled
AZ31 Mg alloy strips before and after electropulsing treatment at 250 °C
for different periods [18]. Fig. 2(d) presents the recrystallized fractions
in the alloys. The electropulsing treatment induces recrystallization of
the highly deformed structure (high fraction of unindexed black region
shown in Fig. 2(a)) and forms a refined grain structure with low in-
ternal strain (Fig. 2(b)). The high density dislocations produced by the
hard working pre-treatment in the metal matrices serve as driving force
for inducing the subsequent recrystallization under electropulsing
treatment. The magnitude of grain refinement is controlled by the prior
hard work of the metals and the electric current treatment condition
[28]. The EBSD analysis further shows a higher recrystallization frac-
tion of the alloy with the electropulsing treatment than the conven-
tional heat treatment under the same environment temperature of
250 °C (Fig. 2(c) and (d)). The time and temperature required for in-
ducing recrystallization are much lower with the electropulsing treat-
ment. In other words, the electropulsing treatment accelerates re-
crystallization and lowers the recrystallization temperature, evidencing
the athermal effect of electromigration [5,6,8,13–15,18,19,22,27–29].
The recrystallization and grain refinement in hard worked metals
C.-L. Liang, K.-L. Lin
Fig. 2. EBSD grain maps and recrystallized fractions in cold rolled AZ31 Mg alloy strips before and after electropulsing and annealing treatments at 250 °C for
different periods: (a) as-received, (b) electropulsing treatment for 1800 s, (c) annealing treatment for 19,200 s; (d) recrystallized fractions [18].
induced by electropulsing or alternating current treatment were also
reported for Cu and Cu alloys [5–9], Zn alloy [10], NiTi alloys [11–13],
steels [14–18], Mg and Al alloys [18–20,27,28], and Ti alloy [29].
Many researches have also evidenced the athermal effect of electro-
migration on the recrystallization kinetics by comparing the results
shown between an electric current treatment case and a thermal an-
nealing case investigated at the same temperature [18,19,28]. The re-
crystallization, similar to the recovery process, eliminates the disloca-
tions produced by hard working and relieves the high strain energy in
the metal matrices. The recrystallization will result in a decrease in the
tensile strength, hardness, and electrical resistivity while an increase in
the elongation with the lack of strengthening from work hardening
[2–7,11–14,18]. It is worth mentioning that the microstructure and
property variations of metals induced by electric current treatment are
strongly correlated with the pre-treatment method. It was reported that
the electropulsing treatment of “hot rolled” 2024 Al alloys also induced
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Materials Characterization 145 (2018) 545–555
recrystallization and greatly refined the microstructure [24]. In com-
parison with the results reported in cold rolled metals after electric
current treatment, the electropulsing treatment enhances both the
tensile strength and elongation of the hot rolled alloys [24]. The in-
creases in the tensile strength and elongation are ascribed to the grain
refining strengthening. Hot rolled metals with original microstructures
of large grains and relatively low dislocation densities compared to
those in cold rolled metals exhibit relatively poor mechanical strength
and are thus easily strengthened through the grain refining.
3.3. Recrystallization in Annealed Metals
The electropulsing and alternating current treatments are generally
imposed on metals with a hard working pre-treatment. The high density
dislocations are essential for inducing recrystallization under electric
current treatment. In recent studies, a non-deformation treatment with
C.-L. Liang, K.-L. Lin
Fig. 3. EBSD grain maps of annealed Cu36Zn alloy strips before and after direct
current treatment: (a) as-annealed, (b) direct current treatment [33].
direct current was shown being able to induce recrystallization and
grain refinement in annealed metals without the need of a hard working
pre-treatment [33,34]. Fig. 3 shows the EBSD grain maps of annealed
Cu36Zn alloy strips before (Fig. 3(a)) and after direct current treatment
(Fig. 3(b)) [33]. The direct current treatment induces recrystallization
in the annealed metal matrix and forms a refined grain structure with a
reduction in the average grain size from 15 to 3.9 μm (Fig. 3(b)). It was
also reported that the direct current treatment induced the formation of
subgrains in the metal matrix of pure Sn strips with a large orientation
difference compared to the mother grain [34]. In comparison with the
dislocations produced in mechanically deformed metals after hard
working, the dislocations could be produced in annealed metal matrices
simply through a direct current treatment.
Fig. 4(a)–(d) show the high resolution transmission electron mi-
croscope (HRTEM) lattice images with the inverse fast Fourier trans-
form (IFFT) treatment of annealed Al thin films before and after direct
current treatment [31]. Fig. 4(e) presents the in situ lattice strain var-
iations for the Al(200) orientation (Fig. 4(e)). The direct current
treatment induces the lattice distortion and the formation of high
density edge dislocations (up to 8.60 × 1016 m−2) in the as-annealed
metal matrix (Fig. 4(b) and (d)). In comparison with the electropulsing
and alternating current treatments, the continuous imposition of the
high density direct current on metals allows sufficient kinetic energy
from electron wind force for producing dislocations. The in situ lattice
strain variations further show much greater values (up to 1.1%) than
the 0.2% yield strain as a result of the formation of high density dis-
locations (Fig. 4(e)). The disruption of lattice structures, the
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Materials Characterization 145 (2018) 545–555
accumulation of lattice strain and formation of dislocations, was at-
tributed to the athermal electromigration effect under direct current
treatment. The disruption of the lattice structures in the annealed metal
matrices induced by direct current treatment was also reported for
Cu36Zn alloy [33], pure Sn [34], Sn9Zn alloy [37], and Sn3.5Ag alloy
[41]. The degradation of the crystallinity of the metals has also been
reported with a significant drop in the integrated intensity of the dif-
fraction peaks during direct current treatment, as evidenced by an in
situ synchrotron X-ray diffraction analysis [37,41]. As a result of the
accumulation of dislocations and grain refinement in the metal matrices
as described, the direct current treatment enhances the micro-hardness
and increases the electrical resistivity of the as-annealed metals through
the work hardening and grain refining strengthening [30–33].
3.4. Recrystallization and Grain Size Control
The electric current treatment facilitates not only the recovery and
recrystallization processes but also grain growth. Fig. 5 shows the TEM
grain microstructures of cold rolled NiTi alloy strips before (Fig. 5(a))
and after electropulsing treatment with different frequencies and per-
iods (Fig. 5(b)–(e)) [12]. The electropulsing treatment with a 150 Hz/
15 min condition induces recrystallization and forms equiaxed grains
with a slight reduction in the average grain size from 41 to 40 nm
(Fig. 5(a) and (b)). The grain size investigation further shows the oc-
currence of grain growth in the alloys with an increase in the frequency
of the treatment (280 nm with 250 Hz and 1.95 μm with 350 Hz)
(Fig. 5(d) and (e)). The electropulsing treatment also facilitates the
coalescence of grains with an increase in the period of the treatment
(250 nm for 2.5 min and 280 nm for 15 min) (Fig. 5(c) and (d)). The
grain size variations as a result of the competition between re-
crystallization and grain growth induced by electric current treatment
were also reported in other studies [5,13,19,29,33,34].
The direct current treatment with an experimental design com-
bining the current stressing period and liquid nitrogen quench cycle as a
period (tD)/cycle (n) parameter allows an effective control of the re-
crystallization/grain growth behaviors. The direct current treatment
adopted thus enables the manipulation of microstructures and proper-
ties of metals [33]. In this literature, as-annealed Cu36Zn alloy strips
were treated periodically with the combination of direct current at
14000 A/cm2 for a certain duration followed by liquid nitrogen quench.
Fig. 6 shows the experimental results of the grain size (Fig. 6(a)),
misorientation angle (Fig. 6(b)), twin length fraction (Fig. 6(c)), and
micro-hardness (Fig. 6(d)) of annealed Cu36Zn alloy strips imposed
with direct current treatment [33]. The results were further summar-
ized in Fig. 6(e). It is noted that the minimum grain size, maximum twin
length fraction and misorientation angle were achieved at a period/
cycle parameter of 4 h/10 cycles. The minimum grain size corresponds
to the maximum micro-hardness. The behaviors observed in Fig. 6 were
ascribed to the competition between the athermal and thermal effects of
the direct current treatment. The athermal effect favors producing
dislocations and thus the grain refining with the electron momentum
transfer, while the thermal effect favors grain growth because of Joule
heat. The manipulations of the microstructures and properties of metals
can be achieved through the direct current treatment with the period/
cycle parameter. The conventional heat treatment has established TTT
(Temperature-Time-Transformation) diagrams for metals. The results
demonstrated in Fig. 6 suggest the possibility of replacing “Tempera-
ture” in TTT diagrams by “Current”. The CTT correlation will be ben-
eficial in light of the acceleration effect of electric current stressing on
recrystallization. The electric current treatment also implies an energy-
saving method in comparison with the indirect heat input through the
heat conduction/radiation using thermal furnaces.
3.5. Microstructure and Phase Transformation
The electric current treatment also facilitates the microstructure and
C.-L. Liang, K.-L. Lin Materials Characterization 145 (2018) 545–555

Fig. 4. HRTEM lattice images (with the inverse fast Fourier transform (IFFT) treatment) and in situ lattice strain variations in annealed Al thin films before and after
direct current treatment: (a) as-annealed, (b) direct current treatment, (c) as-annealed (IFFT for (200) orientation), (d) direct current treatment (IFFT for (200)
orientation); (e) in situ lattice strain variations for the Al(200) orientation [31].

phase transformation in metals. Fig. 7 shows the scanning electron
microscope (SEM) images (Fig. 7(a), (b)) and TEM images (Fig. 7(c),
(d)) of cold drawn pearlitic steel wires before and after electropulsing
treatment [16]. The electropulsing treatment induces the micro-
structure transformation of the cementite plates into nanoparticle shape
with a refined grain structure. The electropulsing treatment also in-
duces the phase transformation of ferrite into nanocrystalline austenite
in cold rolled 22MnB5 boron steel strips [17], and the transformation of
martensite into austenite in cold rolled NiTi alloy strips [12]. The ac-
celeration in the phase transformation has also been reported for cold
drawn ZA27 Zn alloy wires [10]. The phase transformation in metals
induced by electric current treatment was ascribed to the change in the
phase stability that favored in the systems. The formation of finer
nanoparticle and nanocrystalline grain structures further results in an
increase in the tensile strength and hardness while a decrease in the
elongation and electrical resistivity [16,17].
3.6. Dissolution and Reprecipitation of Second Phases
The electric current treatment also induces the evolution of the
second phases. The second phase in metal alloys can be categorized as
solid-solution phase or intermetallic precipitate. Fig. 8 shows the in situ
SEM microstructures of PbSn solder joints before (Fig. 8(a)) and after
direct current treatment with different periods (Fig. 8(b)–(d)) [42]. The
direct current treatment induces the dissolution of the solid-solution Sn-
rich phase in the Pb matrices. The second phase dissolved may

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C.-L. Liang, K.-L. Lin Materials Characterization 145 (2018) 545–555

Fig. 5. TEM grain microstructures of cold rolled NiTi alloy strips before and after electropulsing treatment with different frequencies and periods: (a) cold rolled, (b)
150 Hz/15 min, (c) 250 Hz/2.5 min, (d) 250 Hz/15 min, (e) 350 Hz/15 min [12].

reprecipitate in the metal matrices during the continuous direct current the dissolution of the intermetallic precipitates formed in the middle of
treatment [35] or after the termination of the electric current stressing the matrix and along the grain boundaries (Fig. 9(b)). The dissolution of
[40,44]. The dissolution of solid-solution second phase gives rise to intermetallic precipitates results in a decrease in the tensile strength
supersaturation in the metal matrices which may enhance the me- while an increase in the elongation due to the absence of the pre-
chanical properties through solid solution strengthening cipitation strengthening [26]. The dissolution of the metastable inter-
[36,40,42–44]. metallic phase that results in a decrease in the mechanical strength has
It has also been reported that the electric current treatment induces also been reported in 2024 Al alloys [23]. The electropulsing treatment
the lattice strain in the intermetallic precipitates in the metal matrices has been shown to restore the mechanical properties, known as the
[39,41] and the subsequent dissolution behavior electrical pulse retrogression effect, at a faster speed and at a relatively
[12,17,20,26,27,30,38,39]. Fig. 9(a)–(c) show the TEM microstructures low temperature compared to the application using thermal furnace
of hot rolled 7075 Al alloy strips before and after alternating current annealing. The efficiency of the electrical pulse retrogression effect is
treatment followed by a heat treatment [26]. Fig. 9(d), (e) present the controlled by the pulse number and electric current density of the
precipitate size distributions. The alternating current treatment induces treatment [23].

551
C.-L. Liang, K.-L. Lin
Fig. 6. Experimental results of (a) grain size, (b) misorientation angle, (c) twin length fraction, (d) hardness of annealed Cu36Zn alloy strips imposed with direct
current treatment with different period-cycle conditions; (e) a summarized figure with respect to the period/cycle parameter [33].
After further heat treatment of the electropulsed specimens, the
dissolved intermetallic particles reprecipitate in the metal matrix along
the grain boundaries, showing the redistribution of intermetallic pre-
cipitates, as shown in Fig. 9(c). The sizes of the precipitates retain
nearly the same after the reprecipitation during the heat treatment
(Fig. 9(d) and (e)). The redistribution of intermetallic precipitates in-
duced by electric current treatment incorporated with a following heat
treatment was also reported in other studies [20,27]. The redistribution
of the intermetallic precipitates may result in an increase in the tensile
strength of the metals through the precipitation strengthening [20,27].
The solid solution treatment incorporating cyclic electropulsing treat-
ment has also been reported to further enhance the mechanical strength
and even the electrical conductivity of hot rolled 2024 Al alloys com-
pared to the non-pulsed specimens [25]. The reprecipitation of T-phase
intermetallic particles with a uniform distribution and refined grain size
results in dislocation pinning and the interaction between electrons and
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Materials Characterization 145 (2018) 545–555
atoms for the enhancements in the mechanical and electrical properties
[25].
4. Summary: Current Application and Future Aspects
This article reviewed the microstructure-property variations and the
physical metallurgy involved in metals induced by electric current
treatment. Electric current treatment provides thermal energy from
Joule heat (thermal effect) and kinetic energy from electron momentum
transfer (athermal effect), serving as a potential and high-efficiency
method for manipulating the microstructures and properties of metals.
Both thermal and athermal effects promote the dislocation mobility
which further results in the acceleration of recovery, recrystallization,
grain growth, and microstructure and phase transformation processes of
metals. Electric current treatment also induces the lattice strain in the
second phases (solid-solution phase and intermetallic precipitate) and
C.-L. Liang, K.-L. Lin Materials Characterization 145 (2018) 545–555

Fig. 7. SEM and TEM images of cold drawn pearlitic steel wires before and after electropulsing treatment: (a) as-received (SEM), (b) direct current treatment (SEM),
(c) as-received (TEM), (d) direct current treatment (TEM) [16].

the subsequent dissolution in the metal matrices. The property varia-
tions induced by electric current treatment occur via work hardening
(accumulation of dislocations by electromigration), grain refining (by
recrystallization), solid-solution (supersaturation by second phase dis-
solution), and precipitation strengthening (reprecipitation of inter-
metallic particles) mechanisms. The C(Current)TT correlation, in ad-
dition to the conventional TTT diagrams, may be worthy of
investigation in light of the physical metallurgy behavior and the
potential applications of the electric current treatment.
Acknowledgements
The financial supports of the present study from the Ministry of
Science and Technology of the Republic of China are gratefully ac-
knowledged.

Fig. 8. In situ SEM microstructures of PbSn solder joints before and after direct current treatment with different periods: (a) as-annealed, (b) 5 min, (c) 1 h, (d) 1 h
(high magnification image) [42].

553
C.-L. Liang, K.-L. Lin
Fig. 9. TEM microstructures and precipitate size distributions in hot rolled 7075 Al alloy strips before and after alternating current treatment: (a) T6 heat treatment,
(b) after alternating current treatment, (c) after further heat treatment; (d) and (e) precipitate size distributions [26].
Declarations of interest
None.
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