The thermal fatigue behavior of Ni3Al based superalloy IC6E during the cycles between 900 ℃/1 000 ℃ and the room tempera- ture was investigated. The experimental results indicate that the primary and secondary thermal fatigue cracks initiate inside or round the borides and then spread away along grain boundaries and/or in interdendritic areas. The fracture of borides and their separation from the matrix at interfaces are mainly responsible for the crack initiation and its spreading. At temperatures higher than 1 000 ℃, the grain boundary oxidation combined with cyclic stresses accelerates the crack growth.
