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It is known that the grain size plays a major role in the mechanical properties of magnesium. The aim of the present study is to evaluate its role in long‐term corrosion rate. Samples of pure magnesium with grain sizes in the range of 0.9–82 μm are produced through severe plastic deformation and annealing treatments. The mechanical properties are evaluated using tensile tests and the corrosion behavior is evaluated using immersion tests in Hank's solution. A maximum yield stress of ≈150 MPa is observed in the sample with 1.8 μm of grain size and an elongation larger than 25% is observed in the ultrafine‐grained sample. Ultrafine‐ and fine‐grained magnesium display uniform corrosion with a decreasing corrosion rate while coarse‐grained magnesium displays localized corrosion with an accelerated corrosion rate. A corrosion rate of ≈0.2 mm year⁻¹is observed in the ultrafine‐ and fine‐grained magnesium. The corrosion product layer of the fine‐grained magnesium contains elements absorbed from the media. An analysis of the data in the literature suggests that grain refinement changes the corrosion type from localized to uniform corrosion. The exact relationship between grain size and the corrosion rate remains elusive. 

Increasing sample dimensions in high‐pressure torsion (HPT) processing affects load and torque requirements, deformation distribution, and heating. Finite‐element modeling (FEM) and experiments are used to investigate the effect of technical parameters on the scaling up of HPT. Simulations confirm that axial load and torque requirements are proportional to the square and the cube of the sample radius, respectively. The temperature rise also displays a pronounced dependency on the radius. Decreasing the diameter‐to‐thickness ratio can cause heterogeneity in strain distribution along the thickness direction at the edges of the sample. Such heterogeneity is governed by friction conditions between the material and the lateral wall of the anvil depression. Simulation of HPT processing of ring‐shaped samples shows that it is possible to reach more homogeneous distribution of strain and flow stress in the processed material. Experiments using magnesium confirm a tendency for strain localization in the early stage of HPT processing but increasing the number of turns increases the homogeneity of the material. The embodied energy in HPT processing is discussed. 

Ultrafine-grained and heterostructured materials are currently of high interest due to their superior mechanical and functional properties. Severe plastic deformation (SPD) is one of the most effective methods to produce such materials with unique microstructure-property relationships. In this review paper, after summarizing the recent progress in developing various SPD methods for processing bulk, surface and powder of materials, the main structural and microstructural features of SPD-processed materials are explained including lattice defects, grain boundaries and phase transformations. The properties and potential applications of SPD-processed materials are then reviewed in detail including tensile properties, creep, superplasticity, hydrogen embrittlement resistance, electrical conductivity, magnetic properties, optical properties, solar energy harvesting, photocatalysis, electrocatalysis, hydrolysis, hydrogen storage, hydrogen production, CO2 conversion, corrosion resistance and biocompatibility. It is shown that achieving such properties is not currently limited to pure metals and conventional metallic alloys, and a wide range of materials are processed by SPD, including high-entropy alloys, glasses, semiconductors, ceramics and polymers. It is particularly emphasized that SPD has moved from a simple metal processing tool to a powerful means for the discovery and synthesis of new superfunctional metallic and nonmetallic materials. The article ends by declaring that the borders of SPD have been extended from materials science and it has become an interdisciplinary tool to address scientific questions such as the mechanism of geological and astronomical phenomena and the origin of life. Keywords: Severe plastic deformation (SPD); Nanostructured materials; Ultrafine grained (UFG) materials; Gradient-structured materials, High-pressure torsion (HPT)