The influence of manganese addition on mechanical properties of commercial Al‐4Mg casting alloys

The aim of this study was to investigate the mechanical properties of Al‐Mg‐Si alloys aged to peak hardness with different dispersoid volume fraction. It was found that the tensile strength increases with dispersoid content, for alloys having similar ductility. The effect of an increasingly triaxial stress state on a fracture strain above mentioned alloys were measured using a series of notched tensile specimens whose notch root radius of curvature was changed. The alloy ductility was found to increase with dispersoid content and root radius and to decrease with increased stress triaxiality. The fracture toughness of these alloys was determined as a function of dispersoid content and notch root radius of curvature. It was observed that the fracture toughness increased as the dispersoid content and the notch root radius increased. scanning electron microscope analysis of the fracture surfaces revealed that fracture mechanism was transgranular fracture with dimples formation. It is argued that optimum mechanical properties in these alloys can be achieved at about 0.5 % Mn content.     

Effect of melt treatment on microstructure and impact properties of Al-7Si and Al-7Si-2.5Cu cast alloys

The microstructures and impact toughness of Al-7Si and Al-7Si-2.5Cu cast alloys were studied after various melt treatments like grain refinement and modification. The results indicate that combined grain refined and modified Al-7Si-2.5Cu alloys have microstructures consisting of uniformly distributed α-Al grains, interdendritic network of fine eutectic silicon and fine CuAl₂ particles in the interdendritic region. These alloys exhibited improved impact toughness in as cast condition when compared to those treated by individual addition of grain refiner or modifier. The improved impact toughness of Al-7Si-2.5Cu alloys are related to breakage of the large aluminum grains and uniform distribution of eutectic silicon and fine CuAl₂ particles in the interdendritic region resulting from combined refinement and modification. This paper attempts to investigate the influence of microstructural changes in the Al-7Si and Al-7Si-2.5Cu cast alloys by grain refinement, modification and combined action of both on the impact toughness.     

Fracture toughness and growth of short and long fatigue cracks in ductile cast iron EN‐GJS‐400‐18‐LT

Heavy components of ductile cast iron frequently exhibit metallurgical defects that behave like cracks under cyclic loading. Thus, in order to decide whether a given defect is permissible, it is important to establish the fatigue crack growth properties of the material. In this paper, results from a comprehensive study of ductile cast iron EN‐GJS‐400‐18‐LT have been reported. Growth rates of fatigue cracks ranging from a few tenths of a millimetre (‘short’ cracks) to several millimetres (‘long’ cracks) have been measured for load ratios R=?1, R= 0 and R= 0.5 using a highly sensitive potential‐drop technique. Short cracks were observed to grow faster than long cracks. The threshold stress intensity range, ΔK_th, as a function of the load ratio was fitted to a simple crack closure model. Fatigue crack growth data were compared with data from other laboratories. Single plain fatigue tests at R=?1 and R= 0 were also carried out. Fracture toughness was measured at temperatures ranging from ?40 °C to room temperature.     

铸造镁硅合金组织和阻尼性能研究

利用动态机械热分析仪研究了四种镁硅合金的阻尼性能.研究表明:铸造镁硅合金具有良好的阻尼性能.并且体现出有别于纯镁的新阻尼特征,铸造镁硅合金具有较纯镁在更大应变振幅范围内的弛豫型内耗.由于Mg2 Si对晶界的钉扎作用,界面阻尼峰出现在较纯镁更高的温度.少量钙的添加改善了Mg2 Si析出的形态,但对阻尼性能的影响似乎不明显.     

The effect of chemical grain refinement and low superheat pouring on the structure of NRC castings of aluminium alloy Al–7Si–0.4Mg

The effect of the addition of Al–5Ti–1B (wt.%) chemical grain refiners on the nuclei generation for a range of superheats during pouring in new rheocasting (NRC) of aluminium alloy Al–7Si–0.4Mg (wt.%) has been investigated. The contributions to the grain density by the grain refiner additions and impurity particles were quantified and it was found that the addition of grain refiner provides increasing number of nucleation sites as the superheat is decreased from 105 to 35 °C. However, at superheats of 15 °C, which are more typical of NRC, the grain density is similar in the alloy both with and without grain refiner additions. At this superheat, the equiaxed grain morphology is globular rather than dendritic and it is postulated that the grain size is dependant upon grain coarsening mechanisms rather than the number of heterogeneous nucleation events. In agreement with previous studies on semi-solid processing, it was found that the achievement of a fine globular grain structure led to a more homogeneous casting being produced. The mechanism of the macrosegregation observed in these castings is discussed and explained by the ‘sponge effect’.     

Influence of melt treatments and polished CVD diamond coated insert on cutting force and surface integrity in turning of Al-7Si and Al-7Si-2.5Cu cast alloys

The microstructures, machinability and surface characteristics of Al-7Si and Al-7Si-2.5Cu cast alloys were studied after various melt treatments like grain refinement and modification. The results indicate that combined grain refined and modified Al-7Si-2.5Cu cast alloys have microstructures consisting of uniformly distributed α-Al grains, eutectic Al-silicon and fine CuAl₂ particles in the interdendritic region. These alloys exhibited better machinability and surface characteristics in the cast condition compared with the same alloy subjected to only grain refinement or modification. Performances of the turning inserts (uncoated and polished CVD diamond coated) were evaluated in machining Al-7Si and Al-7Si-2.5Cu cast alloys under dry environment using a lathe. The polished CVD diamond coated insert outperformed the uncoated cutting insert which suffered from sizeable edge buildup leading to higher cutting force and poor surface finish. The polished CVD diamond coated insert shows a very small steady wear without flaking of the diamond film during cutting. This paper attempts to investigate the influence of grain refinement, modification and combined action of both on the microstructural changes in the Al-7Si and Al-7Si-2.5Cu cast alloys and their machinability and surface finish when different turning inserts are used.     

波浪型倾斜板振动对Al-6Si-2Mg合金凝固组织的影响

研究了波浪型倾斜板振动参数对Al-6Si-2Mg合金凝固组织的影响,结果表明:倾斜板的倾角和长度影响合金在斜板表面的流动剪切强度和剪切时间,从而影响合金的组织.当浇注温度为660-690℃时,随着浇注温度的降低,合金晶粒细化和球化,平均晶粒直径为40μm,晶粒平均圆度值为2.5;浇注温度低于660℃时,晶粒有粗化和枝晶化的趋势.倾斜板的振动作用使表面形成的晶核离开表面进入熔体中,有效地减少了晶粒之间的粘连,解决了结壳问题,提高了形核率,细化了组织;随着倾斜板振动频率的提高,晶粒的平均圆度先降低后提高,振动频率为50-60 Hz出现最小值.倾斜板的波浪形表面对流动的金属具有搅拌作用,增大了熔体内部的剪切作用,使晶粒更加细小圆整.     

Impact toughness of Al–Si–Cu–Mg–Fe cast alloys: Effects of minor additives and aging conditions

The effects of Sr modification and aging treatment on the impact toughness of a near eutectic Al–11%Si–2.7%Cu–0.3%Mg–0.45%Fe alloy were investigated. Charpy impact tests were performed on unnotched specimens in the as-cast and heat-treated conditions. It was found that the presence of Fe- and Cu-containing phases increases the alloy brittleness which reduces impact toughness. The eutectic Si phase also plays an important role, where the size/morphology of the Si particles controls the area of α-Al matrix available which affects ductility and toughness. Increasing the Mn content leads to an increase in the volume fraction of the α-Al₁₅(Mn,Fe)₃Si₂ phase formed and to sludge formation, which facilitates crack initiation and propagation. Crack propagation occurs mainly via the Al₂Cu and/or α-Al₁₅(Fe,Mn)₃Si₂ phases. In the non-modified alloys, the Si phase also plays a considerable role in the fracture process. The impact behaviour of aged alloys is influenced by the amount, size and morphology of hardening precipitates formed in the alloy, depending on the aging conditions. Aging at 240 °C produces a significant increase in the impact energy values of the low Mn-content alloys, as a result of alloy softening. The high Mn-content alloys also show a similar increase in impact energy values, but at a steady level across the same range of aging times, due to the persistence of the α-Al₁₅(Mn,Fe)₃Si₂ phase.     

Effects of Sn,Ca additions on thermal conductivity of Mg matrix alloys

In the present work, the effects of Sn, Ca additions on thermal conductivity were investigated in as cast Mg–Sn–Ca alloys. The measured values of thermal conductivity of Mg–3Sn–xCa alloys obviously increased from 85.6 to 126.3?W?m^??1?K^??1 with the increasing Ca from 0 to 1.5?wt-%, and then decreased to 98.3?W?m^??1?K^??1 with the 2.5?wt-% Ca. In addition, the thermal conductivity of the Mg–Sn–Ca (Sn/Ca atomic ratio of 1) alloys decreased slightly from 154.2 to 132.1?W?m^??1?K^??1 with the increasing Sn, Ca. Meanwhile, the microstructures of the selected alloys were discussed in detail, suggesting that the solute atoms that caused lattice distortion had greater effect on thermal conductivity compared with the second phases formed in as cast Mg–Sn–Ca alloys.     

Enhanced fatigue crack propagation resistance of an Al–Cu–Mg alloy by artificial aging

The effect of artificial aging treatment on fatigue crack propagation (FCP) resistance of an Al–Cu–Mg alloy was investigated. It was shown that FCP rate of artificially aged alloy in the Paris region is lower than that of naturally aged alloy before and after thermal exposure. During the thermal exposure, tensile strength of artificially aged alloy remained unchanged. The results of three-dimensional atom probe (3DAP), transmission electron microscope (TEM) and differential scanning calorimeter (DSC) analysis showed that Cu–Mg co-cluster in artificially aged alloy are larger than that in natural aged alloy and can stably exist during thermal exposure. Size of Cu–Mg co-cluster was found to be the main factor influencing the thermal stability of Cu–Mg co-cluster and the FCP resistance.     

The effect of grain size and composition on the fracture toughness of Ti–Al–Nb alloys undergoing stress-induced martensitic transformation

The effect of grain size and composition on the fracture toughness of Ti–Al–Nb alloys in β solution-treated condition was investigated. The fracture toughness of the alloys was found to increase with an increase in grain size initially, reach a maximum and subsequently decrease with further increase in grain size. This trend was attributed primarily to the effect of grain size on the enhancement of fracture toughness due to stress-induced martensitic transformation (SIMT) at the crack tip, which in turn can be related to the effect of grain size on trigger stress for SIMT. Alloys containing higher Al and Nb showed a higher toughness for the same grain size, which was also explained in terms of effect of composition on the trigger stress.     

Effect of fluctuation and modification on microstructure and impact toughness of 20 wt.% Cr hypereutectic white cast iron. Einfluss durch Partikelzugaben und Modifikationen auf die Mikrostruktur und die Kerbschlagzähigkeit von übereutektischem weißen Gusseisen mit 20 Gew.‐% Cr

In the present study, Fe‐Cr‐C hypereutectic high chromium white cast iron were prepared from industry‐grade materials and subjected to the treatment of modification using Fe‐Si‐RE alloy, aluminum and a self‐made intermediate alloy, fluctuation (ferroalloy powder), and the combination of the fluctuation and the modification respectively. The structures of the treated alloy were investigated by means of the optical microscopy (OM). The impact toughness of the specimens was also examined. The fractographs of the samples were examined by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The results showed that, with the addition of fluctuation or modifying agents, the primary carbides were refined and the impact toughness of the alloys was improved, especially with the combination of them.     

Microstructures and corrosion resistance of as‐cast aluminum‐10 wt.% silicon and aluminum‐20 wt.% silicon alloys

The microstructures and corrosion resistance of two as‐cast alloys, aluminum‐10 wt.% silicon hypoeutectic alloy and aluminum‐20 wt.% silicon (weight percent) hypereutectic alloy are investigated by conventional casting, the scanning electron microscope equipped with oxford X‐ray energy dispersive spectroscopy system and transmission electron microscope are applied for analysis. The results show that the microstructures change from the strip‐like into lump shape with the increase of silicon content from 10 % to 20 %. The electrochemical polarization curves prove that the aluminum‐20 wt.% hypereutectic silicon alloy had the better resistance with the corrosion potential of ?1.414 V and corrosion current density of 5.41 ? 10^?5 ampere compared with the aluminum‐10 wt.% silicon hypoeutectic alloy.     

Effects of grain refinement on age hardening behavior and precipitation kinetics of Al–Si–Cu–Mg alloys

The influences of grain refinement on precipitation kinetics were investigated for an Al–11 wt% Si–1.5 wt% Cu–0.3 wt% Mg casting alloy doped with B and and with La–B respectively by microstructure observation, hardness test and Johnson–Mehl–Avrami (JMA) equation. Co‐alloying of La–B facilitates the faster hardening response with higher hardness value for the alloy. The calculated Avarmi exponent indicates that the nucleation of θ′‐Al₂Cu precipitates occurs on grain boundaries for the refined alloys. The activation energies for the precipitation are of 42 kJ/mol and 30 kJ/mol for B‐doped and La–B co‐doped alloys, respectively.     

Effect of solution heat treatment and hot extrusion on in vitro corrosion behavior of Mg−2Y−1Zn−0.4Zr−0.3Sr alloys as a potential biodegradable material

In this work, the influence of solution heat treatment and hot extrusion on the microstructure and corrosion behavior of as-cast Mg−2Y−1Zn−0.4Zr−0.3Sr alloys are systematically investigated via X-ray diffractometer, scanning electron microscope coupled with energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, electrochemical testing, and mass loss testing. The as-cast alloy comprises α-Mg matrix and Mn₃Y₂Zn₃ (W-phase). Solution heat treatment and hot extrusion exert a conspicuous influence on the corrosion behavior of Mg−2Y−1Zn−0.4Zr−0.3Sr alloys through microstructure transformation. Both methods can remarkably improve corrosion resistance, and the as-extruded alloys exhibit an optimal corrosion resistance of 0.0432 mg ⋅ cm⁻² ⋅ h⁻¹ via mass loss testing. The three alloys exhibit a similar corrosion mechanism, which is based on galvanic corrosion. In the later stage of corrosion, a three-tier corrosion layer structure is formed. In combination with an array of analytical methods, the corrosion mechanisms of the three alloys are described in detail.     

Effect of post-weld heat treatment on fracture toughness and fatigue crack growth behaviour of electron beam welds of a titanium (α+β) alloy

The effects of a post-weld heat treatment on the fracture toughness and fatigue crack growth behaviour of electron beam welds of an α + β titanium alloy, Ti–6.5Al–1.9Zr–0.25Si have been studied. Welds in the stress-relieved condition exhibited poor fracture toughness due to poor energy absorbing capacity of the thin α and α' phases. Post-weld heat treatment which resulted in the decomposition of α' to α + β and the coarsening of intragranular and intergranular α resulted in improved toughness. This improvement in the toughness is related to improved ductility leading to crack blunting, crack path deviation at the thick intragranular and intergranular α phase. Fatigue crack growth resistance of welds was superior to the base metal in the α + β heat-treated condition. The superior crack growth resistance of the welds is due to the acicular α microstructure which results in a tortuous crack path and possible crack closure arising from crack path tortuosity.     

The effect of T-stress on plane strain dynamic crack growth in elastic–plastic materials

In this paper, the effects of T‐stress on steady, dynamic crack growth in an elastic–plastic material are examined using a modified boundary layer formulation. The analyses are carried out under mode I, plane strain conditions by employing a special finite element procedure based on moving crack tip coordinates. The material is assumed to obey the J₂ flow theory of plasticity with isotropic power law hardening. The results show that the crack opening profile as well as the opening stress at a finite distance from the tip are strongly affected by the magnitude and sign of the T‐stress at any given crack speed. Further, it is found that the fracture toughness predicted by the analyses enhances significantly with negative T‐stress for both ductile and cleavage mode of crack growth.     

Effects of various environments on fatigue crack growth in Laser formed and IM Ti–6Al–4V alloys

The fatigue crack growth behaviors of Laser formed and ingot metallurgy (IM) Ti–6Al–4V alloys were studied in three environments: vacuum, air and 3.5% NaCl solution. Taking the Unified Fatigue Damage Approach, the fatigue crack growth data were analyzed with two intrinsic parameters, stress intensity amplitude ΔK and maximum stress intensity K_max, and their limiting values ΔK^* and . Fatigue crack growth rates da/dN were found increase with stress ratio R, highest in 3.5% NaCl solution, somewhat less in air and lowest in vacuum, and higher in IM alloy than in Laser formed one. In 3.5% NaCl solution, stress corrosion cracking (SCC) was superimposed on fatigue at R=0.9 for where K_max>K_ISCC, the threshold stress intensity for SCC. This and environment-assisted fatigue crack growth were evidenced by the deviation in fatigue crack growth trajectory (ΔK^* vs. curve) from the pure fatigue line where . Furthermore, the fractographic features, identified along the trajectory path, reflected the fatigue crack growth behaviors of both alloys in a given environment.