Effect of Extrusion Temperature on the Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of Mg–5Al–2Ca Alloy

In this work, the Mg–5Al–2Ca alloy was extruded at 573, 623 and 673 K, with a ratio of 16:1 and a constant speed of 3 mm/s. Results demonstrate that the Al2Ca particle is formed in Mg–5Al–2Ca alloy. The size, amount and distribution of Al2Ca particles are influenced evidently by extrusion temperature. Unlike previous reports, the intensity of basal texture increases with increasing extrusion temperature, and the reasons are analyzed and given. Even though the average grain size increases as the extrusion temperature increased from 573 to 623 K, the YS, UTS and elongation of asextruded Mg–5Al–2Ca alloy are almost kept the same at 573 and 623 K. The reason is speculated as the balance of grain size, Al2Ca phase and texture at the two temperatures. The work hardening rate depends on extrusion temperature, and the largest θ value of Mg–5Al–2Ca alloy is obtained when the extrusion was performed at 623 K.     

Effect of Precipitate State on Mechanical Properties,Corrosion Behavior,and Microstructures of Al–Zn–Mg–Cu Alloy

The mechanical properties, corrosion behavior and microstructures of the Al–Zn–Mg–Cu alloy under various ageing treatments were investigated comparatively. The results show that the tensile strength and corrosion resistance are strongly affected by the precipitate state. Massive fine intragranular precipitates contribute to high strength. Discontinuous coarse grain boundary precipitates containing high Cu content, as well as the narrow precipitate free zone, result in low corrosion susceptibility. After the non-isothermal ageing (NIA) treatment, the tensile strength of 577 MPa is equivalent to that of 579 MPa for the T6 temper. Meanwhile, the stress corrosion susceptibility r_tf and the maximum corrosion depth are 97.8% and 23.5 μm, which are comparable to those of 92.8% and 26.7 μm for the T73 temper. Moreover, the total ageing time of the NIA treatment is only 7.25 h, which is much less than that of 48.67 h for the retrogression and re-ageing condition.     

Effect of Isothermal Temperature on Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of High Al–Low Si TRIP Steel

In this study, the effect of isothermal temperature on microstructure and mechanical properties of a high Al–low Si TRIP steel was investigated using scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, electron back scattered diffraction, and tensile test. The results show that typical microstructure containing ferrite, bainite, and retained austenite can be obtained when two-stage heat treatment process was utilized. When annealing temperature is 840 °C and austempering temperature is 400 °C, the tensile strength is 542 MPa and the product of strength and elongation is 17,685 MPa%. The morphologies and stability of the retained austenite in low silicon/high aluminum TRIP steel were finally discussed.     

Effect of Heat Treatment on the Microstructure and Wear Properties of Al–Zn–Mg–Cu/In-Situ Al–9Si–SiCp/Pure Al Composite by Powder Metallurgy

This study examined the effects of heat treatment on the microstructure and wear properties of Al–Zn–Mg–Cu/in-situ Al–9Si–SiCp/pure Al composites. Pure Al powder was used to increase densification but it resulted in heterogeneous precipitation as well as differences in hardness among the grains. Heat treatment was conducted to solve this problem. The heat treatment process consisted of three stages: solution treatment, quenching, and aging treatment. After the solution treatment, the main dissolved phases were η′(Mg₄Zn₇), η(MgZn₂), and Al₂Cu phase. An aging treatment was conducted over the temperature range, 100–240 °C, for various times. The GP zone and η′(Mg₄Zn₇) phase precipitated at a low aging temperature of 100–160 °C, whereas the η(MgZn₂) phase precipitated at a high aging temperature of 200–240 °C. The hardness of the sample aged at 100–160 °C was higher than that aged at 200–240 °C. The wear test was conducted under various linear speeds with a load of 100 N. The aged composite showed a lower wear rate than that of the as-sintered composite under all conditions. As the linear speed was increased to 1.0 m/s, the predominant wear behavior changed from abrasive to adhesive wear in all composites.     

Effects of Sb Addition on Microstructural Evolution and Mechanical Properties of Mg–9Al–5Sn Alloy

The Mg–9Al–5Sn-xSb(x=0.0,0.3,0.6,1.0,1.5 wt%) alloys were prepared by a simple alloying process followed by hot extrusion with an extrusion ratio of 28.2. The effects of Sb additions on the microstructure and mechanical properties of the Mg–9 Al–5 Sn alloys were investigated by optical microscopy, X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, scanning electron microscopy equipped with an energy-dispersive X-ray spectrometer. The results indicated that the phases α-Mg matrix, Mg_2_Sn, Mg_3Sb_2 and Mg_17 Al_12 exist in the as-cast Sb-containing alloys. Sb addition results in the precipitation of Mg_3Sb_2. The dendritic size of these alloys decreases with the addition of Sb. Both their ultimate tensile strength and yield strength of extruded alloys increase, and their elongation decreases gradually with increasing the content of Sb. The better mechanical properties of the as-extruded alloys were achieved due to the refined grains and the formation of dispersive second phases Mg_3Sb_2.     

Effects of Solution Treatment Temperatures on Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of TIG–MIG Hybrid Arc Additive Manufactured 5356 Aluminum Alloy

A novel additive manufacturing method with TIG–MIG hybrid heat source was applied for fabricating 5356 aluminum alloy component. In this paper the microstructure evolution, mechanical properties and fracture morphologies of both as-deposited and heat-treated component were investigated, and how these were affected by different heat-treated temperature. The as-deposited microstructure showed dominant equiaxed grains with second phase, and the size of them is coarse in the bottom region, medium in the middle region and fine in the top region owing to different thermal cycling conditions. Compared with as-deposited microstructure, the size of grain becomes large and second phases gradually dissolve in the matrix as heat-treated temperature increase. Different microstructures determine the mechanical properties of component. Results show that average ultimate tensile strength enhances from 226 to 270 MPa and average microhardness increases from 64.2 to 75.3 HV0.1 but ductility decreases from 33 to 6.5% with heat-treated temperature increasing. For all components, the tensile properties are almost the same in the vertical direction (Z) and horizontal direction (Y) due to equiaxed grains, which exhibits isotropy, and the mechanisms of these are analyzed in detailed. In general, the results demonstrate that hybrid arc heat source has the potential to fabricate aluminum alloy component.     

Effects of Ti and La Additions on the Microstructures and Mechanical Properties of B-Refined and Sr-Modified Al–11Si Alloys

The effects of Ti and La additions on the microstructures and mechanical properties of B-refined and Sr-modified Al–11Si alloys were investigated in the present work. The interactions among Ti, La, B and Sr elements were discussed employing microstructure observation, thermal analysis and tensile test, respectively. It was found that the addition of 0.05 wt% B induces a transformation of eutectic Si from finely fibrous to coarsely plate-like morphology in the Al–11Si alloy with 0.02 wt%Sr modification, owing to the poisoning of IIT mechanism, and the eutectic Si grows only with TPRE mechanism. Both titanium and lanthanum can neutralize the co-poisoning effect between Sr and B in the Al–11Si alloy, but the neutralizing effect of La is dependent on the addition sequence. The combinative addition of La and B elements promotes the effective refinement of α-Al grains, but an inhomogeneous modification of eutectic Si phases is also observed, leading to a slightly decrease in the elongation.     

Effect of the Temperature of Friction Stir Welding on the Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of Welded Joints of an Al – Cu – Mg Alloy

Metal Science and Heat Treatment - A method for assessing the effect of the temperature of friction stir welding on the microstructure and mechanical properties of welded joints of aluminum alloy...     

Strain-Activated Hydrogen Absorption during Heat Treatment of Al–Zn–Mg–Cu Alloy AA7475

Subsurface porosity due to hydrogen absorption (commonly known as high-temperature oxidation, or HTO) in an Al–5.5% Zn–2.25% Mg–1.5% Cu alloy during heat treatment in undried air at 515°C is accentuated by prior strain. Under the uncontrolled atmospheric conditions used, the critical strain level for the onset of HTO is about 1.5%; increasing strain results in more porosity and surface blistering. If NaBF₄ is added to the furnace atmosphere, no porosity is evident at strain levels up to 5%.     

Effects of Solution Treatment on the Microstructure,Tensile Properties,and Impact Toughness of an Al–5.0Mg–3.0Zn–1.0Cu Cast Alloy

This study investigates the eff ect of solution treatment(at 470 °C for 0–48 h) on the microstructural evolution,tensile properties,and impact properties of an Al–5.0Mg–3.0Zn–1.0Cu(wt%) alloy prepared by permanent gravity casting.The results show that the as-cast microstructure consists of α-Al dendrites and a network-like pattern of T-Mg_(32)(AlZnCu) 49 phases.Most of the T-phases were dissolved within 24 h at 470 ℃;and a further prolonging of solution time resulted in a rapid growth of α-Al grains.No transformation from the T-phase to the S-Al_2CuMg phase was discovered in this alloy.Both the tensile properties and impact toughness increased quickly,reached a maximum peak value,and decreased gradually as the solution treatment proceeded.The impact toughness is more closely related to the elongation,and the relationship between impact toughness and elongation appears to obey an equation:IT = 8.43 EL-3.46.After optimal solution treatment at 470 ℃ for 24 h,this alloy exhibits excellent mechanical properties with the ultimate tensile strength,yield strength,elongation and impact toughness being 431.6 MPa,270.1 MPa,19.4% and 154.7 kJ/m~2,which are comparable to that of a wrought Al–6.0 Mg–0.7 Mn alloy(5E06,a 5 xxx aluminum alloy).Due to its excellent comprehensive combination of mechanical properties,this cast alloy has high potential for use in components which require medium strength,high ductility and high toughness.     

Enhancing Mechanical Properties of Mg–6Zn Alloy by Deformation-Induced Nanoprecipitation

We presented the solution of deformation-induced precipitation after homogenization to enhance the mechanical properties of Mg–6 Zn alloys. The results show that the improved strategy exhibits more effective strengthening role than grain refinement methods based on low-temperature severe plastic deformation under the same strain. The low-temperature deformation with larger extrusion ratio results in massive nano-sized precipitates and excellent mechanical properties with the yield strength of 355 MPa and the ultimate tensile strength of 405 MPa. The increased mechanical properties are strong and tough enough to resist the stress and not be worn away when the alloy nail penetrates through the pig thigh bone, potentially extending more orthopedic surgery applications for Mg–Zn alloys.     

Effect of Heat Treatment on Microstructures and Properties of Near-Isothermally Forged TiAl Alloy Containing Minor Ni

The heat treatment, including two steps, was proposed to obtain Fine Fully Lamellar (FFL) microstructure on TiAl containing minor Ni. The first step was in t (α γ) phn~se region to get Duplex (DP) microstructure, and the second step was in α phase region transforming DP microstructure into FFL microstructure. The effect of heat treatment on microstructures and properties was sludied. The results showed that the static recrystallization kinetics in i (α γ) phase region took the form of Avrami equitation, and the remnant lamellae in DP microstructure were detrimental to room temperature tensile properties. The FL microstructures were obtained after heat treatment in α phase region using DP microstructure, the uniform FFL microstructure wns beneficial to comprehensive properties.     

Investigation on the Effect of Sub-Zero Treatment on Micro-Hardness and Microstructure of GTAW Welded Al–Si–Mg–Mn Alloy

In this work, the effect of sub-zero treatment on the mechanical properties of an Al–Si–Mg–Mn alloy welded by GTAW (gas tungsten arc welding) leads to significant softening in the welded region. The latter is due to melting and resolidification in the welded region, which have resulted in decomposition of the strengthening precipitates. The experiments were performed on GTAW welded plates of 6 mm thickness by varying the heat inputs, namely, of 370, 317.1, 277.5, 246.4, and 222 J/mm, and sub-zero treatment time periods. The Sub-Zero treatment was performed at–45°C using dry ice; hardness and microstructure investigations were performed in the welded region of the Al?Si–Mg–Mn alloy that was studied in two different conditions, namely, as-welded and in that formed after post weld sub-zero treatment with artificial aging. It was found that the post weld Sub-Zero treatment followed by artificial aging had led to realization of significantly higher hardness values in the welded region due to the recurrence of the precipitation sequence.     

Effect of Heat Treatments on Microstructures and Tensile Properties of Cu–3 wt%Ag–0.5 wt%Zr Alloy

The microstructures and tensile properties of Cu–3 wt%Ag–0.5 wt%Zr alloy sheets under different aging treatments are investigated in this research. As one kind of precipitate, Ag nanoparticles with coherent orientation relationship with matrix precipitate. However, after the peak-age point, most of Ag nanoparticles grow into short rod shape with the interface translating to semi-coherent, which leads to the lower strength of over-aging sample. The yield strength is estimated by considering solid solute, grain boundary and precipitation strengthening mechanisms. The result shows that the Ag precipitates provide the main strengthening role. Then a constitutive equation representing the evolution of dislocation density with plastic strain is built by considering work-hardening behavior coming from shearable and non-shearable precipitates which is mainly the particles containing Zr. The flow stress contributed by shearable particle hardening is higher than that of non-shearable one. Due to the coarsening of grain boundary precipitates and low rate of damage accumulation of these non-shearable particles, the micro-cracks nucleate easily at grain boundary which leads to intergranular fracture.     

Effect of Heat Treatment on Microstructure and Properties of as-Forged TiAl Alloy with β Phase

采用包套锻造技术成功制备Ti-45Al-5.4V-3.6Nb-0.3Y合金锻饼,并研究热处理对该合金锻饼组织和性能的影响。通过热处理得到3种不同的组织形态,分别为双态、近层片、和全层片组织,分析热处理过程中合金组织的演变规律,并对不同组织形态的合金进行力学性能测试。结果发现,双态组织的合金具有最好的室温塑性,其值可达1.35%,近层片组织的合金具有较高的室温强度,屈服强度为605.31MPa,断裂强度为665.75MPa。     

Effects of Heat Treatment and Thermal Cycling on Martensitic Transformation Behavior of Ni59Al11Mn30 High Temperature Shape Memory Alloy

A reversible martensitic transformation (MT) takes place during cooling and heating in the solution quenched and the solution quenched plus aged Ni59Al11Mn30 alloy. The MT temperature increases with increasing solution temperature. The excellent MT characteristics can be obtained from a process of 1000℃ solution quenched plus 400℃ aged. Follow this process, the MT start temperature (Ms) and the reverse MT finish temperature (Af) are 469℃ and 548℃,respectively. The martensitic stabilization effect in the solution quenched and aged Ni59Al11Mn30 alloy is observed as an increase in the Af temperature of the first reverse MT during thermal cycles. This stabilization effect vanishes from the second thermal cycle. Thermal cycling can enhance the stability of the reversible MT. The microstructure of the quenched Ni59Al11Mn30 alloy consists of martensite (M) and gamma phase. The volume fraction of gamma phase is about 40%. The substructure of M and gamma phase is twins and dislocations, respectively. The hardness of M is higher than that of gamma phase. After aging treatment the basic phases of alloy do not change, but the hardness of the phases increases.     

Effects of fluidised bed quenching on heat treating characteristics of cast Al–Si–Mg and Al–Si–Mg–Cu alloys

Abstract

The quench sensitivity of Al–Si–Mg (D357 unmodified and Sr modified), and Al–Si–Mg–-Cu (354 and 319 Sr modified) cast alloys was investigated using a fluidised bed (FB). The average cooling rate of castings in the fluidised bed is lower than those quenched in water; the cooling rate first increases to a certain maximum and then decreases during quenching. The change in the cooling rate during quenching in water was more drastic, where the cooling rate varied from 0 to ?80 K s^?1 in less than 8 s, as compared with those quenched in FB, where the cooling rate varied from 0 to ?14 K s^?1 in 18 s. The FB quenching resulted in the formation of several metastable phases in Al–Si–Mg–Cu alloys; in contrast, no such transformation was observed during water quenching. The T4 yield strength of the FB quenched alloys was greater than water quenched alloys owing to the formation of a greater volume fraction of metastable phases in the FB quenched alloys. The tensile properties of T6 treated alloys show that Al–Si–Mg alloys (both unmodified and Sr modified) are more quench sensitive than Al–Si–Mg–Cu alloys. The high quench sensitivity of the Al–Si–Mg alloys is because GP zones are not formed, whereas GP zones are formed during quenching of the Al–Si–Mg–Cu alloys as predicted by time temperature transformation and continuous cooling transformation) diagrams.     

Effect of Solution Treatment on the Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of Sand-Cast Mg–9Gd–4Y–0.5Zr Alloy

Sand-cast Mg–9Gd–4Y–0.5 Zr(wt%) alloy was solution-treated at 500–565 ℃ in the time range of 0.5–30 h in air or vacuum to investigate its microstructure evolution and mechanical properties. The results showed that solution treatment temperature had a significant influence on the dissolving rate of eutectic phase and grain growth. Taken both of them into consideration, 510–520 ℃ was considered to be the optimum solution treatment temperature range for this alloy.It should be noted that the trace(0.4–0.9 vol%) and insoluble cuboid-shaped phase precipitated during solution treatment was identified to be YH2, of which the hydrogen was thought to come from both the melting and solution heating process.In addition, the 3D morphology and dissolving process of Mg24(Gd,Y)5 eutectic phases in the as-cast alloy were also discussed via in-situ observation under X-ray tomography.     

Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of Mg–3Al–Zn Magnesium Alloy Sheet by Hot Shear Spinning

Hot shear spinning experiments with Mg–3.0 Al–1.0 Zn–0.5 Mn(AZ31 B, wt%) magnesium alloy sheets were conducted at various temperatures, spindle speeds and feed ratios to investigate the effects of these processing parameters on the microstructure, crystallographic texture and mechanical properties. The AZ31 B sheet displayed good shear formability at temperatures from 473 to 673 K, spindle speeds from 300 to 600 rev/min and feed ratios from 0.1 to 0.5 mm/rev. During the dynamic recrystallization process, the grain size and texture were affected by the deformation temperature of the hot shear spinning process. Each of the spun sheets presented a strong basal texture, and the c-axis of most of the grains was parallel to the normal direction. The optimal hot shear spinning parameters were determined to be a temperature of 473 K, a spindle speed of 300 rev/min and a feed ratio of 0.1 mm/rev. The yield strength, ultimate tensile strength and elongation in the rolled direction reached 221 MPa, 288 MPa and 14.1%, and those in the transverse direction reached 205 MPa, 280 MPa and 12.4%, respectively. The improved strength and decreased mechanical anisotropy resulted from the fine grain size and strong basal texture.     

Effect of Nickel Alloying and Mechanical Stirring on the Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of Al – 10% Si – 5% Cu Alloy

Metal Science and Heat Treatment - The effect of nickel additions on the microstructure and ultimate tensile strength of alloy Al – 10% Si – 5% Cu in cast and heat treated conditions is...