Examination of dynamic recrystallization during compression of AZ31 magnesium

This study aimed to investigate dynamic recrystallization (DRX) behavior during compression of magnesium alloy AZ31. Cylinder samples were cut from the extruded rod and hot rolled sheet AZ31 for compression test. The samples were compressed using a Gleeble 1500D at a temperature of 300°C and a strain rate of 0.01 s⁻¹. Grain orientations and misorientation angles across grain boundaries for the tested samples were obtained by using electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) technique. The results showed that strong basal texture was observed after 50% compression (ε = 0.69) on both the extruded and hot rolled samples, which have different initial textures. It was observed that with increased strain, DRX grains gradually rotated to basal orientation, and grain boundaries with misorientation angle of near 30° was formed in the samples. At the strain of 0.69, a high fraction of high-angle (> 60°) boundaries was present in the extruded sample, whereas almost no high angle boundaries were observed in the hot rolled sheet sample. Supported by the National Basic Research Program of China (“973” Project) (Grant No. 2007CB613703), the International Key Program for Cooperation in Science and Technology of China (Grant No. 2006DFA51160), and the Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 50571049, 50231030)