Research progress on semi-continuous casting of magnesium alloys under external field

High-performance magnesium alloys are moving towards a trend of being produced on a large scale and in an integrated manner.The foundational key to their successful production is the high-quality cast ingots.Magnesium alloys produced through the conventional semi-continuous casting process inevitably contain casting defects,which makes it challenging to manufacture high-quality ingots.The integration of external field assisted controlled solidification technology,which combines physical fields such as electromagnetic and ultrasonic fields with traditional semi-continuous casting processes,enables the production of high-quality magnesium alloy ingots characterized by a homogeneous microstructure and absence of cracks.This article mainly summarizes the technical principles of those external field assisted casting process.The focus is on elaborating the refinement mechanism of different types of electromagnetic fields,ultrasonic fields,and combined physical fields during the solidification of magnesium alloys.Finally,the development prospects of producing highquality magnesium alloy ingots through semi-continuous casting under the external field were discussed.

Understanding the spatial interaction of ultrasounds based on three-dimensional dual-frequency ultrasonic field numerical simulation

A transient 3D model was established to investigate the effect of spatial interaction of ultrasounds on the dual-frequency ultrasonic field in magnesium alloy melt.The effects of insertion depth and tip shape of the ultrasonic rods,input pressures and their ratio on the acoustic field distribution were discussed in detail.Additionally,the spacing,angle,and insertion depth of two ultrasonic rods significantly affect the interaction between distinct ultrasounds.As a result,various acoustic pressure distributions and cavitation regions are obtained.The spherical rods mitigate the longitudinal and transversal attenuation of acoustic pressure and expand the cavitation volume by 53.7%and 31.7%,respectively,compared to the plate and conical rods.Increasing the input pressure will enlarge the cavitation region but has no effect on the acoustic pressure distribution pattern.The acoustic pressure ratio significantly affects the pressure distribution and the cavitation region,and the best cavitation effect is obtained at the ratio of 2:1(P15:P20).

Effect of harmonic magnetic field and pulse magnetic field on microstructure of high purity Cu during electromagnetic direct chill casting

The effects of two types of magnetic fields,namely harmonic magnetic field(HMF)and pulse magnetic field(PMF)on magnetic flux density,Lorentz force,temperature field,and microstructure of high purity Cu were studied by numerical simulation and experiment during electromagnetic direct chill casting.The magnetic field is induced by a magnetic generation system including an electromagnetic control system and a cylindrical crystallizer of 300 mm in diameter equipped with excitation coils.A comprehensive mathematical model for high purity Cu electromagnetic casting was established in finite element method.The distributions of magnetic flux density and Lorentz force generated by the two magnetic fields were acquired by simulation and experimental measurement.The microstructure of billets produced by HMF and PMF casting was compared.Results show that the magnetic flux density and penetrability of PMF are significantly higher than those of HMF,due to its faster variation in transient current and higher peak value of magnetic flux density.In addition,PMF drives a stronger Lorentz force and deeper penetration depth than HMF does,because HMF creates higher eddy current and reverse electromagnetic field which weakens the original electromagnetic field.The microstructure of a billet by HMF is composed of columnar structure regions and central fine grain regions.By contrast,the billet by PMF has a uniform microstructure which is characterized by ultra-refined and uniform grains because PMF drives a strong dual convection,which increases the uniformity of the temperature field,enhances the impact of the liquid flow on the edge of the liquid pool and reduces the curvature radius of liquid pool.Eventually,PMF shows a good prospect for industrialization.

Effect of electromagnetic parameters on melt flow and heat transfer of AZ80 Mg alloy during differential phase electromagnetic DC casting based on numerical simulation

Based on multi-physical field coupling numerical simulation method,magnetic field distribution,melt flow,and heat transfer behavior of aΦ300 mm AZ80 alloy billet during differential phase electromagnetic DC casting(DP-EMC)with different electromagnetic parameters were studied.The results demonstrate that the increase in current intensity only changes the magnitude but does not change the Lorentz force's distribution characteristics.The maximum value of the Lorentz force increases linearly followed by an increase in current intensity.As the frequency increases,the Lorentz force's r component remains constant,and the z component decreases slightly.The change in current intensity correlates with the melt oscillation and convection intensity positively,as well as the liquid sump temperature uniformity.It does not mean that the higher the electric current,the better the metallurgical quality of the billet.A lower frequency is beneficial to generate a more significant melt flow and velocity fluctuation,which is helpful to create a more uniform temperature field.Appropriate DP-EMC parameters for aΦ300 mm AZ80 Mg alloy are 10-20 Hz frequency and 80-100 A current intensity.

Effect of ultrasonic melt treatment on degassing of Mg-6Zn-1Ca alloy

The effect of ultrasonic power and treatment time on degassing of Mg-6Zn-1Ca alloy was studied in this paper. The degassing effect was characterized by measuring densities of ingots. The results show that proper ultrasonic treatment can remove hydrogen from the melt of the Mg-6Zn-1Ca alloy. The ultrasonic degassing effect is closely related to the ultrasonic power density and treatment time. The degassing efficiency increases with an increase in ultrasonic power density when the melt is treated at 690 °C for 120 s, reaching its highest value at 1.2 W·cm-3. When the power density is 1.2 W·cm-3, with an increase in ultrasonic treatment time, the degassing efficiency increases at first, reaches its peak value at 120 s, then decreases as the ultrasonic treatment is further prolonged. In this experiment, the optimum degassing effect with an efficiency of 67.5 % is obtained by ultrasonic treatment with the power density of 1.2 W·cm-3 for 120 s. The maximum density of ingot can be increased from 1.8069 g·cm-3 to 1.8146 g·cm-3(increased by 0.43%).

Ultrasonic flaw detection of discontinuous defects in magnesium alloy materials

Phased array ultrasonic testing, an effective ultrasonic testing(UT) technology, has been widely used in steel inspection because of its high accuracy, sensitivity, and efficiency. However, as its application in as-cast magnesium alloys has just begun, more research is needed. Considering the important role of the gain compensation in quantifying defects in magnesium alloys by ultrasonic phased array technology, the effects of microstructure, the position, size, and overlap of defects, and boundary distance(distance from the defect position to the side surface of the test casting) on gain compensation of as-cast AZ80 and AZ31 magnesium alloys were studied. Results show the gain compensation increases with the increase of grain size. There is a strict linear positive correlation between gain compensation and defect depth, but such relationship no longer exists due to the defects overlap, orientation and boundary distance. In addition, there is a strict linear negative correlation between the gain compensation and defect size.

Effect of limestone ores on grain refinement of as-cast commercial AZ31 magnesium alloys

The grain refinement of the as-cast AZ31 alloys by limestone particles was investigated by grain refining tests and microstructure observations. The results show that the limestone particles have a good grain refining potency, which is deeply related to the addition level of limestone and melting temperature. The optimal addition level and melting temperature are 2.0%（mass fraction） and 720 ℃, respectively. The average grain size of AZ31 alloy is reduced from（556±60） to（236±22） μm. The sound grain refining by raw limestone particles has a good anti-fading capacity without any significant grain coarsening in a 40 min holding time. The concerned grain refining mechanism should be attributed to the inoculated Al-C and Al-C/Al-Mn-（Fe） nuclei. Ultrasonic treatment can enhance the grain refining efficiency of limestone particles through cavitation-enhanced nucleation mechanism.

Effect of ultrasonic field treatment on degassing of 2024 alloy

The 2024 aluminum alloy was prepared with different ultrasonic processes.Effects of ultrasonic treatment parameters including ultrasonic power,treatment time,treatment temperature,and frequency resonance,as well as C_(2)Cl_(6) degasser on degassing of the 2024 aluminum alloy were investigated.Results indicate that increasing ultrasonic power at the same ultrasonic treatment time can improve the degassing effect.The optimum degassing efficiency can be obtained under the resonant ultrasound condition.With the combination of 1%C_(2)Cl_(6) addition and 150 W ultrasonic treatment for 40 s,the hydrogen content of the alloy is decreased by 52.9%.At the same time,the tensile strength and elongation are increased by 28.3%and 92.3%,respectively,and the yield strength is slightly increased by 6.7%.The degassing mechanism is also discussed.

Investigation on heat-transfer-coefficient between aluminum alloy and organic/inorganic sand mold based on inverse method

A kind of cylinder sand mold was designed to investigate the heat-transfer-coefficients（HTCs） between aluminum alloy and organic/inorganic binder bonded sand mold during the solidification processes. Temperature during the solidification process was recorded and input into the simulation software. The inverse model of MAGMA was used to calculate the HTC based on the actual temperature. Results show that the temperature of the inorganic sand mold increased faster than the organic sand mold; while the temperature of the casting part with the inorganic sand mold decreased faster. The optimal HTCs between Al and the organic/inorganic sand mold are confirmed to be 300 to 700 and 1000 to 1800 W·m-2·K-1, respectively, along with the change of solid-liquid phase line. The simulated temperature curves show the same trend as the measured ones. The maximum deviation between the two temperature curves are 17.32 °C and 18.77 °C for castings by inorganic and organic sand molds.

Effect of Artificial Cooling Extrusion on Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of Mg–Zn–Y Alloys

Microstructure and mechanical properties of Mg–Zn–Y alloys with different Zn/Y atomic ratios with or without artificial cooling (AC) extrusion were systematically investigated in this work. The results show that bimodal microstructure consisting of submicron dynamic recrystallized (DRXed) grains with high fraction of low-angle grain boundaries (LAGBs) and elongated unDRXed grains was formed in Mg_(98.7)Zn_(1)Y_(0.3) alloy with AC extrusion. The AC process effectively limits the growth of precipitated phases, and large amount of nanoscale precipitates were dynamically precipitated during the extrusion process. AC extrusion could effectually refine the lamellar 14H LPSO phases and inhibit the transition from stacking faults to LSPO phases in Mg_(98)Zn_(1)Y_(1) alloy and the narrow LPSO phase in Mg_(98)Zn_(1)Y_(1)-AC alloy which could promote the nucleation of DRXed grains. The AC extrusion significantly improves the strength of Mg–Zn–Y alloys. Owing to AC extrusion, the strength improvement of Mg_(98.7)Zn_(1)Y_(0.3) alloy is mainly attributed to fine grain strengthening, dislocation strengthening, and nano-phases precipitation strengthening. After AC process, more fine grains and nano-phases jointly strengthen the Mg_(98)Zn_(1)Y_(1) alloy. The Mg_(98)Zn_(1)Y_(1) alloy obtains optimal mechanical properties after extrusion at 623 K, with ultimate tensile strength (UTS) of 406 MPa, yield strength (YS) of 388 MPa, and elongation (EL) of 5.6%.