Effects of process parameters on morphology and distribution of externally solidified crystals in microstructure of magnesium alloy die castings

During the cold-chamber high pressure die casting(HPDC) process, samples were produced to investigate the microstructure characteristics of AM60B magnesium alloy. Special attention was paid to the effects of process parameters on the morphology and distribution of externally solidified crystals(ESCs) in the microstructure of magnesium alloy die castings, such as slow shot phase plunger velocity, delay time of pouring and fast shot phase plunger velocity. On the basis of metallographic observation and quantitative statistics, it is concluded that a lower slow shot phase plunger velocity and a longer delay time of pouring both lead to an increment of the size and percentage of the ESCs, due to the fact that a longer holding time of the melt in the shot sleeve will cause a more severe loss of the superheat. The impingement of the melt flow on the ESCs is more intensive with a higher fast shot phase plunger velocity, in such case the ESCs reveal a more granular and roundish morphology and are dispersed throughout the cross section of the castings. Based on analysis of the filling and solidification processes of the melt during the HPDC process, reasonable explanations were proposed in terms of the nucleation, growth, remelting and fragmentation of the ESCs to interpret the effects of process parameters on the morphology and distribution of the ESCs in the microstructure of magnesium alloy die castings.

Effect of Electromagnetic Frequency on Microstructures of Continuous Casting Aluminum Alloys

The relationship between electromagnetic frequency and microstructures of continuous casting aluminum alloys was studied. 7075 aluminum alloy ingot of 100 mm in diameter was produced by electromagnetic continuous casting process, the microstructures of as-cast ingot was examined by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) equipped with energy dispersive spectrometer (EDS). The results showed that electromagnetic frequency greatly influenced segregation and microstructures of as-cast ingot, and product quality can be guaranteed by the application of a proper frequency. Electromagnetic frequency plays a significant role in solute redistribution; low frequency is more efficient for promoting solution of alloying elements.

Analysis of inhomogeneity of solidified microstructure of continuous casting copper tubular billet based on factor analysis

The horizontal continuous casting process,the initial step in TP2 copper tubular processing,directly determines the microstructure and properties of copper tubular.However,the process parameters of the continuous casting characterize time variation,multiple disturbances and strong coupling.As a consequence,their influence on a casting billet is difficult to be determined.Due to the above issues,the common factor and special factor analysis of the factor analysis model were used in this study,and the casting experiment and billet metallographic experiment were carried out to diagnose and analyze the reason of the microstructure inhomogeneity.The multiple process parameters were studied and classified using common factor analysis,2 the cast billets with abnormal microstructures were identified by GT^(2) statistics,and the most important factors affecting the microstructural homogeneity were found by special factor analysis.The calculated and experimental results show that the principal parameters influencing the inhomogeneity of solidified microstructure are the primary inlet water pressure and the primary outlet water temperature.According to the consequence of the above investigation,the inhomogeneity of the copper billet microstructure can be effectively improved when the process parameters are controlled and adjusted.

Microstructures in Centrifugal Casting of SiC_p/AlSi9Mg Composites with Different Mould Rotation Speeds

Two ingots were produced by centrifugal casting at mould rotational speeds of 600 rpm and 800 rpm using 20 vol%SiC p /AlSi9Mg composite melt,respectively.The microstructure along the radial direction of cross-sectional sample of ingots was presented.SiC particles migrated towards the external circumference of the tube,and the distribution of SiC particles became uniform under centrifugal force.Voids in 20 vol%SiC p /AlSi9Mg composite melt migrated towards the inner circumference of the tube.The quantitative analysis results indicated that not only SiC particles but also primaryαphases segregated greatly in centrifugal casting resulting from the transportation behavior of constitutions with different densities in the SiC p /AlSi9Mg composite melt.In addition,the eutectic Si was broken owing to the motion of SiC p /AlSi9Mg composite melt during centrifugal casting.

Synergistic effects of composition and heat treatment on microstructure and properties of vacuum die cast Al-Si-Mg-Mn alloys

The purpose of this study was to prepare high-quality Al-Si-Mg-Mn alloy with a good combination of strength and ductility employing the vacuum-assisted high-pressure die cast process. An orthogonal study of heat treatments was conducted to design an optimized T6 heat treatment process for both Al-10%Si-0.3%Mg-Mn and Al-11%Si-0.6%Mg-Mn alloys. The results demonstrate that no obvious blisters and warpage were observed in these two alloys with solid solution treatment. After the optimal T6 heat treatment of 530°C×3 h + 165°C×6 h, Al-11%Si-0.6%Mg-Mn alloy has better mechanical properties, of which tensile strength, yield strength and elongation reached 377.3 MPa, 307.8 MPa and 9%, respectively. The improvement of mechanical properties can be attributed to the high density of needle-like β″(Mg_5Si_6) precipitation after aging treatment and the fine and spherical eutectic Si particles uniformly distributed in the α-Al matrix.

Microstructure and Mechanical Behavior of Squeeze Cast SiC_w/AZ91 Magnesium Matrix Composites

The interfacial microstructure and tensile properties of the squeeze cast SiCw/AZ91 Mg composites were characterized. There exist uniform, line and discrete MgO particles at the interface between SiC whisker and magnesium in the composites using acid aluminum phosphate binder. The interfacial reaction products MgO are beneficial to interfacial bonding between SiCw and the Mg matrix. resulting in an improvement of the mechanical properties of the composite.

THE INFLUENCES OF Zn CONTENT AND COOLING RATE ON ASCAST MICROSTRUCTURE IN Al75% Mg ALLOYS

Thesolidification processof Al 7 5% Mg Zn alloys wasstudiedin thepaper.The Zn contentand cooling rate werechanged andtheirinfluenceson as cast microstructure were measured by different methods. The solute segregation during nonequilibrium solidification process wascalculated byternary Scheilequation which wasin good agreement with experimentresulte.

Fe-WC surface composites produced by reactive cast-infiltration

The reactive cast-infiltration technique was used to produce an Fe-WC surface composite layer on an iron casting, in which the WC particulates were formed in situ from a reaction of W with C. The structure and phase construction of the surface composite were evaluated by using X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscope (SEM), energy-dispersive X-ray (EDS), etc. An Fe-WC surface composite layer with a volume fraction of WC particles up to 30％ and particle size in the range 10～30 μm was successfully produced. Abrasive resistance test results show that the Fe-WC surface composite layer possesses great abrasive resistance.

Influence of Process Parameters and Sr Addition on the Microstructure and Casting Defects of LPDC A356 Alloy for Engine Blocks

The effects of Sr addition and pressure increase on the microstructure and casting defects of a low-pressure die cast （LPDC） AISi7Mg0.3 alloy have been studied. Metallographic and image analysis techniques have been used to quantitatively examine the microstructural changes and the amount of porosity occurring at different Sr levels and pressure parameters. The results indicate that an increase in the filling pressure induces lower heat dissipation of the liquid close to the die/core surfaces, with the formation of slightly greater dendrite arms and coarser eutectic Si particles. On the other hand, the increase in the Sr level leads to finer microstructural scale and eutectic Si. The analysed variables, within the experimental conditions, do not affect the morphology of eutectic Si particles. Higher applied pressure and Sr content generate castings with lower amount of porosiW. However, as the filling pressure increases the flow of metal inside the die cavity is more turbulent, leading to the formation of oxide films and cold shots. In the analysed range of experimental conditions, the design of experiment methodology and the analysis of variance have been used to develop statistical models that accurately predict the average size of secondary dendrite arm spacing and the amount of porosity in the low-pressure die cast AISiTMg0.3 alloy.

Effect of vanadium and chromium on the microstructural features of V–Cr–Mn–Ni spheroidal carbide cast irons

The objective of this investigation is to study the influence of vanadium（5.0wt%–10.0wt%） and chromium（0–9.0wt%） on the microstructure and hardness of Cr-V-Mn-Ni white cast irons with spheroidal vanadium carbides. The alloys＇ microstructural features are presented and discussed with regard to the distribution of phase elements. The structural constituents of the alloys are spheroidal VC, proeutectoid cementite, ledeburite eutectic, rosette-shaped carbide eutectic（based on M7C3）, pearlite, martensite, and austenite. Their combinations and area fraction（AF） ratios are reported to be influenced by the alloys＇ chemical composition. Spheroidized VC particles are found to be sites for the nucleation of carbide eutectics. Cr and V are shown to substitute each other in the VC and M7C3 carbides, respectively. Chromium alloying leads to the formation of a eutectic（γ-Fe ＋ М7С3）, preventing the appearance of proeutectoid cementite in the structure. Vanadium and chromium are revealed to increase the total carbide fraction and the amount of austenite in the matrix. Cr is observed to play a key role in controlling the metallic matrix microstructure.

A Review on Casting Magnesium Alloys： Modification of Commercial Alloys and Development of New Alloys

The research and development status of casting magnesium alloys including the commercial casting alloys and the new types casting alloys are reviewed,with more attention to microstructure and mechanical properties of modified-AZ91,AM60 and WE43 alloys with various additions,and new types of low cost casting alloys and high strength casting alloys.The modification and/or refinement of Mg2 Si phase in Mg-Al-Si based casting alloys by various additions are discussed and new purifying technologies for casting magnesium alloys are introduced to improve the performance.The modified AZ81 alloy with reduced impurities is found to have the tensile strength of 280 ± 6 MPa and elongation of 16% ± 0.7%.The fatigue strength of AZ91 D alloy could be obviously improved by addition of Ce and Nd.The Mg-16Gd-2Ag-0.3Zr alloy exhibits very high tensile and yield strengths（UTS：423 MPa and YS：328 MPa）;however,its elongation still needs to be improved.

Influence of rare earth nanoparticles and inoculants on performance and microstructure of high chromium cast iron

The high chromium cast irons （HCCIs） with rare earth （RE） nanoparticles or inoculants were fabricated in the casting process. The phase compositions and microstructure were analyzed by X-ray diffraction （XRD） and optical microscopy （OM）, respectively. The hardness and impact toughness were tested by Rockwel-hardmeter and impacting test enginery. And then, the morphology of fracture was researched by scanning electron microscopy （SEM）. The results demonstrated that the phase compositions of HCCIs with addition of RE nanoparticles or inoculants which were M7C3 carbides ＋ α-Fe did not change obviously. However, the prime M7C3 carbides morphology had great changes with the increase of RE nanoparticles, which changed from long lath to granular or island shape. When the content of RE nanoparticles was 0.4 wt.%, the microstructure of high chromium cast iron was refined greatly. The microstructure of carbides was coarser when the addition of RE nanoparticles was higher than 0.4 wt.%. The hardness and impact toughness of HCCIs were improved by addition of RE nanoparticles or inoculants. The impact toughness of HCCIs was increased 36.4% with RE nanoparticles of 0.4 wt.%, but the hardness changed slightly. In addition, the adding of RE nanoparticles or inoculants could reduce the degree of the brittle fracture. Fracture never seemed regular, instead, containing lots of laminates and dimples with the increase of the RE nanoparticles. The results also indicated that the optimal addition amount of the RE nanoparticles was 0.4%, under this composition, the microstructure and mechanical property achieved the best cooperation. In addition, through the study of erosion wear rate, when adding 0.4% RE nanoparticles into the HCCIs, the erosion wear rate got the minimum 0.32×10-3 g/mm2, which could increase 51.5% compared with that without any RE nanoparticles.

Effects of Cr Content and Annealing Temperature on Microstructure and Wear Characteristics of Cast Ausferrite Nodular Iron

The effects of Cr content and annealing temperature on abrasive wear characteristics of cast ausferrite nodular iron were investigated with Suga type abrasive wear tester. The surface morphology and Vickers hardness of the tested samples were analyzed by scanning electron microscopy（SEM）, digital microscope and Vickers hardness tester. The results show that the cast ausferrite nodular iron could be obtained by alloying with Cr in the as-cast ductile cast iron and permanent mold casting, and the bainite content in the matrix increased with increasing Cr content. However, the decomposition of bainite took place during annealing at 500 °C to 800 °C; especially, at 800 °C, the bainite transformed into a mixture of fine lamellar pearlite and ferrite matrix structure. The wear loss of specimens was reduced with increasing Cr content in the cast ausferrite nodular iron. The wear loss of the sample cast ausferrite nodular iron with 0.4mass% Cr is the least. The wear loss began to increase while the Cr content is 0.6mass%. The wear loss of annealed ductile irons at different annealing temperatures was higher than that of as-cast samples. During the abrasive wear, the shear stress transformed austenite to martensite, and the hardness of specimens increased and the wear resistance of as-cast ductile cast iron was improved.