Effect of thermal stabilization on microstructure and mechanical property of directionally solidified Ti-46Al-0.5W-0.5Si alloy

Effect of thermal stabilization on the microstructure and mechanical property of directionally solidified Ti-46Al-0.5W-0.5Si （mole fraction, %） alloy was investigated. The specimens were thermal stabilized for different time （t） and directionally solidified at a constant growth rate of 30 μm/s and temperature gradient of 20 K/mm. Dependencies of the primary dendritic spacing （λ1）, secondary dendritic spacing （λ2）, interlamellar spacing （λL） and microhardness （HV） on holding time were determined. The values of the λ1, λ2 and λL increase with the increase of t, and the value of HV decreases with the increase of t. The increase of t is helpful to obtain a good directional solidification structure. However, it reduces the mechanical property of the directionally solidified TiAl alloy. The optimized value of t is about 30 min.

Effects of Gd on microstructure and mechanical property of ZK60 magnesium alloy

Microstructures and phase compositions of as-cast and extruded ZK60-xGd （x=0-4） alloys were investigated. Meanwhile, the tensile mechanical property was tested. With increasing the Gd content, as-cast microstructure is refined gradually. Mg-Zn-Gd new phase increases gradually, while MgZn2 phase decreases gradually to disappear. The second phase tends to distribute along grain boundary by continuous network. As-cast tensile mechanical property is reduced slightly at ambient temperature when the Gd content does not exceed 2.98%. After extrusion by extrusion ratio of 40 and extrusion temperature of 593 K, microstructure is refined further with decreasing the average grain size to 2 μm for ZK60-2.98Gd alloy. Broken second phase distributes along the extrusion direction by zonal shape. Extruded tensile mechanical property is enhanced significantly. Tensile strength values at 298 and 473 K increase gradually from 355 and 120 MPa for ZK60 alloy to 380 and 164 MPa for ZK60-2.98Gd alloy, respectively. Extruded tensile fractures exhibit a typical character of ductile fracture.

Effects of Bi on the microstructure and mechanical property of ZK60 alloy

Microstructures and phase compositions of as-cast and extruded ZK60-xBi(x=0-1.64)alloys were investigated.Meanwhile,the tensile mechanical property and hardness were tested.With increasing the Bi content,the as-cast microstructure is first refined obviously,and then becomes coarse slightly.New small block compound which is rich in Zr,Zn,Bi and poor in Mg increases gradually,and MgZn_(2) phase decreases gradually.The second phase mainly precipitates along the grain boundary.The as-cast tensile mechanical property is first enhanced obviously,where the tensile strengthσb,yield strengthσ0.2 and elongationδcan reach 265 MPa,151 MPa and 13.5%for ZK60-0.23Bi alloy,respectively,then remains the high value for ZK60-(0.37-1.09)Bi alloys,and finally decreases obviously for ZK60-1.64Bi alloy.After hot extrusion,the obvious dynamic recrystallization occurs.Broken block compound distributes along the extrusion direction by zonal shape.The average grain size can reach only 4-6μm.The extruded tensile mechanical property is enhanced significantly,where σ_(b),σ_(0.2) and δ are at the range of 345-360 MPa,285-300 MPa and 15.5-19.5%,respectively.Extruded tensile fracture exhibits a typical character of ductile fracture.

Effect of Trace La Addition on the Microstructure and Mechanical Property of As-cast ADC12 Al-Alloy

The effects of addition of La on the microstructure of as-cast ADC12 A1-Alloy were investigated by using optical microscope （OM）, X-ray diffraction （XRD）, scanning electron microscope （SEM）, and energy disperse spectroscopy （EDS）. The experimental results showed that the a-A1 and eutectic Si crystals were modified with the addition of 0.3 wt% La. The eutectic Si crystals showed a granular distribution. At the same time, the alloy possessed the best mechanical property. When more than 0.3 wt% La was added to ADC12 aluminum alloy, the microstructure of as-cast alloy was coarsening gradually with the increase of the content of La and the mechanical property decreased. The effect of rare earth La which was added in ADC 12 A1-Alloy for up to 0.9 wt% had been investigated in this study. The dendrites ofADC12 Al-alloy was refined obviously and the morphology of Si crystals showed a particle structure when the addition of La reached 0,3 wt%. Besides, the acicular La-rich intermetallics in the alloy deteriorated the mechanical property of alloy： To avoid this unwanted phase, the amount of added rare earth La must be less than 0.6 wt%.

Effect of spinning deformation on microstructure evolution and mechanical property of TA15 titanium alloy

Hot spinning of tubular workpiece of TA15 alloy was conducted on a CNC spinning machine, and the microstructure evolution during hot spinning and annealing was observed and mechanical properties of spun tubes were tested. The results show that with the increase of spinning pass, the fiber microstructure comes into being gradually in axial direction and the circumferential microstructure also stretches obviously along circumferential direction. At the same time, the tensile strength increases and elongation decreases not only in axial direction but also in circumferential direction. When the reduction ratio of wall thickness rises close to or over 40%, tensile strength increases and elongation decreases more rapidly, which means that tubular workpiece of titanium alloy can be strengthened bi-directionally by power spinning. The ductility of spun workpiece of TA15 alloy could be improved by annealing at the temperature no higher than recrystallization temperature with slight decrease of tensile strength.

Effect of hot plastic deformation on microstructure and mechanical property of Mg-Mn-Ce magnesium alloy

Hot plastic deformation was conducted using a new solid die on a Mg-Mn-Ce magnesium alloy. The results of microstructural examination through OM and TEM show that the grain size is greatly refined from 45 μm to 1.1 μm with uniform distribution due to the occurrence of dynamic recrystallization. The grain refinement and high angle grain boundary formation improve the mechanical properties through tensile testing with the strain rate of 1.0×10?4 s?1 at room temperature and Vickers microhardness testing. The maximum values of tensile strength, elongation and Vickers microhardness are increased to 256.37 MPa, 17.69% and HV57.60, which are 21.36%, 133.80% and 20.50% more than those of the as-received Mg-Mn-Ce magnesium alloy, respectively. The SEM morphologies of tensile fractured surface indicate that the density and size of ductile dimples rise with accumulative strain increasing. The mechanism of microstructural evolution and the relationship between microstructure and mechanical property of Mg-Mn-Ce magnesium alloy processed by this solid die were also analyzed.

Influence of Sr on microstructure evolution,mechanical and corrosion properties of extruded Mg-2Zn-0.5Ca alloy

Degradable Mg-Zn-Ca alloys with Sr addition were prepared by vacuum melting and hot extrusion.Effect of Sr on microstructure,mechanical and corrosion properties of hot extruded Mg-2Zn-0.5Ca-xSr(x=0,0.5,1.0)alloys was investigated.The results show that Sr addition into Mg-2Zn-0.5Ca alloys produced significant grain refinement in ingots and obvious texture weakening effects in extruded bars.The ultimate compressive strength increased as the Sr content increased,while the ultimate tensile strength increased firstly and then declined with the increasing of Sr content.Electrochemical tests indicated the corrosion current density of the surface parallel to extrusion direction(ED)was much lower than that of the surface perpendicular to ED.In-vitro immersion tests demonstrated the increase in the pH of solution and weight loss of Mg-2Zn-0.5Ca-0.5Sr alloy remain the lowest during immersion tests.The best comprehensive property was obtained in Mg-2Zn-0.5Ca-0.5Sr alloy,which has the largest strength and the best corrosion resistance.

Effect of annealing treatment on the microstructure and mechanical properties of warm-rolled Mg-Zn-Gd-Ca-Mn alloys

The basal texture of traditional magnesium alloy AZ31 is easy to form and exhibits poor plasticity at room temperature.To address these problems,a multi-micro-alloyed high-plasticity Mg-1.8Zn-0.8Gd-0.1Ca-0.2Mn(wt%)alloy was developed using the unique role of rare earth and Ca solute atoms.In addition,the influence of the annealing process on the grain size,second phase,texture,and mechanical properties of the warm-rolled sheet at room temperature was analyzed with the goal of developing high-plasticity mag-nesium alloy sheets and obtaining optimal thermal-mechanical treatment parameters.The results show that the annealing temperature has a significant effect on the microstructure and properties due to the low alloying content:there are small amounts of larger-sized block and long string phases along the rolling direction(RD),as well as several spherical and rodlike particle phases inside the grains.With increas-ing annealing temperature,the grain size decreases and then increases,and the morphology,number,and size of the second phase also change correspondingly.The particle phase within the grains vanishes at 450℃,and the grain size increases sharply.In the full recrystal-lization stage at 300-350℃,the optimum strength-plasticity comprehensive mechanical properties are presented,with yield strengths of 182.1 and 176.9 MPa,tensile strengths of 271.1 and 275.8 MPa in the RD and transverse direction(TD),and elongation values of 27.4%and 32.3%,respectively.Moreover,there are still some larger-sized phases in the alloy that influence its mechanical properties,which offers room for improvement.

Role of alloying and heat treatment on microstructure and mechanical properties of cast Al-Li alloys:A review

Due to the prominent advantages of low density,high elastic modulus,high specific strength and specific stiffness,cast Al-Li alloys are suitable metallic materials for manufacturing complex large-sized components and are ideal structural materials for aerospace,defense and military industries.On the basis of the microstructural characteristics of cast Al-Li alloys,exploring the role of alloying and micro-alloying can stabilize their dominant position and further expand their application scope.In this review,the development progress of cast Al-Li alloys was summarized comprehensively.According to the latest research highlights,the influence of alloying and heat treatment on the microstructure and mechanical properties was systematically analyzed.The potential methods to improve the alloy performance were concluded.In response to the practical engineering requirements of cast Al-Li alloys,the scientific challenges and future research directions were discussed and prospected.

Effect of Ti addition on microstructure and mechanical properties of Zn-22Al alloy after ECAP

The effect of Ti addition on microstructure and mechanical properties of Zn-22Al eutectoid alloy with 0.15 wt%Ti was investigated.It was observed that the presence of Ti changes the morphology of n phase in the alloy.Addition of Ti to Zn-Al alloy caused the formation of Ti(Zn,Al)_(3);phase.Before applying equal channel angular pressing(ECAP),two times of homogenization treatment were conducted on the alloy.After secondary homogenization,the microstructure consisted of a homogeneous and fine mixture ofαand n phases and the as-cast lamellar structure removed.After homogenization,ECAP was carried out on Ti-containing Zn-22Al alloy.The fraction of high angle grain boundaries increased with increasing the number of ECAP passes.The average grain size reduced from 930 nm after secondary homogenization to 380 nm after 8 passes of ECAP.The texture of the alloy also changed by applying ECAP.Maximum elongation to failure of the homogenized alloy was 135%at a strain rate of 10^(-5)s^(-1)which enhanced to a maximum of 405%at a strain rate of 10^(-3)s^(-1)after 8 passes of ECAP.It was also observed that by conducting ECAP and increasing the number of passes the hardness decreases,which indicates work-softening behavior due to dynamic recovery/recrystallization.

Evolution of mechanical properties,localized corrosion resistance and microstructure of a high purity Al-Zn-Mg-Cu alloy during non-isothermal aging

The evolution of mechanical properties,localized corrosion resistance of a high purity Al-Zn-Mg-Cu alloy during non-isothermal aging(NIA)was investigated by hardness test,electrical conductivity test,tensile test,intergranular corrosion test,exfoliation corrosion test,slow strain rate tensile test and electrochemical test,and the mechanism has been discussed based on microstructure examination by optical microscopy,electron back scattered diffraction,scanning electron microscopy and scanning transmission electron microscopy.The NIA treatment includes a heating stage from 40℃to 180℃with a rate of 20℃/h and a cooling stage from 180℃to 40℃with a rate of 10℃/h.The results show that the hardness and strength increase rapidly during the heating stage of NIA since the increasing temperature favors the nucleation and the growth of strengthening precipitates and promotes the transformation of Guinier-Preston(GPI)zones toη'phase.During the cooling stage,the sizes ofη'phase increase with a little change in the number density,leading to a further slight increase of the hardness and strength.As NIA proceeds,the corroded morphology in the alloy changes from a layering feature to a wavy feature,the maximum corrosion depth decreases,and the reason has been analyzed based on the microstructural and microchemical feature of precipitates at grain boundaries and subgrain boundaries.

Effect of annealing temperature on microstructure and mechanical properties of Mg-Zn-Zr-Nd alloy with large final rolling deformation

In this study,the Mg-3Zn-0.5Zr-χNd(χ=0,0.6)alloys were subjected to final rolling treatment with large deformation of 50%.The impact of annealing temperatures on the microstructure and mechanical properties was investigated.The rolled Mg-3Zn-0.5Zr-0.6Nd alloy exhibited an ultimate tensile strength of 386 MPa,a yield strength of 361 MPa,and an elongation of 7.1%.Annealing at different temperatures resulted in reduced strength and obviously increased elongation for both alloys.Optimal mechanical properties for the Mg-3Zn-0.5Zr-0.6Nd alloy were achieved after annealing at 200℃,with an ultimate tensile strength of 287 MPa,a yield strength of 235 MPa,and an elongation of 26.1%.The numerous deformed microstructures,twins,and precipitated phases in the rolled alloy could impede the deformation at room temperature and increase the work hardening rate.After annealing,a decrease in the work hardening effect and an increase in the dynamic recovery effect were obtained due to the formation of fine equiaxed grains,and the increased volume fraction of precipitated phases,which significantly improved the elongation of the alloy.Additionally,the addition of Nd element could enhance the annealing recrystallization rate,reduce the Schmid factor difference between basal and prismatic slip systems,facilitate multi-system slip initiation and improve the alloy plasticity.

Effect of Ni on microstructure and mechanical properties of Al−Mg−Si alloy for laser powder bed fusion

The microstructures and mechanical properties were systematically studied for the high-strength Al−5Mg_(2)Si−1.5Ni alloy fabricated by laser powder bed fusion(L-PBF).It is found that the introduction of Ni(1.5 wt.%)into an Al−5Mg_(2)Si alloy can significantly improve the L-PBF processibility and provide remarkable improvement in mechanical properties.The solidification range of just 85.5 K and the typical Al−Al3Ni eutectics could be obtained in the Ni-modified Al−5Mg_(2)Si samples with a high relative density of 99.8%at the volumetric energy density of 107.4 J/mm^(3).Additionally,the refined hierarchical microstructure was mainly characterized by heterogeneousα-Al matrix grains(14.6μm)that contain the interaction between dislocations and Al−Al3Ni eutectics as well as Mg_(2)Si particles.Through synergetic effects of grain refinement,dislocation strengthening and precipitation strengthening induced by Ni addition,the L-PBFed Al−5Mg_(2)Si−1.5Ni alloy achieved superior mechanical properties,which included the yield strength of(425±15)MPa,the ultimate tensile strength of(541±11)MPa and the elongation of(6.2±0.2)%.

Effect of cold rolling deformation on microstructure evolution and mechanical properties of spray formed Al−Zn−Mg−Cu−Cr alloys

The impact of cold rolling deformation,which was introduced after solid solution and before aging treatment,on microstructure evolution and mechanical properties of the as-extruded spray formed Al−9.8Zn−2.3Mg−1.73Cu−0.13Cr(wt.%)alloy,was investigated.SEM,TEM,and EBSD were used to analyze the microstructures,and tensile tests were conducted to assess mechanical properties.The results indicate that the D1-T6 sample,subjected to 25%cold rolling deformation,exhibits finer grains(3.35μm)compared to the D0-T6 sample(grain size of 4.23μm)without cold rolling.Cold rolling refines the grains that grow in solution treatment.Due to the combined effects of finer and more dispersed precipitates,higher dislocation density and smaller grains,the yield strength and ultimate tensile strength of the D1-T6 sample can reach 663 and 737 MPa,respectively.In comparison to the as-extruded and D0-T6 samples,the yield strength of the D1-T6 sample increases by 415 and 92 MPa,respectively.

Effects of a novel refiner Al-3Ti-4.35La combined with Sr on microstructure and mechanical properties of as-cast A356 alloy

It is a practically significant issue to refine and modify industrial Al-Si casting alloy to improve its properties.In the present study,a novel refiner Al-3Ti-4.35La alloy,prepared by a melt-reaction method,was used,combined with Sr to refine the as-cast A356 alloy.Their effects on the as-cast microstructures and mechanical properties of A356 alloy were investigated.The results indicate that the combined addition of Al-3Ti-4.35La intermediate alloy and Sr can improve the microstructure and enhance the mechanical properties of A356 alloy.After adding 0.3wt.%Al-3Ti-4.35La and 0.03wt.%Sr to the as-cast A356 alloy,the average grain size ofα-Al decreases from 693.47μm to 264.13μm(a decrease of 61.91%),the secondary dendrite arm spacing(SDAS)is decreased by 47.8%from 32.09μm to 16.75μm,and the eutectic Si is transformed from an acicular structure to short rods and a granular structure.The ultimate tensile strength(UTS)and elongation(EL)of the as-cast A356 alloy modified by Al-3Ti-4.35La and Sr reach 216.3 MPa and 10.6%,which are enhanced by 29.54%and 134.66%compared with the unmodified alloy,respectively.The fracture mode is transformed from transgranular fracture to intergranular fracture,and the ductile toughness of the alloy is improved.After adding the Al-3Ti-4.35La and Sr,the undercooling for the nucleation ofα-Al and eutectic Si increases,leading to an accelerated nucleation rate and an increased number of nuclei,which shortens the duration of the eutectic reaction and consequently inhibits grain growth.

Dependence of microstructure and mechanical properties on solidification condition of directionally solidified Zn-55Al-1.6Si alloys

In this study,directional solidification was utilized to explore the relationship between microstructure,mechanical properties,and withdrawal speeds of Zn-55Al-1.6Si alloys.In order to assess the characteristics of Zn-55Al-1.6Si alloys,both the microstructure and mechanical properties were thoroughly analyzed.This involved conducting room temperature tensile tests on samples with different withdrawal speeds(5,10,100,200,and 400μm·s^(-1)).The results reveal that both the as-cast alloy and samples after directional solidification are composed of zinc,aluminum,and silicon phases.As the withdrawal speed increases,an evident decrease in the size of the primary dendrites is observed.The results of tensile experiments show that Zn-55Al-1.6Si alloys after directional solidification exhibit brittle fracture characteristics,both the tensile strength and elongation of the alloys increase with withdrawal speed.

Improvement of microstructure and mechanical properties of Al−Cu−Li−Mg−Zn alloys through water-cooling centrifugal casting technique

The microstructure and mechanical properties of as-cast Al−Cu−Li−Mg−Zn alloys fabricated by conventional gravity casting and centrifugal casting techniques combined with rapid solidification were investigated.Experimental results demonstrated that compared with the gravity casting technique,the water-cooling centrifugal casting technique significantly reduces porosity,refinesα(Al)grains and secondary phases,modifies the morphology of secondary phases,and mitigates both macro-and micro-segregation.These improvements arise from the synergistic effects of the vigorous backflow,centrifugal field,vibration and rapid solidification.Porosity and coarse plate-like Al13Fe4/Al7Cu2Fe phase result in the fracture before the gravity-cast alloy reaches the yield point.The centrifugal-cast alloy,however,exhibits an ultra-high yield strength of 292.0 MPa and a moderate elongation of 6.1%.This high yield strength is attributed to solid solution strengthening(SSS)of 225.3 MPa,and grain boundary strengthening(GBS)of 35.7 MPa.Li contributes the most to SSS with a scaling factor of 7.9 MPa·wt.%^(-1).The elongation of the centrifugal-cast alloy can be effectively enhanced by reducing the porosity and segregation behavior,refining the microstructure and changing the morphology of secondary phases.

Surface quality, microstructure and mechanical properties of Cu-Sn alloy plate prepared by two-phase zone continuous casting

Cu-4.7%Sn （mass fraction） alloy plate was prepared by the self-developed two-phase zone continuous casting （TZCC） process. The relationship between process parameters of TZCC and surface quality of the alloy plate was investigated. The microstructure and mechanical properties of the TZCC alloy plate were analyzed. The results show that Cu-4.7%Sn alloy plate with smooth surface can be obtained by means of reasonable matching the entrance temperature of two-phase zone mold and the continuous casting speed. The microstructure of the TZCC alloy is composed of grains-covered grains, small grains with self-closed grain boundaries, columnar grains and equiaxed grains. Compared with cold mold continuous casting Cu-4.7%Sn alloy plate, the room temperature tensile strength and ductility of the TZCC alloy plate are greatly improved.

Effects of extrusion and heat treatments on microstructure and mechanical properties of Mg-8Zn-1Al-0.5Cu-0.5Mn alloy

The effects of extrusion and heat treatments on the microstructure and mechanical properties of Mg-8Zn-1Al-0.5Cu- 0.5Mn magnesium alloy were investigated. Bimodal microstructure is formed in this alloy when it is extruded at 230 and 260 ℃, and complete DRX occurs at the extruding temperature of 290 ℃. The basal texture of as-extruded alloys is reduced gradually with increasing extrusion temperature due to the larger volume fraction of reerystallized structure at higher temperatures. For the alloy extruded at 290 ℃, four different heat treatments routes were investigated. After solution ＋ aging treatments, the grains sizes become larger. Finer and far more densely dispersed precipitates are found in the alloy with solution ＋ double-aging treatments compared with alloy with solution ＋ single-aging treatment. Tensile properties are enhanced remarkably by solution ＋ double-aging treatment with the yield strength, tensile strength and elongation being 298 MPa, 348 MPa and 18%, respectively. This is attributed to the combined effects of fine dynamically reerystallized grains and the uniformly distributed finer precipitates.

Influence of I-phase and W-phase on microstructure and mechanical properties of Mg-8Li-3Zn alloy

Microstructures and mechanical properties of LZ83?xY alloys containingI-phase andW-phase were investigated by XRD, OM, SEM and EDS. The experimental results show that the content ofI-phase andW-phase changes by varying Zn/Y mass ratio in the LZ83?xY alloys. The cohesion ofI-phase/α-Mg eutectic pockets can enhance the strength in the as-cast LZ83?0.5Y and LZ83?1.0Y alloys, while theW-phase has no obvious strengthening effect on the LZ83?1.5Y alloy. In the extruded alloys, the I-phase andW-phase were extruded into the particles with nanoscale size in theβ-Li matrix phase. The dispersion strengthening of W-phase was more obvious because of the higher volume fraction. The ultimate tensile strength of extruded LZ83?1.5Y alloy is up to 238 MPa while the elongation is up to 20%.