Microstructure and mechanical properties of hypereutectic Al-Si alloy modified with Cu-P

The microstructure and mechanical properties of Al-14.6Si castings modified by Cu-P master alloy under different conditions were studied with optical microscope（OM） and mechanical testing and simulation（MTS）.The results indicate that the Cu-P master alloy possesses not only obvious modification effect,but also longevity effect with more than 8 h on the hypereutectic Al-Si alloy.It is shown from thermal calculation,scanning electron microscope（SEM）,and energy dispersive analysis of X-rays（EDAX） that the modification mechanism of Cu-P on primary silicon in the castings is heterogeneous nucleation around AlP particles.The Cu-P master alloy has no or little modifying effect on eutectic silicon,even though it has obvious modification on primary silicon in the castings.This may be because of the fast transformation of eutectic silicon at a very narrow temperature,which will notably weaken the role of AlP particles as heterogeneous nuclei for eutectic silicon.

Characteristics and Microstructure of a Hypereutectic Al-Si Alloy Powder by Ultrasonic Gas Atomization Process

A hypereutectic Al-Si alloy powder was prepared by ultrasonic gas atomization process. The morphologies, microstructure and phase constituent of the alloy powder were studied. The results showed that powder of the alloy was very fine and its microstructure was mainly consisted of Si crystals plus intermetallic compound A19FeSi3, which were.very fine and uniformly distributed.

Effect of Plastic Deformation on Microstructure and Properties of Cu-(1 wt%-6 wt%) Ag Alloy

In the present study,the Cu-(1 wt%-6 wt%)Ag alloys were prepared by melting,forging and wire drawing.The effects of plastic deformation on microstructure evolution and properties of the alloys were investigated.The results show that non-equilibrium eutectic colonies exist in the Cu-(3 wt%-6 wt%)Ag alloy and no eutectic colonies in the 1 wt%-2 wt%Ag containing alloys.These eutectic colonies are aligned along the drawing direction and refined with the increase of draw ratio.Attributed to the refinement of eutectic colonies,the Cu-Ag alloy exhibits higher strength with the increase of draw ratio.The Cu-6Ag alloy exhibits excellent comprehensive properties with a strength of 930 MPa and a conductivity of 82%IACS when the draw ratio reaches 5.7.

Microstructure optimization of directionally solidified hypereutectic Nb-Si alloy

Nb-16Si-24Ti-10Cr-2A1-2Hf alloy was directionally solidified with withdrawal rates of 1.2, 6, 18, 36 and 50 mrn/min and then heat treated at 1400, 1450 and 1500℃with withdrawal rate of 50 mm/min for 10 h. The effects of withdrawal rate and heat treatment temperature on the microstructure were studied. The microstructure of directionally solidified alloy was composed of the primary NbsSi3, Nbss/NbsSi3 eutectic cells and Cr2Nb, which distribute paralleled to the growth direction. The microstructure becomes more refined with the increasing withdrawal rate, accompany with the evolution of eutectic cells morphology. After heat treatment, Nbss phase connects and forms a continuous matrix, and the Cr2Nb phase becomes smaller and distributes more dispersedly. After heat treatment at 1450 ℃ for 10 h, the alloy achieves balance between the optimization of microstructure and alleviation of solute segregation.

Microstructure evolution and phase transformation of traditional cast and spray-formed hypereutectic aluminium-silicon alloys induced by heat treatment

Microstructural evolution and phase transformation induced by different heat treatments of the hypereutectic aluminium-silicon alloy, Al-25Si-5Fe-3Cu （wt%, signed as 3C）, fabricated by traditional cast （TC） and spray forming （SF） processes, were investigated by differential scanning calorimetry （DSC） and scanning electron microscopy （SEM） combined with energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction techniques. The results show that A17Cu2Fe phase can be formed and transformed in TC- and SF-3C alloys between 802-813 K and 800-815 K, respectively. The transformation from β-Al5FeSi to δ-Al4FeSi2 phase via peritectic reaction can occur at around 858-870 K and 876-890 K in TC- and SF-3C alloys, respectively. The starting precipitation temperature of δ-Al4FeSi2 phase as the dominant Fe-bearing phase in the TC-3C alloy is 997 K and the exothermic peak about the peritectic transformation of δ-Al4FeSi2→β-Al5FeSi is not detected in the present DSC experiments. Also, the mechanisms of the microstructural evolution and phase transformation are discussed.

Microstructure Characteristics of Interaction Layer of Zn-Al Eutectic Alloy with Al_2O_3p/6061Al Composites

The interaction between Zn-AI eutectic alloy and Al203p/6061AI composites in the vacuum furnace was investigated. Great attention has been paid to the elements diffusion, the microstructure and formation of the interface between Zn-AI eutectic alloy and Al2O3p/6061AI composites. Experimental results show that Zn-AI eutectic alloy has a good wetting ability to Al2O3p/6061 Al composites and the wetting angle decreases with increasing the temperature in vacuum. After the interaction, an interaction layer forms between Zn-AI alloy and Al2O3p/6061 Al composites. The phases in the interaction layer mainly consist of α-AI(Zn), Al2O3 and CuZn5 resulted from the diffusion of elements from the Zn-AI alloy. Several porosities distribute in the region near the interface of the Zn-AI alloy/interaction layer. The amount of shrinkage voids in the interacting layer is relevant to the penetration of Zn element into Al2O3p/6061Al composites which is a function of temperature. So it is necessary to lower heating temperature in order to limit the Zn penetration.

Influence of rheo-diecasting processing parameters on microstructure and mechanical properties of hypereutectic Al-30%Si alloy

The effects of pouring temperature,vibration frequency,and the number of curves in a serpentine channel,on themicrostructure and mechanical properties of Al-30%Si alloy processed by rheo-diecasting(RDC)were investigated.The semisolidAl-30%Si alloy slurry was prepared by vibration serpentine channel pouring(VSCP)process in the RDC process.The results showthat the pouring temperature,the vibration frequency,and the number of the curves strongly affect the microstructure and mechanicalproperties of Al-30%Si alloy.Under experimental conditions of a pouring temperature of850°C,a twelve-curve copper channel anda vibration frequency of80Hz,the primary Si grains are refined into fine compact grains with average grain size of about24.6μm inthe RDC samples assisted with VSCP.Moreover,the ultimate tensile strength(UTS),elongation and hardness of the RDC sample are296MPa,0.87%and HB155,respectively.It is concluded that the VSCP process can effectively refine the primary Si grains.Therefinement of primary Si grains is the major cause for the improvement of the mechanical properties of the RDC sample.

Microstructure and mechanical properties of rapidly solidified NiAl-based eutectic alloy

The microstructure and compression behavior at room temperature of a rapidly solidified NiAl-Cr（Mo）-Hf eutectic alloy fabricated by water-cooled copper mold method were studied by a combination of SEM, EDS and compressive tests. The rapid solidification results in a shift in the coupled zone for the NiAl-Cr（Mo）-Hf eutectic alloy towards the side of Cr（Mo） phase. So the volume fraction of primary NiAl dendrite is increased which is detrimental to the mechanical behavior. On the other hand, the refined microstructure and fine dispersion Heusler phase by Ni2AlHf are beneficial to the improvement of mechanical properties. As a result, the strength increases by 40% and the compressive ductility increases by two times at room temperature, when compared with those of the as-cast state.

Effect of the Al–Si eutectic on the microstructure and corrosion behavior of the single-phase Mg alloy Mg–4Li

The influence of alloying with Al–Si eutectic on the microstructure and corrosion resistance of single-phase Mg–4Li was studied in this paper.The microstructure was characterized using an electron microscopy.The corrosion properties were measured by immersion tests and electrochemical impedance spectrum(EIS)measurements.Alloying with Al–Si eutectic caused the formation of Mg_(2)Si and Mg–Al phase.The grain orientation of Mg–4Li was mainly composed of(0001)while the grain orientation of Mg–4Li–6(Al–Si)was mainly consisted of(10–10)and(11–20).Mg–4Li–6(Al–Si)shows worse corrosion resistance than Mg–4Li owing to the galvanic corrosion from the precipitates and texture change.

Effects of laser processing parameters on solidification microstructures of ternary Al_2O_3/YAG/ZrO_2 eutectic in situ composite and its thermal property

Rapid surface resolidification with a high powered CO2-laser was performed in preparing directionally solidified Al2O3/YAG/ZrO2 ternary eutectic ceramic in situ composite.The effects of laser processing parameters on the solidification microstructure characteristics and thermal properties were studied by scanning electron microscopy(SEM),energy dispersive spectroscopy(EDS),X-ray diffractometry(XRD)and synthetically thermal analysis(STA).Detailed investigations of the influence of laser power and scanning rate on the preparation and microstructural parameters of the ternary eutectic were presented.Moreover, the eutectic phase separation rule at high temperature was discussed.The results indicate that solidification microstructure of the ternary eutectic composite is greatly influenced by the laser processing parameters.The synthetically thermal analysis shows that the eutectic temperature of ternary Al2O3/YAG/ZrO2 composite is 1 738℃,well matching the phase diagram of Al2O3-Y2O3-ZrO2.

Effect of 0.3% Sc on microstructure, phase composition and hardening of Al-Ca-Si eutectic alloys

The phase composition,microstructure and hardening of aluminum-based experimental alloys containing0.3%Sc,0?14%Si and0?10%Ca(mass fraction)were studied.The experimental study(electron microscopy,thermal analysis and hardnessmeasurements)was combined with Thermo-Calc software simulation for the optimization of the alloy composition.It wasdetermined that the maximum hardening corresponded to the annealing at300?350°С,which was due to the precipitation of Al3Scnanoparticles with their further coarsening.The alloys falling into the phase region(Al)+Al4Ca+Al2Si2Ca have demonstrated asignificant hardening effect.The ternary eutectic(Al)+Al4Ca+Al2Si2Ca had a much finer microstructure as compared to the Al?Sieutectic,which suggests a possibility of reaching higher mechanical properties as compared to commercial alloys of the A356type.Unlike commercial alloys of the A356type,the model alloy does not require quenching,as hardening particles are formed in thecourse of annealing of castings.

Microstructure Characteristics of Ni-Nb Near Eutectic Alloy during EBFZM Directional Solidification

Microstructure Characteristic of Ni-Nb near eutectic alloy is systematically investigated during directional solidification with electron beam floating zone melting (EBFZM). The effect of the Zone melting rate on the microstructure has also been studied.

DEPENDENCE OF MICROSTRUCTURE SCALES OF EUTECTICS ON Ca-Si MODIFIER AMOUNT IN AUSTENITE STEEL COMPOSITES

Results presented in this paper contribute to investigation of the effect of the added Ca-Si modifier amount ( ) on the microstructure scales of granular γ-(Fe,Mn)3C eutectics such as the volume fraction (f) and diameter (d) in the austenite steel matrix composites (EAMC). Directional solidification of EAMC has been carried out using vertical Bridgman method at 50.6μms-1 with a constant temperature gradient about 800Kcm-1. The higher constitutional supercooling ahead of solid-liquid interface attributing to the larger results in the enlargement of γ-(Fe,Mn)3C coupled-zone and the increment of the nucleation rate of eutectics. Therefore, f increases with increasing . The branches of the primary austenite dendrites develop more greatly as increases, which limits the growth of eutectics. As a result, d decreases with increasing .

Effect of phosphor addition on eutectic solidification and microstructure of an Al-13%Si alloy

As the refiner or modifier, the master alloys containing high concentration phosphor are widely used in preparing eutectic or hypereutectic Al-Si alloys. To study the effect of phosphor addition on the eutectic solidification and microstructure of the Al-13%Si alloy, an investigation has been undertaken by means of thermal analysis and micro/macro-structure observation. Results indicate that addition of phosphor in near eutectic Al-Si alloy promotes the nucleation of eutectic but has little refinement impact on primary Si particles as expected. Conversely, both primary Si particles and eutectic Si flakes become slightly coarser in P-rich alloys. The coarsening of eutectic Si flakes ties closely to the increased eutectic growth temperature with phosphor addition. The eutectic solidification of the alloy proceeds from the near mold zone towards the center, and it is also found that a few independent nucleation regions emerge in liquid at the solidification front due to the addition of phosphor.

Microstructure and Eutectic Carbide Morphology of the High Speed Steel Strips Produced by Twin Roll Strip Casting Process

The M2 high-speed steel strip was produced by using the laboratory scale twin roll strip caster. The microstructure and eutectic carbide morphology of thus produced products were observed and analyzed, and the comparison of those with conventional products was carried out. The effects of the processing parameters such as the melting temperature, the pouring temperature, rolling speed and separating force on the microstructure and eutectic carbide morphology and their distribution were analyzed. The spheroidizing process of the strips in the annealing process was investigated. The relations between the growth and spheroidizing of the eutectic carbide and the annealing technology were obtained, and the mechanism of the twin roll strip casting process improving the eutectic carbide spheroidizing was discussed. The theoretical instruction for determining the subsequent treatment process was provided.

PREPARATION OF Al－Si INGOTS WITH FULL EUTECTIC－LIKE MICROSTRUCTURE AT LOW COOLING RATE

A self-designed computer-aided solidification simulation system for large-size ingots was employed to determine the eutectic coupled-zone of Al-(7-14 wt%) Si alloys at low freezing rate with a temperature gradient of liquid on solidification interface tower than 20 K cm￣(-1). Experimental parameters for the formation of a fully eutectic microstructure in a dia.38×70 mm ingot have been successfully obtained under various conditions for Al-(11.3 -13.0 wt%) Si alloys.Eutectic coupled growth charactersitics under this condition was also discussed.

Effects of cooling rate and B content on microstructure of near-eutectic Al-13wt%Si Alloy

Under cooling rates of 2 ℃/s and 10℃/s, the influences of B content on the microstructure of near eutectic Al-13.0wt%Si alloy have been investigated. Results showed that the addition of boron resulted in refinement of eutectic grains, and to some extent, had an inhibiting effect on precipitation of the primary phases, and the refining and inhibiting effects are much more obvious at higher cooling rate. When B was not added, higher cooling rate promoted the α-Al dendrites formation. At lower cooling rate, the addition of B did not cause the so called ＂columnar to equiaxed transition （CET）＂, however, at higher cooling rate, this transition was obvious. After the addition of B, the nucleation temperature TN ascended and nucleation mode changed from nucleation mode of from wall towards centre （without B addition） to a nucleation mode that the eutectic nucleated evenly throughout whole sample （with B added）. It can be concluded that the addition of B offers a large amount of nuclei for eutectic solidification, as a result, the eutectic grains was refined. Higher cooling rate will lead to more nuclei, so the effects on the refinement of eutectic grains and on suppression of primary phases are increased.

Microstructure transition from stable to metastable eutectic growth in Ni-25%Al alloy

The microstructural evolution during directional solidification of the Ni-25%Al(mole fraction) alloy was investigated in the range of growth velocity from 10 to 100 μm/s under a given thermal gradient of 10 K/mm. The solidification microstructures reveal a transition from γ'-β equilibrium eutectic to γ-β metastable eutectic plus β dendrites. A mixed microstructure of γ'-β and γ-β eutectics produced at a growth velocity of 25 μm/s illustrates that the transition occurs during the competitive growth between γ and γ' phases. The growth temperature for each phase was considered to understand the microstructure selection during solidification. The experimental results show that a phase or a microstructure solidifying with the highest temperature under a given growth condition is preferentially selected upon solidification. In addition, both stable eutectic and metastable eutectic are shown to coexist and simultaneously grow in the velocity range between 25 and 60 μm/s due to their similar growth temperatures.

Processing, microstructure, and properties of laser remelted Al_2O_3/Y_3Al_5O_(12)(YAG) eutectic in situ composite

Laser remelting and rapid solidification were performed in preparing the high-performance Al2O3/Y3Al5O12(YAG) eutectic in situ composite. The microstructure characteristic and solidification behavior were studied using scanning electron microscopy(SEM), energy dispersive spectroscopy(EDS), X-ray diffractometry(XRD) and simultaneous thermal analysis(STA). The hardness and fracture toughness were obtained using an indentation technique. The results show that the laser remelted Al2O3/YAG composite has a homogeneous eutectic microstructure without microcrack and pore. The component phases of Al2O3 and YAG are three-dimensionally and continuously reticular connected, and finely coupled without grain boundaries, colonies and amorphous phases between interfaces. The eutectic interspacing is greatly refined with increasing the scanning rate and average is only 1 μm. The synthetically thermal analysis indicates that the eutectic temperature of Al2O3-YAG is 1 824 ℃, well matching the phase diagram of Al2O3-Y2O3 system. The maximum hardness reaches 19.5 GPa and the room fracture toughness is 3.6 MPa·m1/2.

Nucleation and growth of eutectic cell in hypoeutectic Al-Si alloy

The nucleation and growth of eutectic cell in hypoeutectic Al-Si alloy was investigated using optical microscopy and scanning electron microscopy equipped with electron backscattering diffraction（EBSD）.By revealing the eutectic cells and analyzing the crystallographic orientation,it was found that both the eutectic Si and Al phases in an eutectic cell were not single crystal,representing an eutectic cell consisting of small ＇grains＇.It is also suggested that the eutectic nucleation mode can not be determined based on the crystallographic orientation between eutectic Al phases and the neighboring primary dendrite Al phases.However,the evolution of primary dendrite Al phases affects remarkably the following nucleation and growth of eutectic cell.The coarse flake-fine fibrous transition of eutectic Si morphology involved in impurity elements modification may be independent of eutectic nucleation.