Effects of grain refining and modification on mechanical properties and microstructures of Al-7.5Si-4Cu cast alloy

Al-7.5Si-4Cu cast alloy melt modified by Al-5Ti-B, RE and Al-10Sr master alloys were poured in the chromite sand moulds, to investigate comparatively the effects of individual or combined additions of grain refiners and modifiers on the mechanical properties, microstructures, grain refining and modification, and intermetallic compounds of the alloy. The results show that the mechanical properties and the microstructures of Al-7.5Si-4Cu cast alloys are improved immensely by combining addition of 0.8%Al-5Ti-B, 0.1%RE and 0.1%Al-10Sr grain refiners and modifiers compared with the individual addition and cast conditions. For individual addition condition, addition of 0.8%Al-5Ti-B master alloy can obtain superior tensile strength, Brinell hardness and finer equiaxedα（Al） dendrites. The alloy with 0.1%RE master alloy shows the highest improvement in ductility because the rare earth can purify the molten metal and change the shape of intermetallic compounds. While the alloy with 0.1%Al-10Sr modifier shows only good improvement in yield strength, and the improvement of other performance is unsatisfactory. The Al-10Sr modifier has a significant metamorphism for the eutectic silicon, but will make the gas content in the aluminum alloy melt increase to form serious columnar grain structures. The effects of grain refining and modification on mean area and aspect ratio have the same conclusions obtained in the mechanical properties and the microstructures analyses.

Microstructure,mechanical properties and corrosion behavior of Al-Si-Cu-Zn-X(X=Bi,Sb,Sr) die cast alloy

The microstructure evolution, mechanical and corrosion properties of Al-11Si-2Cu-0.8Zn die cast alloy treated with Bi, Sb and Sr additions were investigated. The results of mechanical testing showed that all additions increased impact toughness, ultimate tensile strength, and elongation of the alloy as a result of change in eutectic Si morphology. The analysis of fracture surfaces revealed that with addition of Sr and to lesser extent Bi and Sb, the alloy exhibited a predominantly ductile fracture rather than quasi-cleavage brittle fracture. Moreover, with the additions of Sr, Bi and Sb, the quality index increased to 164.7 MPa, 156.3 MPa and 152.6 MPa respectively from 102 MPa for the base alloy. Polarization corrosion tests conducted in sodium chloride solution showed that the corrosion potential shifted to more negative values with additions of Sb, Bi and Sr, respectively. Corrosion immersion tests also revealed that the element additions have a detrimental effect on the corrosion rate of alloys, due to the increase of boundaries between the Al and eutectic Si phases.

Effects of Cd and Sn on double-peak age-hardening behaviors of Al-Si-Cu-Mg cast alloys

The effects of trace elements Cd and Sn on precipitation process of Al-Si-Cu-Mg cast alloys were investigated in the present research.It is shown that the addition of Cd and Sn not only increases remarkably the aging peak hardness and reduces the time to reach aging peak,but also eliminates the double-aging-peak phenomenon which appears in Al-Si-Cu-Mg alloys.In Al-Si-Cu-Mg alloys the first aging peak corresponds to GP zones(especially GPⅡ) ,and the second one is caused by metastable phases.The obvious time interval of transition from GPⅡ to metastable phases associates with the double-aging-peak phenomenon.The results of DSC and TEM show that Cd/Sn elements suppress the formation of GPⅠzone,stimulate the formation of θ",θ' and θ phases,and then shorten remarkably the temperature intervals of each exothermic peak.Because the transition interval between GPⅡzone and metastable phases is shortened by Cd/Sn in Al-Si-Cu-Mg cast alloys,θ' phase coexists with θ" phase in matrix of ageing peak condition,which causes effective hardening on the alloys,and at the same time,eliminates the double-aging-peak phenomenon.

Study of rare earth element effect on microstructures and mechanical properties of an Al-Cu-Mg-Si cast alloy

The improvements of microstructures and properties of a high strength aluminum cast alloy were studied. The effects of rare earth elements on the microstructures and mechanical properties of the high strength cast alloy Al-Cu-Mg-Si were investigated. The result shows that the addition of rare earth elements can change the microstructures in refining the grain size of the alloy and making the needle-like and laminar eutectic Si to a granular Si. With the increase of the rare earth, the tensile strength and elongation of the alloy increase first and then fall down. The mechanical properties of the alloy will reach the highest value when the content of rare earth elements is about 0.7%.

Characterization of mechanical properties of aluminum cast alloy at elevated temperature

The tensile response, the low cycle fatigue （LCF） resistance, and the creep behavior of an aluminum （A1） cast alloy are studied at ambient and elevated temperatures. A non-contact real-time optical extensometer based on the digital image correlation （DIC） is developed to achieve strain measurements without damage to the specimen. The optical extensometer is validated and used to monitor dynamic strains during the mechanical experiments. Results show that Young＇s modulus of the cast alloy decreases with the increasing temperature, and the percentage elongation to fracture at 100 ℃ is the lowest over the temperature range evaluated from 25 ℃ to 300 ℃. In the LCF test, the fatigue strength coefficient decreases, whereas the fatigue strength exponent increases with the rising temperature. The fatigue ductility at 100 ℃. As expected, the resistance to and changes from 200 ℃ to 300 ℃. coefficient and exponent reach maximum values creep decreases with the increasing temperature

Effect of T6I6 treatment on dynamic mechanical behaviour of Al-Si-Mg-Cu cast alloy and impact resistance of its cast motor shell

The effect of T6I6 treatment on the dynamic mechanical and microstructure behaviour of Al-Si-Mg-Cu cast alloy was investigated using split Hopkinson pressure bar(SHPB), transmission electron microscopy(TEM), and highresolution transmission electron microscopy(HRTEM). Besides, the impact resistances of T6I6 and T6 motor shells of new energy vehicles made of Al-Si-Mg-Cu cast alloy were compared using a trolley crash test. The results indicated that the main strengthening-phases of the T6 peak-aged and T6I6 peak-aged alloy were GP zone and β″ precipitates. T6I6treatment can increase the density and size of β″ precipitates in peak-aged alloy and enhance both its tensile strength(σb)and elongation(δ). The dynamic toughness values of T6I6 samples are 50.34 MJ/m^(3) at 2000 s^(-1) and 177.34 MJ/m^(3) at 5000 s^(-1) which are 20% and 12% higher than those of T6 samples, respectively. Compared with a T6 shell, the overall deformation of T6I6 shell is more uniform during the crash test. At an impact momentum of 3.5×10;kg·m/s, the T6I6shell breaks down at 0.38 s which is 0.10 s later than the T6 shell.

Formation and thermal stability of connected hard skeleton structure in ATX525 cast alloys

The formation and the thermal stability of a connected hard skeleton structure(CHSS) in the matrix of Mg-5Al-2Sn-5Ca(ATX525) alloy were investigated by using X-ray diffractometer, scanning electron microscopy, differential scanning calorimeter, creep tester and isothermal treatment method. The results indicated that the CHSS composed of Mg2(Al,Ca) and Al2 Ca intermetallics was formed into a typical eutectic structure and no obvious change occurred when the samples were isothermally treated at 250 °C for 96 h and 350 °C for 72 h, respectively. It became a chained structure when isothermally treated at 450 °C for 48 h. The dissolution and reconstruction processes, however, were observed for the CHSS when the processing temperature was up to 550 °C. The creep life at the stress-temperature condition of 50MPa/200°C for the alloy treated at 450 °C for 48 h was as high as 510 h, and the strain at creep time of 100 h was as low as 0.03%, which indicated that the present alloy has not only a good thermal stability, but also a better heat resistance.

Effects of Mg content on microstructure and mechanical properties of low Zn-containing Al-xMg-3Zn-1Cu cast alloys

Effects of Mg content on the microstructure and mechanical properties of low Zn-containing Al−xMg−3Zn−1Cu cast alloys(x=3−5,wt.%)were investigated.As Mg content increased in the as-cast alloys,the grains were refined due to enhanced growth restriction,and the formation ofη-Mg(AlZnCu)_(2) and S-Al_(2)CuMg phases was inhibited while the formation of T-Mg_(32)(AlZnCu)_(49 )phase was promoted when Mg content exceeded 4 wt.%.The increase of Mg content encumbered the solution kinetics by increasing the size of eutectic phase but accelerated and enhanced the age-hardening through expediting precipitation kinetics and elevating the number density of the precipitates.As Mg content increased,the yield strength and tensile strength of the as-cast,solution-treated and peak-aged alloys were severally improved,while the elongation of the alloys decreased.The tensile strength and elongation of the peak-aged Al−5Mg−3Zn−1Cu alloy exceed 500 MPa and 5%,respectively.Precipitation strengthening implemented by T′precipitates is the predominant strengthening mechanism in the peak-aged alloys and is enhanced by increasing Mg content.

Tensile creep and corrosion properties of Mg-2%Ca based cast alloys

The relative effect of Zn addition to Mg-2%Ca based alloy on the creep and corrosion characteristics was compared with Al addition. The creep resistance of Mg-2%Ca based alloy at 175 ℃was improved by Zn addition more significantly than by Al addition. However, the Al addition showed more effective in enhancing corrosion resistance. Since the solidification range for Zn-added alloy was considerably wide, the cautious casting design may be necessary to produce high-quality castings.

Study on Characteristics of Crystal Growth of NdFeB Cast Alloys

The characteristic of crystal growth of NdFeB cast alloys was studied. It is found that the crystal growth orientation of conventional ingots is along <410> or <411>. As the cooling rate increases, the crystallization orientation changes from a axis to c axis, along which the grain is easy to be magnetized. Meanwhile, by analyzing the change of crystallization orientation, the influence on the property of magnets was discussed.

A Banding Structure in a Ni-Cu-Si Cast Alloy

The solidified microstructure of a Ni-Cu-Si cast alloy has been investigated, and a kind of banding structure was observed. The results showed that, the banding structure was composed of coarser particles which were Ni3Si type of precipitates and similar to the fine particles precipitate uniformly distributed within matrix of Ni solid solution, in both crystal structure and composition. The formation of bandings was resulted from cast thermal stress and dislocation walls. It was found that the cracks propagated along these bandings in tensile test. The banding structure can be depressed by reducing the cast thermal stress, which can improve the tensile ductility.

STATISTICAL MODEL FOR FRACTURE TOUGHNESS OF A MODIFIED Al-7Si-0.45Mg CAST ALLOY

The statistical model for the fracture toughness of a modified Al-7Si-0.45Mg cast alloy has been proposed on the basis of analysis of the correlation between the size distribution of crack nuclei and Si particles and of the micromechanism of fracture.The suitable criterion of frac- ture toughness according to the model has been given.The model has found a good explana- tion for the fracture feature,fracture toughness and microstructure,and agreed with the ex- periments very well.

Experimental observations on the nonproportional multiaxial ratchetting of cast AZ91 magnesium alloy at room temperature

The nonproportional multiaxial ratchetting of cast AZ91 magnesium (Mg) alloy was examined by performing a sequence of axial-torsional cyclic tests controlled by stress with various loading paths at room temperature (RT).The evolutionary characteristics and path dependence of multiaxial ratchetting were discussed.Results illustrate that the cast AZ91 Mg alloy exhibits considerable nonproportional additional softening during cyclic loading with multiple nonproportional multiaxial loading paths;multiaxial ratchetting presents strong path dependence,and axial ratchetting strains are larger under nonproportional loading paths than under uniaxial and proportional45°linear loading paths;multiaxial ratchetting becomes increasingly pronounced as the applied stress amplitude and axial mean stress increase.Moreover,stress-strain curves show a convex and symmetrical shape in axial/torsional directions.Multiaxial ratchetting exhibits quasi-shakedown after certain loading cycles.The abundant experimental data obtained in this work can be used to develop a cyclic plasticity model of cast Mg alloys.

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.

I-DCGAN and TOPSIS-IFP:A simulation generation model for radiographic flaw detection images in light alloy castings and an algorithm for quality evaluation of generated images

The intelligent detection technology driven by X-ray images and deep learning represents the forefront of advanced techniques and development trends in flaw detection and automated evaluation of light alloy castings.However,the efficacy of deep learning models hinges upon a substantial abundance of flaw samples.The existing research on X-ray image augmentation for flaw detection suffers from shortcomings such as poor diversity of flaw samples and low reliability of quality evaluation.To this end,a novel approach was put forward,which involves the creation of the Interpolation-Deep Convolutional Generative Adversarial Network(I-DCGAN)for flaw detection image generation and a comprehensive evaluation algorithm named TOPSIS-IFP.I-DCGAN enables the generation of high-resolution,diverse simulated images with multiple appearances,achieving an improvement in sample diversity and quality while maintaining a relatively lower computational complexity.TOPSIS-IFP facilitates multi-dimensional quality evaluation,including aspects such as diversity,authenticity,image distribution difference,and image distortion degree.The results indicate that the X-ray radiographic images of magnesium and aluminum alloy castings achieve optimal performance when trained up to the 800th and 600th epochs,respectively.The TOPSIS-IFP value reaches 78.7%and 73.8%similarity to the ideal solution,respectively.Compared to single index evaluation,the TOPSIS-IFP algorithm achieves higher-quality simulated images at the optimal training epoch.This approach successfully mitigates the issue of unreliable quality associated with single index evaluation.The image generation and comprehensive quality evaluation method developed in this paper provides a novel approach for image augmentation in flaw recognition,holding significant importance for enhancing the robustness of subsequent flaw recognition networks.

Experimental investigation on uniaxial cyclic plasticity of cast AZ91 magnesium alloy

The uniaxial cyclic plasticity of cast AZ91 magnesium(Mg) alloy was investigated by conducting a series of cyclic straining and stressing tests at room temperature, and a unique cyclic plasticity(especially for ratchetting) and its physical nature were revealed. The experimental results demonstrate that the cast AZ91 Mg alloy behaviors tension-compression symmetry, because the dislocation slipping and twinning occur during both the tensile and compressive deformations;although the cast AZ91 alloy presents a certain pseudo-elastic behavior during unloading due to the detwinning, there is no obvious S-shaped asymmetric hysteresis loop like that of wrought Mg alloy in the cyclic tensile-compressive tests, and an obvious cyclic hardening is observed;moreover, the ratchetting of the cast AZ91 alloy presented in the cyclic stressing tests depends remarkably on the prescribed mean stress and stress amplitude, but slightly changes with the stress rate, and the evolution of responding peak/valley strain greatly differs from that of wrought Mg alloys and stainless steels. This work provides rich experimental data for establishing the constitutive model of cast Mg alloys.

Effect of secondary aging on microstructure and properties of cast Al-Cu-Mg alloy

To obtain better comprehensive properties of cast Al-Cu-Mg alloys,the secondary aging(T6I6)process(including initial aging,interrupted aging and re-aging stages)was optimized by an orthogonal method.The microstructures of the optimized Al-Cu-Mg alloy were observed by means of scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy,and the properties were investigated by hardness measurements,tensile tests,exfoliation corrosion tests,and intergranular corrosion tests.Results show that the S phase andθ’phase simultaneously exist in the T6I6 treated alloy.Appropriately increasing the temperature of the interrupted aging in the T6I6 process can improve the mechanical properties and corrosion resistance of Al-Cu-Mg alloy.The optimal comprehensive properties(tensile strength of 443.6 MPa,hardness of 161.6 HV)of the alloy are obtained by initial aging at 180℃for 2 h,interrupted aging at 90℃for 30 min,and re-aging at 170℃for 4 h.

Effect of Ti and Ce Microalloy on Microstructure and Properties of Al-Si-Cu-Zr-Sr Cast Aluminum Alloy

The effect of Ti and Ce microalloying on the mechanical properties of Al-9Si-3.5Cu-0.2Zr-0.1Sr cast aluminum alloy was investigated,and it was hoped that the cast aluminum alloy with excellent comprehensive properties could be obtained.On the basis of Zr-Sr microalloyed cast aluminum alloy(Al-9Si-3.5Cu-0.2Zr-0.1Sr),the effects of 0.2Zr-0.1Sr-0.16Ti ternary microalloying and 0.2Zr-0.1Sr-0.16Ti-0.1Ce quaternary microalloying on the microstructure and properties of the alloy were investigated.The experimental results show that compared with Zr-Sr microalloying,Zr-Sr-Ti microalloying and Zr-Sr-Ti-Ce microalloying can effectively refine the microstructure,improve the modification effect of Si phase,and promote the improvement of Al_(2)Cu phase,thus improving the properties.The higher the degree of microalloying,the hardness is gradually increasing,but the electrical conductivity is gradually decreasing.Zr-Sr-Ti microalloying can increase the tensile strength of the alloy to 400.07 MPa and the elongation to 9.5%.Zr-Sr-Ti-Ce microalloying do not continue to improve the properties of the alloy,and the tensile strength and elongation after fracture decrease to a certain extent due to the addition of Ce.Therefore,the best comprehensive properties can be obtained by ZrSr-Ti microalloying(Al-9Si-3.5Cu-0.2Zr-0.1Sr-0.16Ti).

Effect of Ti content on microstructures and mechanical properties of cast Al-2Li-2Cu-0.5Mg alloy

Ti is regarded as one of the promising grain refiners in cast Al-Li-Cu alloys,but few research works have been done on its independent role.In this study,the effect of Ti on the microstructure evolution and mechanical properties of cast Al-2Li-2Cu-0.5Mg base alloy was investigated.The results revealed that the grains can be prominently refined with the increase of Ti addition.After adding Ti,high density TiB_(2)-Al_(3)Ti composite particles with a low lattice misfit form as heterogeneous nucleation sites for the α-Al matrix.δ’(Al3Li) and T_(1)(Al_(2)CuLi) precipitates that provide enhanced strength are dominated in the alloys after T6 aging treatment.The average size of both δ’ and half-width of δ’-precipitation free zone(PFZ) decreases gradually with the increase of Ti content.This is because the higher binding energy between Ti atoms and vacancies limits the diffusion efficiency of Li atoms,and thus results in a higher ductility.Additionally,no nano-sized Al_(3)Ti or core-shell structure of Al_(3)(Li,Ti) particles are found.The tensile property test results indicate that the Al-2Li-2Cu-0.5Mg alloy achieves optimal properties after aging at 175 °C for 32 h when 0.15wt.% Ti is added.It exhibits a yield strength of 352±5 MPa,an ultimate tensile strength of 423±6 MPa,and an elongation of(3±0.4)%.These findings are expected to offer a reliable theoretical guidance for the industrial composition design of the Al-Li-Cu series cast alloys.

Strength and ductility optimization of HPDC AlSi8MgCuZn2 alloys by modifying pre-aging treatment

Considering the components produced by high pressure die casting(HPDC)process usually with ultra-large sizes and complex morphologies,high temperature solid solution treatment is not a suitable method to further improve their mechanical properties.In this study,two-stage aging treatment with different pre-aging times was designed and employed to further improve the mechanical properties of HPDC Al8SiMgCuZn alloy.The characteristics of precipitates were evaluated by a transmission electron microscope(TEM),and the precipitation strengthening mechanism was discussed.The results reveal that the strengthening is mainly contributed by the precipitation ofβ″phase after two-stage aging,and the number density and size of the precipitates are significantly depended on the pre-aging time.The number density of precipitates is increased with the pre-aging time prolonged from 0 h to 4 h,and then decreases with the further increase of pre-aging time from 4 h to 6 h.The precipitates with the highest density and smallest size are observed after pre-aging for 4 h.After pre-aged at 100℃for 4 h and then artificial aged at 200℃for 30 min,the yield strength of 207 MPa,ultimate tensile strength of 325 MPa and elongation of 7.6%are achieved.