Morphology of Dispersoids in an Annealed Al-Mg Alloys

Morphology of dispersoids in an annealed Al-Mg alloy were investigated using TEM. Five kinds of dispersoids with different structures and morphologies were observed in an annealed Al-Mg alloy. The 1st, or spherical-like one is monoclinic structured θ-Al45(Mn,Cr)7 phase with twin and orientation domain. The 2nd or plate-shaped one is η-Al5(Mn,Cr) phase with monoclinic or pesuo-tetragonal structure. The 3rd or prismatic-like one is a new hexagonal structured Al6.4Mn phase with a unit cell of a=1.72nm, c=1.27nm, and γ=120°, and the 4th or big rod-shaped one is orthorhombic structured Al6(Mn,Fe) phase which is often reported. The 5th one is E-Al18Mg3(Mn–Cr)2 phase with twin or triple twin observed occasionally in Al-Mg annealed alloy. The first two of dispersoids are in majority, followed by the middle two and a small number of the fifth. Formation mechanisms of these particles in Al-Mg alloy are discussed according to phase diagram and possible formation of the twins in the particles are described based on minimum energy.

The Phase Composition and Mechanical Properties of the Novel Precipitation-Strengthening Al-Cu-Er-Mn-Zr Alloy

The microstructure, phase composition, and mechanical properties during heat treatment and rolling of the novel Al-5.0Cu-3.2Er-0.9Mn-0.3Zr alloy were evaluated. A new quaternary (Al,Cu,Mn,Er) phase with possible composition Al25Cu4Mn2Er was found in the as-cast alloy. Al20Cu2Mn3 and Al3(Zr,Er) phases were nucleated during homogenization, and θ″(Al2Cu) precipitates were nucleated during aging. The metastable disc shaped θ″(Al2Cu) precipitates with a thickness of 5 nm and diameter of 100–200 nm were nucleated mostly on the Al3(Zr,Er) phase precipitates with a diameter of 35 nm. The hardness Vickers (HV) peak was found after the annealing of a rolled alloy at 150 °C due to strengthening by θ″(A2Cu) precipitates, which have a larger effect in materials hardness than do the softening processes. The novel Al-Cu-Er-Mn-Zr alloy has a yield strength (YS) of 320–332 MPa, an ultimate tensile strength (UTS) of 360–370 MPa, and an El. of 3.2–4.0% in the annealed alloy after rolling condition.

The effect of annealing and anisotropic behaviour on tensile and fatigue properties of AA 8090

Purpose: This paper aims to assess microstructures and mechanical properties of annealed and un-annealed Al-Li alloys (AA8090) and provide valid information regarding influence of anisotropy on tensile properties, fatigue lives. Design/methodology/approach: The methodology included investigating the influence of annealing on grain size, tensile strength and fatigue lives of AA8090. Optical microscope, scanning electron microscope and X-ray diffraction were utilized to analyse the crystallographic texture. Findings: The results showed that the un-annealed alloy exhibited much finer grain structure in three directions, namely longitudinal (L) rolling direction, L-45° and Long transverse (LT) combined with stronger crystallographic texture. Regarding to mechanical properties, un-annealed alloy presented superior tensile strength with strong anisotropic behaviour. L and LT grains direction showed highest tensile strength value of 550 MPa and L-45° showed lowest tensile strength value of 420 MPa. Results of fatigue test revealed that annealed Al-Li alloy has lower fatigue lives with high influence of test direction on fatigue properties. Higher variation in fatigue life to failure links with un-annealed alloy over annealed alloy. Examination of fractured surface showed that the morphology of fractured surface is a mixture of ductile and brittle fractures in both annealed and un-annealed alloys with more brittle behaviour in un-annealed alloy. Research limitations/implications: The main challenge of this work is the determination of the test direction (test angle in respect to rolling direction), which is necessary to provide correct information regarding mechanical properties. Further study of low cycle fatigue can be done in future, which will be an excellent indication to mechanical properties of this alloy since it provides more understanding to the behaviour of the material and better comprehend crack propagation and strain stress concentration. Practical implications: AA8090 alloy is an important candidate for aerospace and aircraft industries. Influence of annealing heat treatment and rolling direction on mechanical properties of AA8090 alloy provides more accurate information to the manufacturers who deal with this alloy. Originality/value: This study is affording a significant information regarding the effect of annealing and anisotropic behaviour on mechanical properties of AA8090. To our knowledge, there are few reports that study this combination of factors on AA8090 alloy.

Temperature- and Time-Dependent Mechanical Behavior of Post-Treated IN625 Alloy Processed by Laser Powder Bed Fusion

The microstructure and mechanical properties of IN625 alloy processed by laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) and then subjected to stress relief annealing, high temperature solution treatment, and hot isostatic pressing were studied. Tensile testing to failure was carried out in the 25–871 °C temperature range. Creep testing was conducted at 760 °C under 0.5–0.9 yield stress conditions. The results of the present study provided valuable insights into the static and creep properties of LPBF IN625 alloy, as compared to a wrought annealed alloy of similar composition. It was shown that at temperatures below 538 °C, the mechanical resistance and elongation to failure of the LPBF alloy were similar to those of its wrought counterpart, whereas at higher temperatures, the elongation to failure of the LPBF alloy became significantly lower than that of the wrought alloy. The solution-treated LPBF alloy exhibited significantly improved creep properties at 760 °C as compared to the wrought annealed alloy, especially under intermediate and low levels of stress.

Study of Structure and Magnetic Properties of SmCo10 Alloy Prepared by Different Methods

In this paper, the phase compositions, microstructures, atomic structures, and magnetic properties of Co-rich SmCo10 alloys prepared by arc-melting, annealing, and melt-spinning were studied. It was found that as-cast alloy is composed of Th2Zn17-type Sm2Co17 matrix with an average grain size of ∼45 μm accompanied by lamellar eutecticum (consisting of α-Co and Th2Zn17-type Sm2Co17) distributed at grain boundaries. The annealed alloy has the same phase composition and phase distribution as the as-cast alloy except that the average grain size decreases to ∼35 μm, and the eutecticum has more homogeneous distribution on the matrix. Simultaneously, the atomic structure of Sm2Co17 is unchanged with only a decrease in structural disorder after annealing. The as-spun ribbons are composed of ∼95.5 vol.% TbCu7-type Sm2Co17 and the rest α-Co. The short rod-shaped α-Co grains are intermittently distributed at the grain boundaries of equiaxed Sm2Co17 grains. The as-spun ribbons show a higher coercivity, and the annealed alloy shows maximum magnetization. The structural parameters were calculated by Extended X-ray Absorption Fine Structure (EXAFS), and the relationship between structure and magnetic properties was discussed in detail.

Changes in Structure of CuCr0.6 Alloy After Repetitive Corrugation Process

This paper presents the study of repetitive corrugation process influence on the strengthening of annealed alloy. Based on the results of mechanical properties of deformed sample, it has been found that the microhardness, ultimate tensile strength, yield strength and apparent elastic limit are significantly increased in relation to annealed sample. Examination on transmission electron microscopy confirmed the effect of intensive plastic deformation on structure fragmentation in the nanometric scale. This work confirmed the possibility of using the repetitive corrugation process to increase mechanical properties of CuCr0.6 alloy.