Mechanical Performance and Precipitation Behavior in Al-Si-Cu-Mg Cast Alloys: Effect of Prolonged Thermal Exposure
Abstract
:1. Introduction
2. Materials and Methods
2.1. Preparation of Alloys
2.2. Mechanical Testing
2.3. Advanced Microscopy Investigations
3. Results and Discussion
3.1. Microstructural Characterization
3.2. Ambient-Temperature Tensile Properties
3.3. Hardness Values
3.4. Elevated-Temperature Tensile Properties
3.5. Precipitate Evolution during Thermal Stabilization
3.6. Fractography
4. Conclusions
- Coarsening of the strengthening precipitates following prolonged exposure at 250 °C has a deleterious effect on the tensile strength and hardness values, thereby resulting in a significant increase in the ductility values.
- The coarsening kinetics of the precipitates decay with time, due to the continuously increased distance between the precipitates with increase in the exposure time, causing deterioration in the mechanical performance after thermal exposure at 250 °C up to 100 h. Further thermal exposure up to 200 h does not reduce the strength and hardness values.
- The strength values (UTS and YS) obtained at room temperature for the stabilized T5-treated conditions are comparable to, and in most alloys exceed, those of the stabilized T6-treated conditions.
- In the case of elevated-temperature tensile testing, the T5 strength values in the stabilized conditions are always higher than those obtained for the stabilized T6 condition.
- Addition of 0.75 wt.% Mn is competitive with the addition of 2 and 4 wt.% Ni with respect to the elevated- and ambient-temperature strength values, respectively, with the Mn-containing alloy providing the advantage of higher ductility values.
- Precipitation of different strengthening/intermetallic phases identified from the TEM investigations include Al2Cu, Al-Ni-Cu, Al-Ni, Al-Si-Mn-Fe, Al-Ti-Zr phases, and fine Zr-rich and Al6Mn precipitates. The phases present and their evolution with the type and duration of the heat treatment determine the alloy properties.
Author Contributions
Funding
Institutional Review Board Statement
Informed Consent Statement
Data Availability Statement
Conflicts of Interest
Appendix A. Quality Index
- 1-
- Quality Index at Ambient Temperature:
- 2-
- Quality Index at Elevated Temperature:
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Chemical Analysis (wt.%) | |||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Alloy Description | Elements | ||||||||||
Type | Code | Si | Cu | Mg | Fe | Ti | Zr | Ni | Mn | Sr | Al |
354 | M1S | 8.5 | 1.76 | 0.55 | 0.12 | 0.2 | 0.32 | <0.1 | 0.01 | 0.02 | Bal. |
M2S | 8.4 | 1.7 | 0.60 | 0.14 | 0.21 | 0.33 | 1.9 | 0.01 | 0.02 | Bal. | |
M3S | 8.6 | 1.8 | 0.55 | 0.11 | 0.20 | 0.33 | <0.1 | 0.75 | 0.02 | Bal. | |
M4S | 8.6 | 1.8 | 0.67 | 0.12 | 0.22 | 0.29 | 4.0 | 0.01 | 0.02 | Bal. | |
M5S | 8.6 | 1.8 | 0.60 | 0.15 | 0.20 | 0.29 | 1.9 | 0.76 | 0.02 | Bal. |
Heat Treatment Procedures and Parameters | |||
---|---|---|---|
Heat Treatment | Solution Treatment | Quenching | Aging |
T5 | NA | NA | 8 h @ 180 °C |
T6 | 5 h @ 495 °C | Warm water (60 °C) | 8 h @ 180 °C |
Volume Fraction (%) | Alloy Code | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
M1S | M2S | M3S | M4S | M5S | ||
SHT | Average | 1.11 | 5.54 | 3.64 | 9.60 | 7.68 |
SD | 0.28 | 0.61 | 0.16 | 0.65 | 0.52 |
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Abdelaziz, M.H.; Samuel, A.M.; Doty, H.W.; Songmene, V.; Samuel, F.H. Mechanical Performance and Precipitation Behavior in Al-Si-Cu-Mg Cast Alloys: Effect of Prolonged Thermal Exposure. Materials 2022, 15, 2830. https://doi.org/10.3390/ma15082830
Abdelaziz MH, Samuel AM, Doty HW, Songmene V, Samuel FH. Mechanical Performance and Precipitation Behavior in Al-Si-Cu-Mg Cast Alloys: Effect of Prolonged Thermal Exposure. Materials. 2022; 15(8):2830. https://doi.org/10.3390/ma15082830
Chicago/Turabian StyleAbdelaziz, Mohamed H., Agnes M. Samuel, Herbert W. Doty, Victor Songmene, and Fawzy H. Samuel. 2022. "Mechanical Performance and Precipitation Behavior in Al-Si-Cu-Mg Cast Alloys: Effect of Prolonged Thermal Exposure" Materials 15, no. 8: 2830. https://doi.org/10.3390/ma15082830