Effect of Mn content on the microstructure and mechanical properties of Mg–6Li–4Zn-xMn alloys

The as-cast Mg–6Li–4Zn-xMn alloys were prepared and extruded at 280 ​°C with an extrusion ratio of 25:1. The effects of Mn content on the microstructure and mechanical properties of Mg–6Li–4Zn-xMn alloys were investigated in this study. The XRD results show that Mg–6Li–4Zn–xMn alloys consisted of α-Mg (hcp) ​+ ​β-Li (bcc) duplex structured matrix, MgLi₂Zn and Mn phases. The grains of the extruded Mg–6Li–4Zn–xMn alloys were refined by dynamic recrystallization during the extrusion process. The EBSD results show that the extruded alloys had basal textures. The grain size of the extruded alloys decreased while the basal texture was strengthened with the increasing Mn addition. The TEM results show that a large amount of nanoscale Mn precipitates existed in the extruded Mg–6Li–4Zn–1.2Mn alloy, which can effectively inhibit the dynamic recrystallized (DRXed) grains growth during the hot extrusion and is beneficial to the improvement of mechanical properties. Mg–6Li–4Zn–1.2Mn alloy in this research possesses the best mechanical properties with the ultimate tensile strength and yield strength of 321 ​MPa, 250 ​MPa, respectively.     

Effect of initial orientation on microstructure and mechanical properties of AZ31 Mg alloy sheets via accumulated extrusion bonding

In this study, effects of initial orientation on microstructure evolution and mechanical properties of AZ31 Mg alloy sheets via accumulated extrusion bonding(AEB) was systematically studied. The samples with RD and TD parallel to extrusion direction(ED) were labeled as RED and TED, respectively. RD and TD pieces alternately stacked was named as RTED. The results revealed that under three-dimensional compressive stress, {10-12} tensile twinning dominated the first stage deformation in container. ...     

Ameliorating mechanical properties and reducing anisotropy of as-extruded Mg-1.0Sn-0.5Ca alloy via Al addition

Effects of Al addition to a Mg–Sn–Ca ternary alloy on its microstructure and tensile properties after extrusion were studied via extrusion of Mg-1.0Sn-0.5Ca-xAl (x ​= ​0, 0.8, 2.4 ​wt%) sheets and analysis of the extruded materials. The results showed that Al addition not only refined the grain size (from 9.8 ​± ​0.7 ​μm to 8.3 ​± ​0.4 ​μm and 7.6 ​± ​0.5 ​μm) but also accelerated the generation of more second phase (from 0.98 to 1.72 and 4.32%). Except for the CaMgSn and Mg₂Ca in Mg-1.0Sn-0.5Ca alloy, new phase (Mg, Al)₂Ca appeared after Al addition. The addition of Al into Mg–Sn–Ca alloy induced the textural variation from an initially ED-split double-peaked texture to a weakened texture, i.e., divergent elliptical texture, due to the effect of particle stimulated nucleation. This eventually contributed to the improvement of mechanical anisotropy as well as the higher Hc value and n-value. For the strain hardening behavior when tension along the TD, the prolonged stage Ⅱ of Al-modified alloys was closely connected with the additional TD textural components, accelerating the activation of more basal slip. The decreased θⅢ0 in stage Ⅲ of Al-modified alloys is beneficial to the grain refinement and the emergence of more second phase.     

Effects of heat treatment on microstructure and mechanical properties of SLMed Sc-modified AlSi10Mg alloy

The influence of heat treatments on the microstructures and mechanical properties of the selective laser melting manufactured AlSi10Mg alloy modified with Sc was systematically investigated. The results showed that the addition of Sc element introduced primary Al₃Sc, which increased the heterogeneous nucleation during the solidification of AlSi10Mg alloy, and then the ultrafine network eutectic structure was obtained, and hence the tensile strength was improved significantly (nearly 23 ​%). During the heat treatment process, the network eutectic structure transformed from continuous to discontinuous, and the grain refinement was weakened with an increasing heating temperature, both of which affected the mechanical properties of the Sc modified AlSi10Mg alloy. The tensile strength decreased from 438 ​± ​10 ​MPa for the Sc-modified alloy to 208 ​± ​6 ​MPa, while the fracture strain significantly increased from 6 ​± ​0.2 ​% to 30.2 ​± ​1.2 ​% when the Sc-modified alloy was heat-treated at 325 ​°C for 12 ​h. It has been found that the desirable microstructure and mechanical properties of SLM Sc-modified AlSi10Mg alloy can be realized by controlling the heat treatment process parameters.     

Zr-xNb-4Sn alloys with low Young’s modulus and magnetic susceptibility for biomedical implants

The microstructure, mechanical and magnetic properties of Zr–x (8, 9, 10, wt.%)Nb–4Sn alloys were investigated to obtain novel Zr-based alloy with low Young’s modulus and magnetic susceptibility for biomedical implants. After homogenization annealing, hot forging and solution annealing, Zr–8Nb–4Sn, Zr–9Nb–4Sn and Zr–10Nb–4Sn alloys were composed of β+α″ phase, β+α″ phase, β+ω phase, respectively. The temperature at which the α" and ω phase were transformed into β phase during the heating process was about 200 ​°C, and the phase transformation temperature decreased with the increase of Nb element. Among all the Zr–x (x ​= ​8,9,10)Nb–4Sn(wt.%) alloys, Zr–9Nb–4Sn alloy had the lowest Young's modulus of 46.6 ​GPa and the low magnetic susceptibility of 1.294 ​× ​10⁻⁶ cm³g⁻¹, which has a good application prospect for biomedical applications.     

Mg-Al-Si(AS)系耐热镁合金的研究进展

回顾了AS系镁合金近年来的研究进展,包括成形工艺和热处理以及合金化元素对AS系耐热镁合金显微组织和力学性能的影响。使AS系耐热镁合金主要的强化相Mg2Si晶粒细化,并均匀分布是提高其性能的关键。利用往复挤压等技术和适当的热处理工艺可以改善铸造AS系耐热镁合金性能的微观组织,添加适量的Ca、Sr、Sb、Nd和Y等元素也可以细化Mg2Si晶粒,提高其高温蠕变性能。     

Near-microscopic grain boundary facilitates fatigue crack propagation in a polycrystalline Al–Zn–Mg–Cu alloy

In present study, grain characteristics with sizes within 10–30 μm were fabricated from a same Al–Zn–Mg–Cu alloy, FCP behaviors of the alloys with small grain(SG alloy), medium grain(MG alloy) and large grain(LG alloy)were investigated and related fatigue fracture morphology was analyzed. With the enhancement of stress intensity factor range(ΔK), the alloy with larger grains possessed faster FCP rate, which were successively arranged as SG alloy > MG alloy > LG alloy at initial stage while...     

铸态Mg-2Nd-0.2Zn-0.4Zr-xY镁合金组织及力学性能

采用光学显微镜(OM)、扫描电子显微镜(SEM)、X线衍射分析(XRD)及力学性能测试等手段,研究不同含量稀土元素Y(4%,6%,8%,质量分数)对Mg-2%Nd-0.2%Zn-0.4%Zr镁合金铸态显微组织及力学性能的影响。结果表明:在Mg-2%Nd-0.2%Zn-0.4%Zr镁合金中添加Y可以明显细化合金晶粒,其中加入6%Y时效果最佳;合金晶粒粒径由100μm细化至35μm。未添加稀土元素的Mg-2%Nd-0.2%Zn-0.4Zr铸态合金中主要存在Mg12Nd相;加入稀土元素Y后,Nd和Y分别以Mg41Nd5和Mg24Y5化合物形式存在,合金的力学性能得到提高。其中加入6%Y的合金综合力学性能最好,抗拉强度和屈服强度分别提高至245 MPa和150 MPa,而伸长率大幅提高至16%,较未加稀土元素Y的合金提高191%;当Y含量达到8%时,合金综合力学性能下降。     

Effects of Gd solutes on hardness and yield strength of Mg alloys

Relative contribution of individual strengthening mechanisms to the yield strength of Mg–0–15 wt%Gd alloys were investigated.Alloys with different grain size were prepared by adding Zr and hot extrusion.Hardness and tensile/compression yield strength were tested on the alloys after solid solution treatment and extrusion.HallPetch constants were calculated with hardness and tensile/compressive data.The results showed that the hardness of Mg–Gd alloys with similar Gd content and different grain size were almost the same,which indicates that grain size had little effect on hardness.The hardness linearly increased with rising Gd content(d H_v/dc≈25 kg mm~(-2)/at%Gd).The tensile and compressive yield strengths enhanced with the increase of Gd content for all alloys in different conditions.In addition,the tensile/compressive(t/c)yield asymmetry of extruded alloys decreased with increasing Gd content.Large t/c yield asymmetry ratio(1.77)was observed for pure Mg,and with increasing Gd content this value decreased to 1.With the increasing of tensile strength,the stress intensity factor,k_y,decreased from 0.27 MPa m~(1/2)for Mg–2 wt%Gd alloy to 0.19 MPa m~(1/2) for Mg–5 wt%Gd alloy,then increased to 0.29 MPa m~(1/2) for Mg–15 wt%Gd alloy.However,k_yincreased linearly form 0.16–0.31 MPa for compression test.The influence of grain size strengthening was eliminated,and the yield strength of tension and compression both linearly increased with c~n,where c is the atom concentration of Gd,and n=1/2 or 2/3.     

Y对Mg-Nd-Zn-Zr铸造镁合金组织和性能的影响

采用光学显微镜、扫描电镜、透射电镜和X线衍射仪等分析研究Y对Mg-Nd-Zn-Zr铸造镁合金组织和性能的影响,并测试其室温力学性能.研究结果表明:Mg-Nd-Zn-Zr-xY(x=0,0.6％,1.2％,1.8％,质量分数)合金铸态组织主要由α-Mg和Mg12(NdaZn1-a)相组成,Y元素主要固溶在α-Mg和Mg12(NdaZn1-a)相中;合金经530℃/14h固溶处理后组织由α-Mg、残余的少量Mg12(NdaZn1-a)相以及方块状Mg24RE5相组成;固溶态合金经200℃/12h时效处理后有大量尺寸为10nm左右的β'和β”析出相生成,能有效地强化基体;随Y质量分数增加,合金室温抗拉强度和屈服强度逐渐上升,最高分别达到271 MPa和161 MPa,较基础Mg-Nd-Zn-Zr合金有较大幅度提高.     

Synergistic effect of Al and Gd on enhancement of mechanical properties of magnesium alloys

The effect of Gd/Al ratio on the properties of as-cast Mg-Gd-Al-Zn alloys was investigated by changing the chemical composition from that of AZ61 to GZ61. At the ratio of 1, the Al2Gd phase becomes predominant and Mg17Al12 is hardly seen in the microstructure. As a potent inoculant, the Al2Gd phase resulted in intense grain refinement and enhancement of strength, ductility and toughness. For instance, the tensile strength and elongation to failure of Mg-3Gd-3Al-1Zn alloy were enhanced by ~4% and 180% compared with those of AZ61 alloy, respectively. However, at high Gd/Al ratios, the Al2Gd phase was replaced by (Mg,Al)3Gd and Mg5Gd phases and very large grain sizes were achieved, which led to poor tensile properties and the appearance of cleavage facets on the fracture surfaces. Therefore, it can be deduced that the presence of Gd and Al, in appropriate amounts to reach Gd/Al ratio of ~ 1, is required for the achievement of grain refinement, good ductility, high strength, and the appearance of ductile fracture surfaces in the Mg-Gd-Al-Zn system. Conclusively, the Mg-Gd-Al-Zn alloys can be considered as a new class of structural magnesium alloy and it is superior to both AZ (Mg-Al-Zn) and GZ (Mg-Gd-Zn) series of alloys.     

Al-Zn-Mg-Cu系铝合金微合金化的研究进展

就单一合金元素及复合多种合金元素对Al-Zn-Mg-Cu系铝合金的铸态组织、析出相、力学性能及腐蚀性能的影响进行综述。单独加入稀土元素Er,Ce,Ho,Sc等,可以净化基体,使合金熔铸缺陷明显减少,细化晶粒,促进合金元素在基体中的固溶,使晶界减少偏析;单独加入微量的Zr,可以提高合金的再结晶温度,抗拉强度,应力腐蚀能力;复合添加稀土及其他微量合金元素,对提高铝合金的综合性能更为有效。     

Rapid cooling effect during solidification on macro-and micro-segregation of as-cast Mg–Gd alloy

The high performance of as-cast Mg-RE alloys is always related to their high RE additions.However,RE elements can be readily segregated in Mg alloys and the segregation becomes more significant with the increasing RE content.In this research,the effect of cooling rate on the macro-and micro-segregation in the as-cast Mg-8 Gd alloy was studied.The Gd content at the bottom of the fabricated ingot with the cooling rate of 4.6-6.9℃/s was～1.7 times of that at the top and coarse eutectics as well as some non-equilibrium phases of α-Gd,MgGd,Mg_2 Gd were distributed along the grain boundaries.The formation mechanisms of the specific gravity segregation and grain boundary segregation were also proposed.Upon the application of the water-cooled copper mold with the cooling rate of 27-200℃/s,only fine Mg5 Gd and some nanoscale metastable β_1 and β' phases were found to disperse uniformly in the grain interior,thus the homogeneity of the composition,microstructure,and performance within the whole ingot was considerably improved.It is expected that these results will facilitate the processing design for the fabrication of the highly-homogenized Mg-RE alloy castings.     

Solidification,microstructure, and mechanical properties of the as-cast ZRE1 magnesium alloy with different praseodymium contents

The influence of praseodymium (Pr) content on the solidification characteristics, microstructure, and mechanical properties of ZRE1 magnesium (Mg) cast alloy was investigated. The obtained solidification parameters showed that Pr strongly affected the solidification time, leading to refinement of the microstructure of the alloys. When the freezing time was reduced to approximately 52 s, the grain size decreased by 12%. Mg₁₂Zn (Ce,Pr) was formed as a new phase upon the addition of Pr and was detected via X-ray diffraction analysis. The addition of Pr led to a substantial improvement in mechanical properties, which was attributed to the formation of intermetallic compounds; the ultimate tensile strength and yield strength increased by approximately 10% and 13%, respectively. Pr addition also refined the microstructure, and the hardness was recovered. The results herein demonstrate that the mechanical properties of Mg alloys are strongly influenced by their microstructure characteristics, including the grain size, volume fraction, and distribution of intermetallic phases.     

Effect of carbon addition on microstructure and mechanical properties of a typical hard-to-deform Ni-base superalloy

In this paper, the as-cast microstructure, microsegregation, and mechanical properties of GH4151 superalloys with a carbon addition were studied by scanner electron microscopy(SEM), transmission electron microscope(TEM), electron probe microanalysis(EPMA), differential thermal analyzer(DSC), and electron backscattered diffraction(EBSD). The results show that the solid solution effect of carbon in alloys is limited, the addition of C from 0.01 to 0.08 wt% significantly refines the secondary dendr...     

Solidification,microstructure, and mechanical properties of the as-cast ZRE1 magnesium alloy with different praseodymium contents

The influence of praseodymium(Pr) content on the solidification characteristics, microstructure, and mechanical properties of ZRE1 magnesium(Mg) cast alloy was investigated. The obtained solidification parameters showed that Pr strongly affected the solidification time, leading to refinement of the microstructure of the alloys. When the freezing time was reduced to approximately 52 s, the grain size decreased by 12%. Mg_(12)Zn(Ce,Pr) was formed as a new phase upon the addition of Pr and was detected via X-ray diffraction analysis. The addition of Pr led to a substantial improvement in mechanical properties, which was attributed to the formation of intermetallic compounds; the ultimate tensile strength and yield strength increased by approximately 10% and 13%, respectively. Pr addition also refined the microstructure, and the hardness was recovered. The results herein demonstrate that the mechanical properties of Mg alloys are strongly influenced by their microstructure characteristics, including the grain size, volume fraction, and distribution of intermetallic phases.     

Effects of gadolinium addition on the microstructure and mechanical properties of Mg-9Al alloy

This research aims to study the significance of Gd addition (0wt%-2wt%) on the microstructure and mechanical properties of Mg-9Al alloy. The effect of Gd addition on the microstructure was investigated via X-ray diffraction (XRD), optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The Mg-9Al alloy contained two phases, α-Mg and β-Mg17Al12. Alloying with Gd led to the emergence of a new rectangular-shaped phase, Al₂Gd. The grain size also decreased marginally upon Gd addition. The ultimate tensile strength and microhardness of Mg-9Al alloy increased by 23% and 19%, respectively, upon 1.5wt% Gd addition. We observed that, although Mg-9Al-2.0Gd alloy exhibited the smallest grain size (181 μm) and the highest dislocation density (5.1×1010 m-2) among the investigated compositions, the Mg-9Al-1.5Gd alloy displayed the best mechanical properties. This anomalous behavior was observed because the Al₂Gd phase was uniformly distributed and present in abundance in Mg-9Al-1.5Gd alloy, whereas it was coarsened and asymmetrically conglomerated in Mg-9Al-2.0Gd.     

Towards understanding the influence of Mg content on phase transformations in the La3-xMgxNi9 alloys by in-situ neutron powder diffraction study

The present work is focused on the studies of the phase-structural transformations in the La_3-xMg_xNi₉ (x ​= ​1.0, 1.1 and 1.2) alloys as active materials of negative electrodes in the Nickel-Metal Hydride (Ni/MH) batteries. The phase equilibria and phase-structural transformations in the alloys were probed by in situ neutron powder diffraction (NPD) at the temperatures ranging from 300 ​K to 1273 ​K using the measurements of the equilibrated alloys at 8 setpoint temperatures of 300, 973, 1073, 1123, 1173, 1223, 1248 and 1273 ​K.Prepared by induction melting initial alloys were found to be multi-phase structured, containing up to 6 individual intermetallic compounds with different stoichiometric compositions. With the increase of the temperature and holding time, various transformations took place in the studied alloys. These included the formations and transformations of super-stacking intermetallics with variable ratios (La ​+ ​Mg)/Ni, 1:3, 2:7 and 5:19.With increasing temperatures, several systematic changes took place. (a) Abundances of (La,Mg)₂Ni₄ AB₂ and (La,Mg)Ni₃ AB₃ type intermetallics gradually decreased before they melted/decomposed above 1073 ​K; (b) The (La,Mg)₂Ni₇ A₂B₇ type intermetallics began to decrease in abundances above 1123 ​K; (c) The transformation in the (La,Mg)₅Ni₁₉ intermetallics from 3R to 2H proceeded above 1223 ​K.The increase of Mg content had no obvious influence on (La,Mg)₂Ni₄ and (La,Mg)₂Ni₇ phases, and corresponding reactions R1 and R3 took place at the same temperatures as in the La–Ni system. However, with increasing Mg content the melting point of (La,Mg)₅Ni₁₉ phase increased while the melting point of the (La,Mg)Ni₃ phase it decreased, leading to the variation of the reaction temperatures of the corresponding processes.The present study will assist in optimizing phase-structural composition of the alloys in the La–Mg–Ni system which contain Mg-modified layered structures by tailoring the high temperature annealing conditions.     

Effects of icosahedral phase formation on the microstructure and mechanical improvement of Mg alloys: A review

Icosahedral phase (I-phase) is a relatively excellent strengthening phase in Mg alloys. Depending on their volume fraction, the yield strength of Mg–Zn–Y–Zr alloys can vary from 150 to 450 MPa at room temperature. Recently, the formation of I-phase has been considered as one of the most effective methods for developing high strength lightweight Mg alloys for automotive and aerospace applications. In this review article, a series of research work about I-phase containing Mg alloys have been systematically investigated including I-phase formation mechanism and their effects on mechanical properties of Mg alloys. Particular emphases have been given to: (1) Structure of I-phase and its orientation relationship with the a-Mg matrix. (2) Influence of alloying elements and solidification conditions on I-phase formation. (3) Effects of I-phase on microstructural evolution and mechanical improvement of Mg–Zn–Y–(Zr) alloys. Moreover, the applications of I-phase for the mechanical improvement of other Mg alloys such as AZ91 and super-lightweight Mg–Li alloys are also reviewed.     

长周期堆垛有序结构强化Mg-Zn-Y合金的组织与性能

为研究长周期堆垛有序( LPSO)结构对Mg-Zn-Y变形镁合金组织与性能的影响,通过铸造和热挤压工艺制备了Mg97Zn1Y2和Mg94Zn2Y4合金.采用扫描电子显微镜、透射电子显微镜以及电子万能试验机等研究了2种合金在铸态、退火态以及挤压态下的显微组织和力学性能.研究结果表明,Mg97Zn1Y2和Mg94Zn2Y4合金的铸态组织均由α-Mg和18R型LPSO相构成,LP-SO相连接成网状分布在晶界.经500℃退火36 h后,Mg97 Zn1 Y2合金中部分块状LPSO相分解为细层片状,结构由18R转变为14H,但在Mg94Zn2Y4合金中未观察到LPSO相结构类型的转变.通过挤压变形,LPSO相沿挤压方向排列,合金强度得到大幅度提高,Mg97Zn1Y2和Mg94Zn2Y4合金的抗拉强度分别达到319和390 MPa.