Effect of Si impurities on microstructure and tensile properties of a cast Al-Mg-Fe alloy

Richter, Nicholas A.; Yang, Ying; Perrin, Alice E.; Kwon, Sun Yong; Plotkowski, Alex J.; Haynes, J. Allen; Shyam, Amit; Bahl, Sumit

doi:10.1016/j.msea.2024.147682

Title: Effect of Si impurities on microstructure and tensile properties of a cast Al-Mg-Fe alloy

Journal Article · 13 December 2024 · Materials Science and Engineering. A, Structural Materials: Properties, Microstructure and Processing

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.msea.2024.147682 · OSTI ID:2483949

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Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)

Al-Mg alloys are attractive for structural castings owing to their superior strength and ductility in the as-cast state. However, given the tight tolerance for impurities, Al-Mg alloys produced from secondary sources still face multiple challenges. Here, we report the effect of increased Si impurity (0.05–1.6 wt%), which is commonly found in secondary Al sources, on microstructure and tensile properties of a cast Al-4.3Mg-1.6Fe (wt%) alloy, commercially referred to as Castaduct-42 alloy. Microstructural characterization revealed that Si addition increased the volume fraction, size, and aspect ratio of primary Al13Fe4 intermetallic particles as well as the volume fraction of other binary and ternary eutectic phases. Tensile testing results demonstrated that increasing Si impurities from 0.05 to 1.6 wt% reduced ductility from 14.3 ± 1.4 % to 2.2 ± 1.0 %. A particle cracking damage accumulation model coupled with failure analysis indicated primary Al13Fe4 intermetallic particles to be the major contributing factor to the deterioration in ductility with increasing Si content. Additionally, the stabilizing effect of Si on primary Al₁₃Fe₄ was inconsistent with the CALPHAD calculation results based on existing CALPHAD databases which predict a slightly decreasing primary Al13Fe4 phase fraction with increasing Si concentration. This work provides new insights into the phase stability and mechanical behavior of the lesser studied Al-Mg-Fe-Si alloy system that will contribute to the development of sustainable cast Al-Mg based alloys.

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Research Organization:: Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)

Sponsoring Organization:: USDOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), Office of Sustainable Transportation. Vehicle Technologies Office (VTO)

Grant/Contract Number:: AC05-00OR22725

OSTI ID:: 2483949

Journal Information:: Materials Science and Engineering. A, Structural Materials: Properties, Microstructure and Processing, Journal Name: Materials Science and Engineering. A, Structural Materials: Properties, Microstructure and Processing Vol. 923; ISSN 0921-5093

Publisher:: ElsevierCopyright Statement

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: English

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