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Synergistic Effect of Sc and Excess Mg on the Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of Hypoeutectic Al-10Mg2Si Alloy

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Abstract

The effects of Sc and/or excess Mg on the microstructure characteristics, tensile properties, and fracture behavior of a hypoeutectic Al-10Mg2Si alloy were systematically studied. The results showed that adding 0.25% Sc to Al-10Mg2Si alloy changed the morphology of the primary α-Al crystals from a coarse dendritic shape to a nearly spherical shape, while the its crystal size is greatly reduced; an additional 2.8% Mg made the the primary α-Al be finer and more uniform. The joint addition of 0.25% Sc and 2.8% Mg greatly reduced the size of Mg2Si eutectic phase in Al-10Mg2Si alloy and transformed its morphology from coarse Chinese characters to particles or dots. The refinement of eutectic Mg2Si can be attributed to the enrichment and adsorption of Sc and Mg atoms on the surface and surrounding of eutectic Mg2Si, which inhibits the growth of eutectic Mg2Si and promotes a change in its growth direction. The strength and plasticity of the alloy were simultaneously improved due to the addition of Sc or/and Mg. The YS, UTS, and EL of the alloy with 0.25% Sc and 2.8% Mg added together displayed the highest values of 345 MPa, 145 MPa, and 8.6%, respectively which were 48.7, 40.8, and 230.8% higher than those of the alloy without adding 0.25% Sc and 2.8% Mg, respectively. The brittleness of Al-10Mg2Si comes from the decohesion of coarse eutectic Mg2Si particles in the early stage of stretching, while the large amount of plastic deformation generated before cracking of fine eutectic Mg2Si particles is responsible for the high strength and ductility of the Al-10Mg2Si-0.25Sc-2.8 Mg alloy.

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Acknowledgment

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC) (Grant Nos. 51971106), the Education Department of Jiangxi Province (Grant No. GJJ2202921, GJJ2202905), the Liaoning Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 2019-MS-171), and the Programs for Liaoning Innovative Talents and Liaoning Distinguished Professor.

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  1. Xiaofeng Wu and Fufa Wu have equally contributed to this work as first author.

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  1. School of Mechanical and Vehicle Engineering, Nanchang Institute of Technology, Nanchang, 330108, People’s Republic of China

    Xiaofeng Wu

  2. School of Materials Science and Engineering, Liaoning University of Technology, Jinzhou, 121001, People’s Republic of China

    Fufa Wu, Jikang Qin & Rongda Zhao

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Wu, X., Wu, F., Qin, J. et al. Synergistic Effect of Sc and Excess Mg on the Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of Hypoeutectic Al-10Mg2Si Alloy. J. of Materi Eng and Perform (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11665-024-09407-5

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