Effect of Cu and Ca on the Quench Sensitivity of Mg-5Zn-3.5Sn-1Mn Alloy
摘要
The effect of Ca and Cu on the quench sensitivity of the Mg-5Zn-3.5Sn-1Mn alloy was investigated. The experimental results show that the addition of Ca and Cu increase the quench sensitivity of the alloy. The coarsening of precipitates and widening of precipitate-free zone upon lowering of quenching rate become more obvious with the addition of Ca and Cu. To interpret the experimental results, Ab initio calculation was used to calculate the vacancy formation energy and vacancy migration barrier with the presence of solute Ca and Cu. Coefficient of thermal expansion of the MgZnCu and MgSnCa phase was also calculated with the quasiharmonic approximation method to parameterize the finite element simulation for elastoplastic deformation near the second phases during quenching. Based on the experiment and simulation results, the origin of the increased quench sensitivity and related microstructure evolution are rationalized with the dislocation density, the alloying elements concentration, and the vacancy concentration.