Effect of Forging on Microstructure and Properties of Al-9Si-5Cu-0.2Zr-0.1Sr-0.16Ti-0.1Ce Cast Aluminum Alloy

Herein, Al-Si-Cu aluminum alloy was prepared and the effect of forging on the microstructure and mechanical properties of novel Al-9Si-5Cu-0.2Zr-0.1Sr-0.16Ti-0.1Ce cast aluminum alloy was investigated. The microstructure analyses show that after forging, the casting defects disappeared, and the irregular Si-eutectic was spheroidized and randomly distributed. The coarse intermetallic compounds (IMCs) gradually dissolved during the solution treatment, and the increased supersaturation of the matrix promoted precipitation kinetics, leading to the coexistence of dense fine θ and θ' strengthening phases. Moreover, the dislocation strengthening effect for the forged alloy was enhanced. The mechanical tests show that compared to the as-cast alloy, the mechanical properties of the forged alloy including the hardness, yield strength, tensile strength, and plasticity were improved by optimizing the microstructure.