Analysis of grain structure, precipitation and hardness heterogeneities, supported by a thermal model, for an aluminium alloy 7075 deposited by solid-state multi-layer friction surfacing

Abstract

Thermomechanical cycles during multi-layer friction surfacing (MLFS) cause microstructural and mechanical heterogeneities in the deposited high-strength Al alloy, 7075. The thermal profile and heat accumulation were investigated in this study using a multilayer numerical thermal model of the MLFS process; additionally, these variables were linked to experimentally observed microstructural heterogeneities. Compared with the feedstock, grain sizes decreased by 55–80 %. The mean grain size at the bottom and top areas of a given layer was finer than that in the middle of the layer because of the enhanced recrystallisation, which resulted from the friction and shear deformation experienced by the deposited material. The differences in the thermal cycle and plastic strain rate of the bottom and top areas along the layers resulted in a gradual increase in the grain size at the bottom of each layer and a reduction in the grain size at the top of each layer. The grain growth and continuous dynamic recrystallisation mechanisms are governed by the temperature and strain rate, those mechanisms determine the intra- and inter- layer grain sizes. The accumulated heat, owing to subsequent experimental deposition, resulted in excessive growth of the precipitates in the bottom layers. The strengthening of the solid-solution and Guinier-Preston zones significantly increased the microhardness of the top layer. Post-deposition T6 heat treatments confirmed the restoration of a uniform distribution of microhardness.