Influence of Zn content and processing route on the microstructure and mechanical behavior of Al-Mg-Zn alloys

IF 3.1 Q2 MATERIALS SCIENCE, MULTIDISCIPLINARY

Materialia Pub Date : 2026-08-01 Epub Date: 2026-07-29 DOI:10.1016/j.mtla.2026.102858

Zhixiong Fan, Liran Huang, Weilong Li, Bo Lin, Zhiqiang Fu

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Abstract

In this study, Al-Mg alloys containing Zn ranging from 0.65 to 3.38 wt.% were fabricated via hot rolling (HR) and hot extrusion (HE) to investigate the influence of Zn content and processing route on their microstructural evolution and mechanical responses. The results revealed that the volume fraction of the τ phase rose while the area fraction of the precipitate-free zone (PFZ) narrowed in both alloy series as Zn concentration increased. At identical Zn additions, extruded samples exhibited more substantial grain refinement and possessed higher densities of dislocations and low-angle grain boundaries compared with their rolled counterparts. As Zn content increased from 0.65 wt.% to 3.38 wt.%, both wrought alloy variants exhibited substantial strength improvement. Regarding ductility, however, the HR alloys showed an initial slight increase in elongation (from 22.6% to 24.6% at 2.46 wt.% Zn) followed by a decrease to 19.5% at the highest Zn content, while the HE alloys exhibited a continuous decrease from 19.8% to 14.8%. The observed strength increment stemmed from the combined contributions of grain boundary strengthening, dislocation strengthening and Orowan precipitation strengthening. Furthermore, varying Zn concentrations induced markedly different the Portevin-Le Chatelier (PLC) behaviors between the two material states: the density of PLC serrations declined in hot-rolled alloys yet climbed in hot-extruded counterparts. Such divergent PLC characteristics are suggested to originated from processing-dependent disparities in Mg solid solubility and dislocation density within the matrix.

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锌含量和加工方式对Al-Mg-Zn合金组织和力学行为的影响

通过热轧（HR）和热挤压（HE）制备了Zn含量为0.65 ~ 3.38 wt.%的Al-Mg合金，研究了Zn含量和加工方式对其组织演变和力学响应的影响。结果表明：随着Zn浓度的增加，两系合金中τ相的体积分数升高，无析出区面积分数（PFZ）缩小；在相同的Zn添加量下，与轧制样品相比，挤压样品表现出更明显的晶粒细化，具有更高的位错密度和低角度晶界。当Zn含量从0.65 wt.%增加到3.38 wt.%时，两种变形合金的强度都有显著提高。然而，在延展性方面，HR合金的伸长率在初始阶段略有增加（当Zn含量为2.46 wt.%时，伸长率从22.6%增加到24.6%），随后在Zn含量最高时，伸长率下降到19.5%，而HE合金则从19.8%持续下降到14.8%。强度的增加是晶界强化、位错强化和Orowan沉淀强化共同作用的结果。此外，不同Zn浓度导致两种材料状态下的波特文-勒夏特列（PLC）行为显著不同：热轧合金的PLC锯齿密度下降，而热挤压合金的PLC锯齿密度上升。这种不同的PLC特性被认为是由于加工过程中Mg在基体中的固溶性和位错密度的差异。

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来源期刊

Materialia MATERIALS SCIENCE, MULTIDISCIPLINARY-

CiteScore

6.40

自引率

2.90%

发文量

345

审稿时长

36 days

期刊介绍： Materialia is a multidisciplinary journal of materials science and engineering that publishes original peer-reviewed research articles. Articles in Materialia advance the understanding of the relationship between processing, structure, property, and function of materials. Materialia publishes full-length research articles, review articles, and letters (short communications). In addition to receiving direct submissions, Materialia also accepts transfers from Acta Materialia, Inc. partner journals. Materialia offers authors the choice to publish on an open access model (with author fee), or on a subscription model (with no author fee).