Adiabatic shearing mechanism on Al-4.2%Cu alloy bars subjected to electromagnetic loading

Abstract

This paper proposed an electromagnetic loading process with the high-speed impact. Al-4.2% Cu alloy bars were used to employ electromagnetic impact (EI) experiments. Deformation mechanism and microstructure evolution of EI samples were revealed by theoretical model and microstructure characterizations. The EI process had impact force (peak value 40 kN) and impact velocity (peak value 6.7 m/s) during a short time period (1.25 ms). Adiabatic shearing mechanism dominated the whole deformation process, causing that significant microstructure characteristic was adiabatic shear bands (ASBs). The theoretical analysis implied that the formation of ASBs was accounted for the radial velocity gradient. Most plastic deformations concentrated in ASBs, and approximately pure shear deformations resulted in adiabatic temperature rise of 0.33–0.42 Tm inside ASBs. The width of ASBs was about 135 μm, in which original equiaxial grains were elongated into laminated sub-structures. TEM observations showed multi-slip systems were simultaneously actuated due to severe shear deformations. High dislocation density and dislocation tangles distributed with the ASBs. Adiabatic temperature rise and distorted energies drove sub-grains rotate into recrystallization grains (70–280 nm) with large angle grain boundaries. The needed maximum time (45 μs) for rotational dynamic recrystallization was far less than that of plastic deformation, indicating that rotational dynamic recrystallization mechanism contributed to the formation of recrystallization grains.