Effect of Er2O3 on the Structure and Refinement Effect of Al–TiO2–C Refiner

Abstract

A new type of Al–TiO2–C–XEr2O3 aluminum alloy refiner is prepared by exothermic dispersion method, and the effect of different Er2O3 content on the structure and refinement effect of Al–TiO2–C refiner is studied by scanning electron microscope (SEM), X‐ray diffraction (XRD), and other methods. The results show that the refiners are composed of Al3Ti, TiC, Al2O3, Al20Ti2Er, and Al5O12Er3 phases. As the content of Er2O3 increases, the Al3Ti phase changes from flaky to massive. The amount of Al2O3 decreases, and the content of Al5Er3O12 increases and is dispersed in the matrix. When the content of Er2O3 in the refiner is 6%, the Al–5Cu alloy has the best refining effect. The grain size of the Al–5Cu alloy is refined from 500 to 180 μm, and the grain size can be reduced by 64%. At the same time, the tensile strength of Al–5Cu alloy is tested, and the results show that when the content of Er2O3 in the refiner is 6%, the tensile strength is the highest, which is 189.7 MPa. This is consistent with the theoretical results.