Effect of Mg addition on microstructure and mechanical properties of Al-Si-Cu-Fe alloy with squeeze casting

Abstract

In this work, the Al-10Si-2.5Cu-0.8Fe alloy was used as the base alloy to squeeze casting with different content Mg-10Al master alloy addition. The effects of microstructure and mechanical properties were investigated by XRD, OM, SEM, and tensile test analysis. The results show that with the increase of Mg addition, the morphology of eutectic Si in the alloy changes from strip to fiber and the size is obviously reduced. Al8Mg3FeSi6 phase in the microstructure gradually grows, and the splitting effect on the matrix structure is increased. The tensile strength and elongation of the alloy increased first and then decreased with the increase of Mg content. When the Mg content is 1.38%, the tensile strength of the alloy reached a maximum of 289 MPa and the elongation is 2.24%. The hardness of the alloy gradually increases. When the Mg content is 2.51%, the hardness reaches 121.8 HV. The cleavage surface in the fracture becomes fine with the increase of Mg content, the number of dimples increases, and the fracture mode transitions from quasi-cleavage fracture to brittle fracture.