Effect of molybdenum addition to ZA22 grain refined by titanium in the cast and after pressing by ECAP

Abstract

Zinc aluminum alloys are versatile materials which are widely used in manufacturing many industrial and engineering parts due to their attractive properties. The ZA22 has the extra advantage of possessing super plastic behavior within the temperature range from 350 to 375°C. The equal channel angular pressing, ECAP is a relatively recent manufacturing process by which heavy plastic deformation can be produced in materials resulting in grain refinement of its microstructure. It is, therefore, anticipated that if the ECAP process is applied to the ZA22 alloy after being grain refined by certain grain refiners may produce super plastic behavior in this alloy at room temperature, by this eliminating the heating process and its costs, hence widening its applications rendering it to be cost effective. In this paper, the effect of molybdenum addition at a rate of 0.1 % wt. to ZA22 grain refined by Ti on its metallurgical and mechanical characteristics in the cast condition and after applying the ECAP process is investigated. It was found that addition of Mo to ZA22 either in the nonrefined or the refined by Ti resulted in refining its structure being more refined in the latter. The ECAP process resulted in further refinement of its structure of the ZA22-Ti, ZA22-Mo and the ZA22-Ti-Mo alloys. Regarding the mechanical behavior, it was found that addition of Mo to ZA22 resulted in pronounced reduction of its mechanical strength presented by the following values of the flow stress at 20% strain: from 451 MPa to 346 MPa, whereas pronounced increase in case of Ti addition i.e. by 22.22% and only increase of 1.1% when Mo is added in the presence of Ti. However the Vickers hardness HV was increased by 5% in case of Ti addition and 2.5% increase in case of Mo addition. Finally it was concluded that super plastic behavior was obtained at room temperature by the addition of Mo and the ECAP process.