Abstract
The mechanism of the influence of natural aging (that occurs between solution heat treatment and artificial aging) and preaging immediately after quenching on the subsequent precipitation process in an AI-0.95Mg-1.55Si-0.3Mn-0.1Zr alloy was studied using differential scanning calorimetric analyses and microhardness measurements. The results show that natural aging has a distinct influence on the subsequent precipitation process. It is proposed that the formation of stable silicon clusters during natural aging is the major reason for such an effect. Preaging at 120 or 150°C for 5 min is effective in suppressing the clustering process, and thus inhibiting the deleterious effect of natural aging. The decrease in hardness due to the natural aging in the alloy studied is not as marked as that reported for balanced AI-Mg2Si alloys. It is proposed that a high excess silicon content reduces the detrimental effect of natural aging.
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