Influence of a Trace Alloying of Ag on the Ageing Behavior and Mechanical Properties of AZ80M Magnesium Alloys

Abstract

The ageing behavior of AZ80+xAg (x=0;0.3;0.5) magnesium alloys at different temperature were systematically investigated using optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction analysis. Experimental results demonstrate that the trace amount of Ag accelerated the precipitation of Mg17Al12 phase during ageing at 200°C, AZ80+0.5Ag achieved the peak hardness of 89.7HV after holding for 12h, compared with 80.8HV after 28h for the Ag-free alloy. However, when ageing at high temperature (250°C), the promotion response of Ag was totally vanished. The tensile property of the peak aged alloys at ambient temperature increased with Ag addition, as well as the tensile property at elevated temperature. Further investigation indicates that Ag addition suppresses the discontinuous precipitates, which account for the enhanced property of Ag-containing alloy.