Abstract
The variations of hardness during the age hardening of an Al-Ag alloy are correlated with the structure variations studied with small-angle X-ray scattering. The transition between cold-hardening and warm-hardening corresponds to the appearance on the X-ray patterns of many long and blurred streaks which are characteristic of very small AlAg 2 precipitates. During warm-hardening the hardness increases with the growth of the precipitates and the streaks become short and intense. When the precipitates have become large and perfect, the scattering vanishes. During cold-hardening, the patterns have rings, the alloy containing “G.P. zones.” However, the evolution of the zones as revealed by X-rays is not directly correlated with the variation of hardness. The diameter of the rings on the patterns decreases steadily as the annealing progresses, while the hardness variations are reversible with some thermal treatments (particularly reversion). It might be concluded that the hardening is determined by zones of very small size. These are masked on the patterns by larger zones. The conclusion is verified by measurements of absolute diffuse intensity.
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