Process-Structure-Property Relationships for Magnesium Alloys

Gravity step-casting experiments were performed to investigate process-structure-property relationships in three different die-cast magnesium alloys – AM60, AZ91 and AE44. The step-cast mold was instrumented to capture temperature profiles of the solidification of molten magnesium. This paper investigates the structure-property relationships of these magnesium alloys, specifically the dependence of the fracture properties upon the porosity that forms during the casting process. Sixteen tensile specimens were cut from the step-casting perpendicular to the solidification front, for each alloy examined. Correlations from X-ray tomography data were used to estimate the maximum area fraction of porosity from the average volumetric porosity in the specimens, assuming a typical size and spatial distribution of porosity. This relationship can be used in the absence of more accurate measure of porosity (i.e. serial sectioning, computed x-ray tomography). A failure model for die-cast alloys – which depends upon the strain-hardening coefficient and the maximum area fraction of porosity in the specimen – was used to predict fracture strains for each specimen. The experimental tensile elongation of each specimen was compared with predicted values. The resulting mechanical properties determined from these cast magnesium alloys will be used to develop process-structure-property relationships.