AGE HARDENING CHARACTERISTICS AND MECHANICAL PROPERTIES OF ALUMINUM ALLOY 2024

Document Type : Original Article

Author

Mechanical Engineering. Department, Faculty of Engineering, Zagazig University, Benha Branch, Cairo, Egypt.

Abstract

The age hardening behavior of the commercial 2024 aluminum alloy was the interest of the present investigation. The mechanical properties of alloys in the two temper conditions; T6 and T86, were susceptible to the aging processes. Artificial aging at different temperatures appreciably improved both hardness and tensile properties of the present alloy, however, at the ductility. Strain introduced by stretching prior to the precipitation hardening process further increased the hardness and tensile parameters. This alloy is characterized by a high ratio of yield to tensile strength. In the T6-temper condition, a maximum tensile strength of 482 MPa and a yield strength of 444 MPa were attained after 12h aging at 190°C. In addition, the alloy in the T86-temper condition attained even higher tensile strength of 506 MPa and a yield of 467 MPa after aging only for 6h at the same aging temperature. The initial age hardening was found to be a diffusion-controlled process with an activation energy of 0.83 ± 0.01eV for the T6-temper and 0.90 ± 0.01eV for the T86-temper. The present precipitation hardening treatments have, however, a deleterious effect on both ductility and notch toughness.

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