Rheo-Diecasting of Wrought Magnesium AZ31 Alloy and the Effect of Injection Velocity on Microstructure and Tensile Strength

Abstract

Wrought Mg AZ31 alloy was near-net-shaped by semisolid rheo-diecasting. Parts with 42% and 61% solid fraction were produced at different injection velocities. The impact of injection velocity on the microstructure and the tensile strength of samples have been investigated. Results indicated that the shape factor and the particle size of primary α-Mg in the microstructure decreased with the increase of injection velocity, and the morphology of both secondary α-Mg and eutectic α-Mg + Mg17Al12 mixture were refined with the increase of injection velocity. The surface liquid segregation in the sample closely relates to the injection velocity and the solid fraction of slurries, and it decreased with the increase of injection velocity and the decrease of the solid fraction. Cold shut, crack, and gas porosity were the main internal defects that rely on the injection velocity. The tensile strength of the samples decreased with the increase of injection velocity, and the best value of 201 and 192 MPa was obtained at 0.5 m/s and 1 m/s for the sample with the solid fraction of 0.61 and 0.42, respectively. This work demonstrated a predominant effect of internal defects on the property of the rheo-diecasting (RDC) product than the microstructure; thus, defect reduction should be preferentially considered in the optimization of the RDC process.