Aging behavior of aluminum alloys after severe plastic deformation

The process of severe plastic deformation (SPD) makes it possible to reduce the grain size to the submicrometer or nanometer range in many metallic materials. When the SRD process is applied to age hardenable alloys, it may also be possible to control aging behavior. In this study, a technique of equal-channel angular pressing (ECAP) is used as an SPD process and aging behavior is examined on the three selected Al alloy systems such as Al-Ag, Al-Mg-Si and Al-Si-Ge. The microstructures are observed using transmission electron microscopy and the mechanical properties including hardness are measured. It is shown that the SPD process introduces unusual phenomena in the precipitation process and there should be a potential for enhancement of strength over the conventional age-hardening process or for improvement of ductility while keeping the high strength.