• Journal of Korea Foundry Society
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• v.42 no.5
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• pp.273-281
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• 2022

In order to understand the solidification behavior and microstructural evolution of the Al-Cu-Si ternary eutectic alloy system, changes of the microstructure of the Al-Cu-Si ternary eutectic alloy with different cooling rates were investigated. When the mold preheating temperature is 500℃, primary Si and Al2Cu dendrites are observed, with (α-Al+Al2Cu) binary eutectic and needle-shaped Si subsequently observed. In addition, even when the mold preheating temperature is 300℃, primary Si and Al2Cu dendrites can be observed, and both (α-Al+Al2Cu+Si) areas observed and areas not observed earlier appear. When the mold preheating temperature is 150℃, bimodal structures of the binary eutectic (α-Al+Al2Cu) and ternary eutectic (α-Al+Al2Cu+Si) are observed. When the preheating temperature of the mold is changed to 500℃, 300℃, and 150℃, the greatest change is in the Si phase, and upon reaching the critical cooling rate, the ternary eutectic of (α-Al+Al2Cu+Si) forms. If the growth of the Si phase is suppressed upon the formation of (α-Al+Al2Cu+Si), the growth of both Al and Cu is also suppressed by a cooperative growth mechanism. As a result of analyzing the Al-27wt%Cu-5wt%Si ternary eutectic alloy with a different alloy design simulation programs, it was confirmed that different results arose depending on the program. A computer simulation of the alloy design is a useful tool to reduce the trial and error process in alloy design, but this effort must be accompanied by a task that increases reliability and allows a comparison to microstructural results derived through actual casting.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Heat Treatment
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• v.35 no.3
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• pp.150-158
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• 2022

The effects of scandium addition on the Al-6Si-2Cu Alloy were investigated. The Al-6Si-2Cu-Sc alloy was prepared by gravity die casting process. In this study, scandium was added at 0.2 wt%, 0.4 wt%, 0.8 wt%, and 1.0 wt%. The microstructure of Al-6Si-2Cu-Sc alloy was investigated using Optical Microscope, Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscope, Electron Back Scatter Diffraction, and Transmission Electron microscope. The microstructure of Al-6Si-2Cu alloy with scandium added changed from dendrite structure to equiaxed crystal structure in specimens of 0.4 wt% Sc or more, and coarse needle-shape eutectic Si and β-Al₅FeSi phases were segmented and refined. The nanosized Al₃Sc intermetallic compound was observed to be uniformly distributed in the modified Al matrix.

• Journal of Korea Foundry Society
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• v.20 no.2
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• pp.89-96
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• 2000

The effects of modification processing on the refinement of primary Si and the wear behavior of hyper-eutectic Al-Si alloys have been mainly investigated. Refining effects of primary Si in Al-17%Si alloy was more efficient than that of B.390 alloy. Optimum condition of getting the finest primary Si microstructure was when AlCuP modifier is added into the melt at $750^{\circ}C$ and held it at $700^{\circ}C$ for 30 minutes. Wear loss in the specimens of as-cast condition decreases as the size of primary Si decreases, in the order of B.390 alloy, B.390 alloy with AlCuP addition, Al-17%Si alloy and Al-17%Si alloy with AlCuP addition. Wear loss in the aged condition of Al-17%Si alloy, B.390 alloy and B.390 alloy with AlCuP addition decreased due to the increase of compressive residual stress in the matrix by the aging treatment. While, wear loss increased in the aged specimens of Al-17%Si alloy with AlCuP addition and Hepworth addition in which compressive residual stress decreases by the aging treatment. Therefore, it is assumed that higher compressive residual stress in the matrix can reduce the wear loss in composite materials such as hyper-eutectic Al-Si alloys.

• Journal of Powder Materials
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• v.30 no.4
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• pp.339-345
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• 2023

This study investigates the melting point and brazing properties of the aluminum (Al)-copper (Cu)-silicon (Si)-tin (Sn) alloy fabricated for low-temperature brazing based on the alloy design. Specifically, the Al-20Cu-10Si-Sn alloy is examined and confirmed to possess a melting point of approximately 520℃. Analysis of the melting point of the alloy based on composition reveals that the melting temperature tends to decrease with increasing Cu and Si content, along with a corresponding decrease as the Sn content rises. This study verifies that the Al-20Cu-10Si-5Sn alloy exhibits high liquidity and favorable mechanical properties for brazing through the joint gap filling test and Vickers hardness measurements. Additionally, a powder fabricated using the Al-20Cu-10Si-5Sn alloy demonstrates a melting point of around 515℃ following melting point analysis. Consequently, it is deemed highly suitable for use as a low-temperature Al brazing material.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Heat Treatment
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• v.13 no.6
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• pp.391-397
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• 2000

Addition of Ca element and nonequilibrium heat treatment which promotes shape modification of eutectic Si and ${\beta}$ intermetallic compound were conducted to improve the mechanical properties of Al-Si-Cu alloy. Modification of eutectic Si and dissolution of needle-shape ${\beta}$ intermetallic compounds were possible by nonequilibrium heat treatment in which specimens were held at $505^{\circ}C$ for 2 hours in Al-Si-Cu alloy with Fe. Owing to the decrease in aspect ratio of eutectic Si by the heat treatment of the alloy with 0.33wt.% Fe, the increase in elongation was prominent to be more than double that in the as-cast specimen. Dissolution of needle-shape ${\beta}$ intermetallic compounds in the alloy with 0.85wt.% Fe led to the improvement of tensile strength as the length of ${\beta}$ compounds decreased to 50%.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Heat Treatment
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• v.31 no.3
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• pp.97-103
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• 2018

The objective of this study is to develop the mechanical properties of AlSiCu aluminum alloy by the two-step solution heat treatment. The microstructure of gravity casting specimen represents a typical dendrite structure having a secondary dendrite arm spacing (SDAS) of 40 mm. In addition to the Al matrix, a large amount of coarsen eutectic Si phase, $Al_2Cu$ intermetallic phase, and Fe-rich phases are generated. The eutectic Si phases are fragmented and globularized with solution heat treatment. Also, the $Al_2Cu$ intermetallic phase is resolutionized into the Al matrix. The $2^{nd}$ solution temperature at $525^{\circ}C$ might be a optimum condition for enhancement of mechanical properties of AlSiCu aluminum alloy.

• Korean Journal of Materials Research
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• v.31 no.11
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• pp.642-648
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• 2021

The precipitation effect of Al-6%Si-0.4%Mg-0.9%Cu-(Ti) alloy (in wt.%) after various heat treatments was studied using a laser flash device (LFA) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). Solid solution treatment was performed at 535 ℃ for 6 h, followed by water cooling, and samples were artificially aged in air at 180 ℃ and 220 ℃ for 5 h. The titanium-free alloy Al-6%Si-0.4%Mg-0.9%Cu showed higher thermal diffusivity than did the Al-6%Si-0.4%Mg-0.9%Cu-0.2%Ti alloy over the entire temperature range. In the temperature ranges below 200 ℃ and above 300 ℃, the value of thermal diffusivity decreased with increasing temperature. As the sample temperature increased between 200 ℃ and 400 ℃, phase precipitation occurred. From the results of DSC analysis, the temperature dependence of the change in thermal diffusivity in the temperature range between 200 ℃ and 400 ℃ was strongly influenced by the precipitation of θ'-Al₂Cu, β'-Mg₂Si, and Si phases. The most important factor in the temperature dependence of thermal diffusivity was Si precipitation.

• Journal of Powder Materials
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• v.30 no.6
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• pp.470-477
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• 2023

The effects of annealing on the microstructure and mechanical properties of Al-Zn-Mg-Cu-Si alloys fabricated by high-energy ball milling (HEBM) and spark plasma sintering (SPS) were investigated. The HEBM-free sintered alloy primarily contained Mg₂Si, Q-AlCuMgSi, and Si phases. Meanwhile, the HEBM-sintered alloy contains Mg-free Si and θ-Al₂Cu phases due to the formation of MgO, which causes Mg depletion in the Al matrix. Annealing without and with HEBM at 500℃ causes partial dissolution and coarsening of the Q-AlCuMgSi and Mg₂Si phases in the alloy and dissolution of the θ-Al₂Cu phase in the alloy, respectively. In both alloys, a thermally stable α-AlFeSi phase was formed after long-term heat treatment. The grain size of the sintered alloys with and without HEBM increased from 0.5 to 1.0 ㎛ and from 2.9 to 6.3 ㎛, respectively. The hardness of the sintered alloy increases after annealing for 1 h but decreases significantly after 24 h of annealing. Extending the annealing time to 168 h improved the hardness of the alloy without HEBM but had little effect on the alloy with HEBM. The relationship between the microstructural factors and the hardness of the sintered and annealed alloys is discussed.

• Transactions of Materials Processing
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• v.29 no.3
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• pp.135-143
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• 2020

Low-cost alloying elements were added to a modified Al-6.5Si alloy and its microstructure, tensile and impact toughness properties were investigated. The alloying elements added were Mg, Zn, and Cu, and two kinds of alloy A (Mg:0.5, Zn:1, Cu:1.5 wt.%) and alloy B (Mg:2, Zn:1.5, Cu:2 wt.%) were prepared. In the as-cast Al-6.5Si alloys, Si phases were distributed at the dendrite interfaces, and Al₂Cu, Mg₂Si, Al₆ (Fe,Mn) and Al₅ (Fe,Mn)Si precipitates were also observed. The size and fraction of casting defects were measured to be higher for alloy A than for alloy B. The secondary dendrite arm spacing of alloy B was finer than that of alloy A. It was confirmed by the JMatPro S/W that the cooling rate of alloy B could be more rapid than alloy A. The alloy B had higher hardness and strength compared to the values of alloy A. However, the alloy A showed better impact toughness than alloy B. Based on the above results, the deformation mechanism of Al-6.5Si alloy and the improving method for mechanical properties were also discussed.

• Korean Journal of Materials Research
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• v.33 no.9
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• pp.353-359
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• 2023

This study investigated the growth behavior and characteristics of compounds formed at the interface between a liquid Al-Si-Cu alloy and solid cast iron. Through microstructural analyses, it was observed that various AlFe and AlFeSi phases are formed at the interface, and the relative proportion of each phase changes when small amounts of strontium are added to the Al alloy. The results of the microstructural analysis indicate that the primary phases of the interfacial compounds in the Al-Si-Cu base alloy are Al₈Fe₂Si and Al_4.5FeSi. However, in the Sr-added alloys, significant amounts of binary AlFe intermetallic compounds such as Al₅Fe₂ and Al₁₃Fe₄ formed, in addition to the AlFeSi phases. The inclusion of Sr has a slight diminishing effect on the rate at which the interfacial compounds layer thickens during the time the liquid Al alloy is in contact with the cast iron. The study also discusses the nano-indentation hardness and micro-hardness of the interfacial phases.