"Evolution of Fe-bearing Intermetallic Particles After Thermo-mechanical Processing" 

Satyaroop Patnaik, MSE PhD Candidate 

Advisor: Professor Nikhilesh Chawla

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ABSTRACT

Iron has very low solid solubility in aluminum, which results in the precipitation of Fe-bearing intermetallic particles (Fe-IMPs) in aluminum alloys during solidification. These Fe-IMPs are hard compounds and have complex morphologies, some of which are sharp and needle-like and detrimental to aluminum alloys' mechanical performance and formability. The composition of the Fe-IMPs controls their morphology and mechanical properties. With increasing emphasis on sustainability, aluminum alloys with high recycled contents are being developed. Iron contamination is inevitable in recycled aluminum, which leads to increased contents of Fe-IMPs in alloys. It is then important to understand the correlation between composition-morphology and composition-mechanical properties of Fe-IMPs. Furthermore, the phase, morphology and mehcnical properties evolve with thermo-mechnical processing steps such as homogenization and rolling. It is essential to track the evolution of Fe-IMPs through these steps to design alloys with non-detrimental Fe-IMPs. This presentation will cover the current understanding of composition-morphology-mechanical properties relationships of Fe-IMPs and the advancements in understanding their evolution through different thermo-mechanical processing steps.