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Lath-like phases formed at an extremely high temperature in a Mg–RE (RE = rare earth)–Al alloy

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Abstract

Thermal stable intermetallic particles are important for the heat resistance of magnesium (Mg) alloys. In this work, many lath-like particles formed in α-Mg grains of a Mg–8Gd–3Sm–0.7Al casting alloy when heat-treated at 873 K. Atomic-resolution high-angle annular dark field scanning transmission electron microscopy (HAADF-STEM) characterizations indicate that most of them are Mg-containing Al2(Gd,Sm), with the atomic ratio of Mg:Al:(Gd,Sm) being ~ 1:1:1; a small part of them with relatively wider thickness are long-period stacking ordered (LPSO) phases simultaneously containing both 14H and 18R structures. Both followed common orientation relationships with Mg matrix as those reported in previous work. In addition, many Mg laths were observed in the primary blocky Al2(Gd,Sm) phase at grain boundaries, where the atomic ratio of Al:(Gd,Sm) in the Al2(Gd,Sm) matrix was 2:1. Finally, density functional theory (DFT) calculations illustrated the detail structure of the re-constructed Mg/Al2RE interface and simultaneously deduced the underlying reason for the re-dissolution of the newly formed Mg-containing Al2(Gd,Sm) plates in α-Mg matrix.

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摘要

热学稳定金属间颗粒对于耐热镁合金至关重要。本研究发现，在873 K下进行热处理，在Mg-8Gd-3Sm-0.7Al铸造合金的α-Mg晶粒内会生成大量板条状颗粒。原子级高角环形暗场扫描透射电镜表征表明大部分板条状相都是含Mg的Al2(Gd,Sm)相，其Mg:Al:(Gd,Sm)原子比约为1:1:1；另有一小部分厚度较宽的板条状相是长周期有序堆垛相，同时包含14H和18R两种结构。这两种板条状相都与基体保持确定的位向关系，此前已有文献报道。此外，在晶界上还有很多初生Al2(Gd,Sm) 颗粒，其Al:(Gd,Sm)原子比约为2:1。最后，相应的密度泛函理论计算结果揭示了重构的Mg/Al2RE界面的精细结构，同时推导出了在α-Mg基体中新生成的Al2(Gd,Sm)片状结构会再次溶解的根本原因。

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Acknowledgements

This work was financially supported by the Scientific and Technological Developing Scheme of Jilin Province (Nos. YDZJ202301ZYTS538 and 20220101239JC), the Chinese Academy of Sciences Youth Innovation Promotion Association (No. 2023234), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. U21A20323), the Scientific and Technological Developing Scheme of Jilin Province (No. SKL202302038) and the Major Scientific and Technological Projects of Hebei Province (No. 23291001Z), and the Scientific and Technology Project of Hanjiang District.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Materials Science and Engineering, Changchun University of Science and Technology, Changchun, 130022, China

    Bo Deng, Shu-Hui Lv & Jun-Yuan Fan

  2. State Key Laboratory of Rare Earth Resource Utilization, Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Changchun, 130022, China

    Bo Deng, Qiang Yang, Dong-Yue Zhao & Xin Qiu

  3. Chongqing Research Institute, Changchun University of Science and Technology, Chongqing, 401135, China

    Shu-Hui Lv

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  1. Bo Deng
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Deng, B., Lv, SH., Yang, Q. et al. Lath-like phases formed at an extremely high temperature in a Mg–RE (RE = rare earth)–Al alloy. Rare Met. (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12598-024-02785-8

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