Accelerated coarsening of precipitates in crept Al–Cu alloys

The coarsening behavior of precipitates was investigated of an over-aged Al–2 mass% Cu alloy during creep with a special reference to the effect of creep strain. Comparison of the mean precipitate size between grip and gauge parts showed that the creep strain enhanced the growth of precipitates during creep. This fact suggests strongly that the motion of dislocations with solute atmosphere promotes the transport of solutes via dislocation core.