Microstructure and mechanical properties of Al–xMg alloys processed by room temperature ECAP

Microstructure development and mechanical properties of Al–xMg alloys (x = 0, 1, 5–10 wt%), processed by ECAP at room temperature, have been investigated. The results show that the microstructures of Al–xMg alloys are refined by the interaction of shear bands and their increase in number during ECAP. The addition of magnesium to aluminum promotes the grain refinement. Misorientation increase induced by particles along grain boundaries is observed by using high resolution EBSD. As ECAP strain increases up to 4, the strength of Al–6 wt% Mg alloy increases progressively while the elongation decreases from 31.7% to 5.5%. A good combination of both strength and ductility has been obtained by annealed ECAP. The change in softening mechanism of the Al–6 wt% Mg alloy, processed by 6 passes of annealed ECAP, occurs in the range of 523–573 K.