| Aluminum cast components have been widely used in many applications for over the past twenty years. The demands made by the transportation industry for light weight components (in order to reduce fuel consumption) has led to an increased use of aluminum alloys in the production of a wide variety of castings including critical components such as engine blocks and cylinderheads. Among these, Al-Si alloys are the most popular commercial alloys used for these applications, due to their high strength-to-weight ratio, high tensile and fatigue properties, and excellent corrosion and wear resistance. The addition of Si provides excellent castability and high resistance to hot-tearing, while the presence of alloying elements such as magnesium and copper offer the ability to heat treat Al-Si castings to high strength levels, which make them suitable for the production of high-stress components for the automotive, aircraft and defense industries. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)... |
