Mechanical Properties of AZ31 Magnesium Alloy Under Severe Plastic Deformation Through Rolling and Heat Treatment Affects

AZ31 Magnesium alloy is a light alloy consisting of 96 wt% magnesium, 3 wt% aluminum, and 1 wt% zinc that is 34% lighter than aluminum with fairly good strength and other properties. However, the ductility is poor due to its HCP structure that does not satisfy the Taylor Criterion for independent slip planes. Research into how to improve the strength and ductility through plastic deformation was conducted at University of Nevada in Reno. Different sizes of AZ31B were received from a Chinese magnesium company. Each size went through severe plastic deformation by rolling at different temperatures. Most of the sample went through annealing at different temperatures for different times. The mechanical properties and microstructure of each sample were collected. These samples were compared to one another with the control samples to determine any effects from the severe plastic deformation and/or heat treatment affects.;From the analysis of the data collected, there was a correlation between the mechanical properties, annealing temperature, and annealing time. The mechanical properties were higher at lower annealing temperatures than at the higher annealing temperatures. In addition, there was a drastic increase in all mechanical properties between 3 and 5 hours of annealing for an unknown reason. Precipitates are seen within the microstructure of some of the samples. Most of the microstructures showed equiaxed grains throughout the majority of the samples. The grains that were not equiaxed showed elongation due to the extrusion process and possibly from the rolling process.