Studying recovery processes in a strain-hardened Al–Mg–Mn–Fe–Si alloy

Abstract

The material of a shell structure subjected to 20-year use under ambient conditions has been studied. The structure and mechanical characteristics of a strain-hardened AMg6 alloy, as well as the effect of subsequent holdings of this alloy for 10–3000 h at temperatures of 50, 70, 80, 100, 130, 150, 180, and 220°C, on changes in its dislocation structure and mechanical characteristics have been investigated. It has been shown that, in the structures under study, the AMg6 alloy has a cellular structure with a high density of dislocations and the ultimate strength σ_u = 445.5 ± 2.5 MPa, the proof stress σ_0.2 = 326.5 ± 3.5 MPa, and the relative elongation δ = 11.7 ± 0.5%. Polygonization in the alloy occurs at a temperature of 220°C and the initial stage of the recovery process corresponds to a temperature range of 50–100°С in which the softening process can be divided into two stages, i.e., stage (1) of active softening due to the interaction of point defects with each other and stage (2) of the stabilization of the characteristics of the alloy.