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Research Progress in High-Performance Magnesium Alloy and Its Applications

A special issue of Materials (ISSN 1996-1944). This special issue belongs to the section "Metals and Alloys".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (10 May 2023) | Viewed by 24376

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Special Issue Editor

Institute of Metal Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 62 Wencui Road, Shenyang 110016, China
Interests: control of microstructure and properties of magnesium alloy and development and application of its forming process; service performance and damage mechanism of bearing steel

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Magnesium is abundant in the Earth’s crust and seawater. Mg alloy is the lightest metallic structural material, with the advantages of high specific strength, high specific stiffness, good electromagnetism shield, good damping capacity, good machinability, easy recycling, etc. Therefore, it has extremely broad application prospects and has drawn considerable interest in the fields of automobile, electronics, electrical appliances, transportation, aerospace, aviation, and the national defense military industry. However, low strength, poor ductility and workability, and high susceptibility to corrosion strongly limit its applications. In recent years, some remarkable progress has been achieved in the study and development of Mg alloys. The ultimate tensile strength of bulk high-strength Mg alloys can reach 710 MPa. The elongation to failure at room temperature of rolled sheets of Mg alloys with high ductility can be nearly 50%. Corrosion resistance from the environment is also believed to occur in a Mg–Li alloys. In addition, Mg alloys are gradually showing application potential in emerging industry, such as biodegradable metals in the biomedical field, functional material for hydrogen storage, and so on.

This Special Issue will compile recent developments and excellent results in the field of Mg alloys to accelerate the large-scale application of Mg alloys. The articles presented in this Special Issue will cover but are not limited to the following topics: alloy development, microstructural evolution and mechanical properties, solidification and cast alloys, deformation and wrought alloys, welding and joining, corrosion and surface treatment, modeling and simulation, primary production and recycling, biomedical and functional applications, etc.

Dr. Di Wu
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • alloy development
  • microstructural evolution and mechanical properties
  • solidification and cast alloys
  • deformation and wrought alloys
  • welding and joining
  • corrosion and surface treatment
  • modeling and simulation
  • primary production and recycling
  • biomedical and functional applications

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Published Papers (11 papers)

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Editorial

Jump to: Research, Review

3 pages, 176 KiB  
Editorial
Research Progress in High-Performance Magnesium Alloy and Its Applications
by Di Wu and Jinguo Li
Materials 2023, 16(15), 5460; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma16155460 - 4 Aug 2023
Viewed by 1479
Abstract
Magnesium is abundant in the Earth’s crust and seawater [...] Full article

Research

Jump to: Editorial, Review

15 pages, 25836 KiB  
Article
Study on Microstructural Evolution and Mechanical Properties of Mg-3Sn-1Mn-xLa Alloy by Backward Extrusion
by Xuefei Zhang, Baoyi Du and Yuejie Cao
Materials 2023, 16(13), 4588; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma16134588 - 25 Jun 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1110
Abstract
Mg-3Sn-1Mn-xLa alloy bars were prepared using backward extrusion, and the effects of the La content on the microstructures and mechanical properties of the alloy were systematically studied using an optical microscope (OM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscope (SEM), transmission electron microscope (TEM), [...] Read more.
Mg-3Sn-1Mn-xLa alloy bars were prepared using backward extrusion, and the effects of the La content on the microstructures and mechanical properties of the alloy were systematically studied using an optical microscope (OM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscope (SEM), transmission electron microscope (TEM), and tensile tests. The results of this research show that the Mg2Sn phases were mainly formed at the α-Mg grain boundaries and within the grains in the Mg-3Sn-1Mn alloy. After adding a certain amount of La, the plate-shaped MgSnLa compounds consisting of Mg17La2, Mg2Sn, and La5Sn3 gradually disappeared in the α-Mg matrix and grain boundaries. With an increase in La content, the Mg2Sn phase in the crystal was gradually refined and spheroidized. When the content of La reached 1.5%, the tensile strength of the alloy reached 300 Mpa and the elongation reached 12.6%, i.e., 25% and 85% increases, respectively, compared to the Mg-3Sn-1Mn alloy. The plate-shaped compound of Mg-3Sn-1Mn-1.5La had an average length of 3000 ± 50 nm, while the width was 350 ± 10 nm. Meanwhile, the extruded alloy’s grain size was significantly refined, and there were many small cleavage steps and dimples in the fracture surface of the alloy. When the La content reached 2%, the alloy performance showed a downward trend due to the coarsening of the grains. The formed plate-shaped MgSnLa compounds and Mg2Sn phases were consistent with the α-Mg matrix. They effectively pinned the dislocations and grain boundaries, which is the main reason for strengthening the mechanical properties of extrusion alloys. Full article
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14 pages, 8179 KiB  
Article
Twinning Behavior, Microstructure Evolution and Mechanical Property of Random-Orientated ZK60 Mg Alloy Compressed at Room Temperature
by Chengyu Zhang, Di Wu, Yanda He, Wenyu Pan, Jianqiu Wang and Enhou Han
Materials 2023, 16(3), 1163; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma16031163 - 30 Jan 2023
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 1878
Abstract
In this study, the uniaxial compression of random orientation ZK60 Mg alloy to different strains was performed at room temperature. The microstructure evolution was characterized mainly using electron backscattered diffraction (EBSD), and the mechanical property was evaluated by the Vickers hardness test. During [...] Read more.
In this study, the uniaxial compression of random orientation ZK60 Mg alloy to different strains was performed at room temperature. The microstructure evolution was characterized mainly using electron backscattered diffraction (EBSD), and the mechanical property was evaluated by the Vickers hardness test. During compression, extension twins nucleated, grew, and engulfed the grain. Twins form a texture with the c-axis parallel to the compression direction. With the massive nucleation and expansion of extension twins during compression, the twin boundary (TB) brought the grain refinement, and the twin boundary-dislocation interaction significantly increased the strain hardening rate of ZK60 Mg alloy, both leading to its significantly increasement of the hardness. Full article
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17 pages, 7189 KiB  
Article
Establishment of Constitutive Model and Analysis of Dynamic Recrystallization Kinetics of Mg-Bi-Ca Alloy during Hot Deformation
by Qinghang Wang, Li Wang, Haowei Zhai, Yang Chen and Shuai Chen
Materials 2022, 15(22), 7986; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma15227986 - 11 Nov 2022
Cited by 9 | Viewed by 1586
Abstract
The flow behavior of the solution-treated Mg-3.2Bi-0.8Ca (BX31, wt.%) alloy was systematically investigated during hot compression at different deformation conditions. In the present study, the strain-related Arrhenius constitutive model and dynamic recrystallization (DRX) kinetic model were established, and the results showed that both [...] Read more.
The flow behavior of the solution-treated Mg-3.2Bi-0.8Ca (BX31, wt.%) alloy was systematically investigated during hot compression at different deformation conditions. In the present study, the strain-related Arrhenius constitutive model and dynamic recrystallization (DRX) kinetic model were established, and the results showed that both two models had high predictability for the flow curves and the DRX behavior during hot compression. In addition, the hot processing maps were also made to confirm a suitable hot working range. Under the assistance of a hot processing map, the extrusion parameters were selected as 573 K and 0.5 mm/s. After extrusion, the as-extruded alloy exhibited a smooth surface, a fine DRX structure with weak off-basal texture and good strength–ductility synergy. The newly developed strong and ductile BX31 alloy will be helpful for enriching low-cost, high-performance wrought Mg alloy series for extensive applications in industries. Full article
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17 pages, 47990 KiB  
Article
Microstructures and Properties of Al-Mg Alloys Manufactured by WAAM-CMT
by Yan Liu, Zhaozhen Liu, Guishen Zhou, Chunlin He and Jun Zhang
Materials 2022, 15(15), 5460; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma15155460 - 8 Aug 2022
Cited by 14 | Viewed by 2712
Abstract
A wire arc additive manufacturing system, based on cold metal transfer technology, was utilized to manufacture the Al-Mg alloy walls. ER5556 wire was used as the filler metal to deposit Al-Mg alloys layer by layer. Based on the orthogonal experiments, the process parameters [...] Read more.
A wire arc additive manufacturing system, based on cold metal transfer technology, was utilized to manufacture the Al-Mg alloy walls. ER5556 wire was used as the filler metal to deposit Al-Mg alloys layer by layer. Based on the orthogonal experiments, the process parameters of the welding current, welding speed and gas flow, as well as interlayer residence time, were adjusted to investigate the microstructure, phase composition and crystal orientation as well as material properties of Al-Mg alloyed additive. The results show that the grain size of Al-Mg alloyed additive becomes smaller with the decrease of welding current or increased welding speed. It is easier to obtain the additive parts with better grain uniformity with the increase of gas flow or interlayer residence time. The phase composition of Al-Mg alloyed additive consists of α-Al matrix and γ (Al12Mg17) phase. The eutectic reaction occurs during the additive manufacturing process, and the liquefying film is formed on the α-Al matrix and coated on the γ phase surface. The crystal grows preferentially along the <111> and <101> orientations. When the welding current is 90 A, the welding speed is 700 mm/min, the gas flow is 22.5 L/min and the interlayer residence time is 5 min, the Al-Mg alloy additive obtains the highest tensile strength. Under the optimal process parameters, the average grain size of Al-Mg alloyed additive is 25 μm, the transverse tensile strength reaches 382 MPa, the impact absorption energy is 26 J, and the corrosion current density is 3.485 × 10−6 A·cm−2. Both tensile and impact fracture modes of Al-Mg alloyed additive are ductile fractures. From the current view, the Al-Mg alloys manufactured by WAAM-CMT have a better performance than those produced by the traditional casting process. Full article
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29 pages, 22337 KiB  
Article
Simultaneously Improving Ductility and Stretch Formability of Mg-3Y Sheet via High Temperature Cross-Rolling and Subsequent Short-Term Annealing
by Yinyang Wang, Chen Liu, Yu Fu, Yongdong Xu, Zhiwen Shao, Xiaohu Chen and Xiurong Zhu
Materials 2022, 15(13), 4712; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma15134712 - 5 Jul 2022
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1920
Abstract
In this work, Mg-3Y sheet was prepared by high temperature cross-rolling and subsequent short-term annealing. The effect of annealing on microstructure, texture, mechanical properties, and stretch formability of Mg-3Y sheet was primarily investigated. Micro-nano size coexistence of β-Mg24Y5 phases can [...] Read more.
In this work, Mg-3Y sheet was prepared by high temperature cross-rolling and subsequent short-term annealing. The effect of annealing on microstructure, texture, mechanical properties, and stretch formability of Mg-3Y sheet was primarily investigated. Micro-nano size coexistence of β-Mg24Y5 phases can be well deformed with matrix. The as-rolled Mg-3Y sheet exhibited a homogeneous deformation microstructure consisting of deformed grains with extensive kink bands and dispersed β-Mg24Y5 phases. A double peak texture character appeared in as-rolled Mg-3Y sheet with a split of the texture peaks of about ±20° tilted to rolling direction. After annealing, the as-annealed Mg-3Y sheet presented complete static recrystallized (SRXed) microstructure consisting of uniform equiaxed grains. The texture orientation distribution was more dispersed and a weakened multiple-peak texture orientation distribution appeared. In addition, the maximum intensity of basal plane decreased from 5.2 to 3.1. The change of texture character was attributed to static recrystallization (SRX) induced by kink bands and grain boundaries. The as-annealed Mg-3Y sheet with high Schmid factor (SF) for basal <a> slip, prismatic <a> slip, pyramidal <a> slip, and pyramidal <c+a> slip exhibited high ductility (~25.6%). Simultaneously, enhanced activity of basal <a> slip and randomized grain orientation played a significant role in decreasing anisotropy for the as-annealed Mg-3Y sheet, which contributed to the formation of high stretch formability (~6.2 mm) at room temperature. Full article
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11 pages, 2010 KiB  
Article
Casting Welding from Magnesium Alloy Using Filler Materials That Contain Scandium
by Vadym Shalomeev, Galyna Tabunshchyk, Viktor Greshta, Kinga Korniejenko, Martin Duarte Guigou and Sławomir Parzych
Materials 2022, 15(12), 4213; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma15124213 - 14 Jun 2022
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 1694
Abstract
Based on the results achieved in systematic studies of structure formation and the formation of multicomponent phases, a scandium-containing filler metal from system alloy Mg-Zr-Nd for welding of aircraft casting was developed. The influence of scandium in magnesium filler alloy on its mechanical [...] Read more.
Based on the results achieved in systematic studies of structure formation and the formation of multicomponent phases, a scandium-containing filler metal from system alloy Mg-Zr-Nd for welding of aircraft casting was developed. The influence of scandium in magnesium filler alloy on its mechanical and special properties, such as long-term strength at elevated temperatures, was studied by the authors. It is established that modification of the magnesium alloy with scandium in an amount between 0.05 and 0.07% allows a fine-grained structure to be obtained, which increases its plasticity up to 70% and heat resistance up to 1.8 times due to the formation of complex intermetallic phases and the microalloying of the solid solution. Welding of the aircraft castings made of magnesium alloy with scandium-containing filler material allows obtaining a weld with a dense homogeneous fusion zone and the surrounding area without any defects. The developed filler material for welding surface defects (cracks, chips, etc.) formed during operation on aircraft engine bodies makes it possible to restore cast body parts and reuse them. The proposed filler material composition with an improved set of properties for the welding of body castings from Mg-Zr-Nd system alloy for aircraft engines makes it possible to increase their reliability and durability in general, extend the service life of aircraft engines, and obtain a significant economic effect. Full article
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10 pages, 4072 KiB  
Article
Ignition and Combustion Characteristic of B·Mg Alloy Powders
by Yusong Ma, Kaichuang Zhang, Shizhou Ma, Jinyan He, Xiqiang Gai and Xinggao Zhang
Materials 2022, 15(8), 2717; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma15082717 - 7 Apr 2022
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2053
Abstract
Boron and its alloys have been explored a lot and it is expected that they can replace pure aluminum powder in the energetic formulation of active materials. MgB2 compounds were prepared and characterized by a combination of mechanical alloying and heat treatment. [...] Read more.
Boron and its alloys have been explored a lot and it is expected that they can replace pure aluminum powder in the energetic formulation of active materials. MgB2 compounds were prepared and characterized by a combination of mechanical alloying and heat treatment. The ignition and combustion of boron–magnesium alloys were studied with the ignition wire method and laser ignition infrared temperature measurement. The results show that MgB2 has good ignition characteristics with maximum ignition temperatures obtained by the two various methods of 1292 K and 1293 K, respectively. Compared with boron, the ignition temperature of MgB2 is greatly reduced after alloying. The ignition reaction of MgB2 mainly occurs on the surface and the ignition process has two stages. In the initial stage of ignition, the large flame morphology and combustion state are close to the combustion with gaseous Mg, whereas the subsequent combustion process is close to the combustion process of B. Compared with boron, the ignition temperature of MgB2 is greatly reduced which suggests that MgB2 may be used in gunpowder, propellant, explosives, and pyrotechnics due to its improved ignition performance. Full article
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13 pages, 5609 KiB  
Article
Effect of the Ca2Mg6Zn3 Phase on the Corrosion Behavior of Biodegradable Mg-4.0Zn-0.2Mn-xCa Alloys in Hank’s Solution
by Junjian Fu, Wenbo Du, Ke Liu, Xian Du, Chenchen Zhao, Hongxing Liang, Adil Mansoor, Shubo Li and Zhaohui Wang
Materials 2022, 15(6), 2079; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma15062079 - 11 Mar 2022
Cited by 12 | Viewed by 2609
Abstract
The effect of the Ca2Mg6Zn3 phase on the corrosion behavior of biodegradable Mg-4.0Zn-0.2Mn-xCa (ZM-xCa, x = 0.1, 0.3, 0.5 and 1.0 wt.%) alloys in Hank’s solution was investigated with respect to phase spacing, morphology, distribution and [...] Read more.
The effect of the Ca2Mg6Zn3 phase on the corrosion behavior of biodegradable Mg-4.0Zn-0.2Mn-xCa (ZM-xCa, x = 0.1, 0.3, 0.5 and 1.0 wt.%) alloys in Hank’s solution was investigated with respect to phase spacing, morphology, distribution and volume fraction. With the increase in Ca addition, the volume fraction of the Ca2Mg6Zn3 phase increased from 2.5% to 7.6%, while its spacing declined monotonically from 43 μm to 30 μm. The Volta potentials of secondary phases relative to the Mg matrix were measured by using scanning kelvin probe force microscopy (SKPFM). The results show that the Volta potential of the intragranular spherical Ca2Mg6Zn3 phase (+109 mV) was higher than that of the dendritic Ca2Mg6Zn3 phase (+80 mV). It is suggested that the Ca2Mg6Zn3 acted as a cathode to accelerate the corrosion process due to the micro-galvanic effect. The corrosion preferred to occur around the spherical Ca2Mg6Zn3 phase at the early stage and developed into the intragranular region. The corrosion rate increased slightly with increasing Ca content from 0.1 wt.% to 0.5 wt.% because of the enhanced micro-galvanic corrosion effect. The decrease in the phase spacing and sharp increase in the secondary phase content resulted in a dramatic increase in the corrosion rate of the ZM-1.0Ca alloy. Full article
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12 pages, 5081 KiB  
Article
Achieving High-Strength and Toughness in a Mg-Gd-Y Alloy Using Multidirectional Impact Forging
by Songhe Lu, Di Wu, Ming Yan and Rongshi Chen
Materials 2022, 15(4), 1508; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma15041508 - 17 Feb 2022
Cited by 9 | Viewed by 2130
Abstract
High strength and toughness are achieved in the Mg-4.96Gd-2.44Y-0.43Zr alloy by multidirectional impact forging (MDIF). The forged sample has a fine-grained microstructure with an average grain size of ~5.7 µm and a weak non-basal texture, and it was characterized by an optical microscope [...] Read more.
High strength and toughness are achieved in the Mg-4.96Gd-2.44Y-0.43Zr alloy by multidirectional impact forging (MDIF). The forged sample has a fine-grained microstructure with an average grain size of ~5.7 µm and a weak non-basal texture, and it was characterized by an optical microscope (OM), scanning electron microscope (SEM), and electron back-scattering diffraction (EBSD). Tensile results exhibit the tensile yield strength (TYS) and static toughness (ST) of as-homogenized alloy dramatically increased after forging and aging, i.e., the TYS increased from 1355+4 MPa to 3372+2 MPa, and the ST enhanced from 22.00.5+0.3 MJ/m3 to 50.45.4+5.3 MJ/m3. Specifically, the forged Mg-Gd-Y-Zr alloy owns higher TYS than that of commercial rolled WE54 (Mg-5.25Y-3.5Nd-0.5Zr) and WE43 (Mg-4.0Y-3.0Nd-0.5Zr) alloys. Full article
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Review

Jump to: Editorial, Research

18 pages, 5279 KiB  
Review
Review of the Effect of Surface Coating Modification on Magnesium Alloy Biocompatibility
by Xuan Guo, Yunpeng Hu, Kezhen Yuan and Yang Qiao
Materials 2022, 15(9), 3291; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma15093291 - 4 May 2022
Cited by 35 | Viewed by 3436
Abstract
Magnesium alloy, as an absorbable and implantable biomaterial, has been greatly developed in the application field of biomaterials in recent years due to its excellent biocompatibility and biomechanics. However, due to the poor corrosion resistance of magnesium alloy in the physiological environment, the [...] Read more.
Magnesium alloy, as an absorbable and implantable biomaterial, has been greatly developed in the application field of biomaterials in recent years due to its excellent biocompatibility and biomechanics. However, due to the poor corrosion resistance of magnesium alloy in the physiological environment, the degradation rate will be unbalanced, which seriously affects the clinical use. There are two main ways to improve the corrosion resistance of magnesium alloy: one is by adding alloying elements, the other is by surface modification technology. Compared with adding alloy elements, the surface coating modification has the following advantages: (1) The surface coating modification is carried out without changing the matrix elements of magnesium alloy, avoiding the introduction of other elements; (2) The corrosion resistance of magnesium alloy can be improved by relatively simple physical, chemical, or electrochemical improvement. From the perspective of corrosion resistance and biocompatibility of biomedical magnesium alloy materials, this paper summarizes the application and characteristics of six different surface coating modifications in the biomedical magnesium alloy field, including chemical conversion method, micro-arc oxidation method, sol-gel method, electrophoretic deposition, hydrothermal method, and thermal spraying method. In the last section, it looks forward to the development prospect of surface coating modification and points out that preparing modified coatings on the implant surface combined with various modification post-treatment technologies is the main direction to improve biocompatibility and realize clinical functionalization. Full article
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