Effect of micro-alloying La on precipitation behavior, mechanical properties and electrical conductivity of Al-Mg-Si alloys

The rapid industrial development calls for alloys that possess higher comprehensive properties. In this study, the effect of microalloying La addition on the precipitation behavior during artificial aging as well as the mechanical properties and electrical conductivity of Al-Mg-Si alloys were investigated by thermal analysis, microstructural characterizations and properties tests.The results demonstrated that micro-alloying La addition does not change the whole precipitation sequence during the artificial aging of Al-Mg-Si alloys as well as the atomic structure of the precipitates. However, the higher La-vacancy binding energy as well as the strong La-Si and La-Mg interactions can decrease the solubility of Si and Mg in the Al matrix and the β″ precipitation activation energy from 89.9 to 76.7 kJ/mol, leading to the improvement of the strength and electrical conductivity of Al-Mg-Si alloys simultaneously. The microstructural features affecting the strength and electrical conductivity were theoretically discussed in terms of the La addition.