Regarding the processing associated microstructure and mechanical properties improvement of an Al-4.5 Cu alloy

In the present study, an Al-4.5 wt. % Cu alloy was synthesized using a casting technique and a new disintegrated melt deposition technique. Microstructural characterization studies conducted on the samples taken from disintegrated melt deposition technique revealed a relatively more equiaxed grain morphology when compared to the cast samples. Microporosity, which is unavoidable for the columnar-equiaxed matrix microstructure was found to be less in case of disintegrated melt deposited samples when compared to the cast samples. Results of ambient temperature mechanical tests demonstrate that disintegrated melt deposited samples exhibited similar 0.2% yield stress, 1.52 times ultimate tensile strength and 3.69 times ductility when compared to the cast samples. An attempt is made to correlate the results of microstructural characterization and mechanical testing with the nature of processing technique employed to synthesize Al-4.5 wt. % Cu alloy. (C) 1997 Elsevier Science S.A.