An Investigation on the Correlation Between Microstructure, Texture, and Mechanical Properties of Mg and its Alloys

Abstract

The effects of microstructure and texture on the mechanical properties of Mg and its alloys have been investigated in the present study. Samples, such as pure Mg, AM30 (Mg–3 wt.% Al−0.3 wt.% Mn), and AME300 (Mg–3 wt.% Al–0.3 wt.% Mn–0.2 wt.% Ce) alloys, were used for the investigation. The samples in the form of hot-rolled plates were subjected to annealing to characterize their microstructures, textures, and mechanical properties. The results revealed that the ductility of pure Mg is dependent on the reduction in basal texture intensity, and its tensile strength is dependent on the average grain sizes of the samples. However, the optimum combination of strength and ductility can be achieved in pure Mg after annealing at 300 °C for 15 min. Similarly, the same can be achieved in AM30 alloys after annealing at 400 °C for 480 min, and in AME300 alloys after annealing at 450 °C for 10 min. However, these Mg alloys after annealing at lower temperatures (i.e., 200 and 300 °C) did not show any correlation between grain size, texture, and mechanical properties of the alloys. This has been attributed to the presence of precipitates in the alloys. It was further found that AME300 alloy had the best combination of tensile strength and ductility compared to AM30 and pure Mg after annealing.