Mechanical characterization of Al-5Cu-XSc (x= 0.5 and 1.0) alloys production by using induction melting and melt spinning techniques

Al-5Cu is a 2xxx series Al-based alloy group and has a wide range of applications in the automotive and aerospace industries where light weight is required. The most prominent properties of Al-5Cu alloys are low density, high melting temperature, good thermal conductivity, high strength and toughness. In this study, it was aimed to improve the mechanical properties of Al-5Cu alloy. For this purpose, Al-5Cu alloy with 0.5 and 1.0 wt% of Scandium was produced by induction melting and melt spinning methods. From the X-ray diffraction analysis, Al and Al2Cu phases were observed in Al-5Cu alloy. Besides these phases, Cu2Sc phase was detected in Sc doped alloys. In ribbon alloys, diffraction peaks were found to be sharper. In the scanning electron microscope analysis, it was observed that the Sc addition significantly reduced the microstructure of the ingot alloys. In addition, metastable θ'-Al2Cu phases with needle-like shape were observed in Sc doped alloys. In the ribbon alloys, the microstructure was found to consist entirely of equiaxed and homogeneous grains. The nano indentation and tensile test results showed that the Sc element greatly improved the mechanical properties of the Al-5Cu alloy. The improvement in the mechanical properties of the alloys was explained by grain size hardening and precipitation hardening mechanisms.