To obtain high strength and high electrical conductivity at the same time, the microstructure and properties of 0.2 wt.% V-added, 0.1 wt.% V-added and V-free Cu-1.6Ni-1.2Co-0.65Si(-V) alloys were investigated. We examined with electrical conductivity and hardness measurements, tensile test, optical microscope and transmission electron microscope (TEM). The results show that Cu-1.6Ni-1.2Co-0.65Si-0.1V alloy obtains excellent combination properties: electrical conductivity is 46.12% IACS, hardness is 293.88 Hv, and tensile strength is 782 MPa, which are produced by 65% cold rolling + aging at 500 °C for 480 min. The addition of vanadium (V) can accelerate the precipitation of solute atoms from the copper matrix, improve the hardness and electrical conductivity of Cu-1.6Ni-1.2Co-0.65Si alloys, and greatly accelerated the aging response. δ-(Co,Ni)2Si and β-Ni3Si phases are detected in Cu-1.6Ni-1.2Co-0.65Si-0.1V alloy. The Orowan mechanism and grain boundary strengthening play a major role in the yield strength strengthening due to δ-(Co,Ni)2Si phase.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.