The microstructural evolution and phase transformations have been investigated during the partial remelting of a bulk alloy prepared by the cold pressing of A356, pure Ti and pure Al powders. A dropping experiment was used to investigate the reaction kinetics of Ti powders and the Al matrix simultaneously. The results show that a semi-solid microstructure with ne and spheroidal primary α-Al particles suspended in the liquid phase could be obtained after the bulk alloy was heated to 595 C for 30 min. The microstructural evolution process was divided into four stages, involving the transformation of the powders into primary particles, the formation of a liquid phase and the increase in its amount, which results in the formation of a continuous liquid layer, the rapid coarsening of the primary particles and the increase in the liquid phase amount, and the nal coarsening of the primary particles. Chemical reactions between the Ti powders and the Al element in the matrix occurred simultaneously. Next, core-shell structured, reinforced particles composing both an intermetallic shell and a soft Ti metal core formed in situ. The compact shell subsequently ruptured and peeled off when its thickness increased to a given value for a given size of Ti powder particles. Finally, the Ti powders were consumed completely because of the formation and the subsequent peeling of the shell. Results of the dropping simulation experiment show that the reaction product layer grows in a linear kinetic manner characterized by an activation energy of 374 kJ/mol.
A new method, powder thixoforming, has been proposed to fabricate an in situ Al3Tip/2024Al composite. During partial remelting, the microstructural evolution of the bulk alloy prepared by cold pressing of the Ti, Al, 2024Al powder mixture was investigated, and the formation mechanism of the Al3Ti particles produced by the reaction between the Ti powder and the Al alloy melt is also discussed in detail. The results indicate that the microstructural evolution of the 2024 alloy matrix can be divided into three stages: a rapid coarsening of the powder grains; a formation of primary α-Al particles surrounded with a continuous liquid film; and a slight coarsening of the primary α-Al particles. Simultaneously, a reaction layer of Al3Ti can be formed on the Ti powder surface when the bulk is heated for 10 min at 640 °C The thickness (X) of the reaction layer increases with the time according to the parabolic law of X=−0.43t2+4.21t+0.17. The stress generated in the reaction layer due to the volume dilatation can be calculated by using the equation σAl3Ti=−EAl3Ti6(1−υAl3Ti)t2Al3TitTi(1R−1R0). Comparing the obtained data with the results of the drip experiment, the reaction rate for the Ti powder and Al powder mixture is greater than that for the Ti plate and Al alloy mixture, respectively.
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