Grain Refinement and Mechanical Properties of Magnesium Alloy by Hydrogenation Treatment

Abstract

Taking advantage of useful characteristics of magnesium such as magnesium alloy reacts with hydrogen to produce readily magnesium hydrides, this study aims to subject a material to multiple strains and refine its structure while making it undergo sever strain treatment following recrystallization treatment. In order to refine the structure of AZ61 alloy in advance, hot alternative forging was carried out as a preprocessing step, followed by the increase of its hydrogen absorption. Under a hydrogen pressure of 0.4 MPa, hydrogen penetrated 5 mm deep. The production area of hydrides compounds was 1.5 mm deep and the surface layer was refined few microns in diameter. The structure composition remained the same even after dehydrogenation. However, the tensile strength of the material increased about 20% than untreated material, indicating that surface refinement by hydrogenation treatment can increase the strength of AZ61 alloy.