The Occurrence of a Peripheral Coarse Grain Zone (PCGZ) in Extruded Bars of AA 7108

Abstract

Industrial-scale extruded profiles of AA 7108 with a rectangular section (25.60 mm x 15.95 mm) were used in this investigation. Some complementary microstructural analysis techniques, such as polarized light microscopy, EBSD (Electron Backscatter Diffraction) and X-ray diffraction were used to characterize the microstructure, focusing on the PCG zone. It was observed that the extruded profiles presented a totally recrystallized microstructure and a 300 μm layer of peripheral coarse grains. Additionally, the results showed that the PCGZ predominant grain orientation {311} <110> differs from the texture below the PCGZ (Goss and Cube components).