Study of Rapid Heating effects on Mechanical Properties and Microstructure of Aluminum Alloys

Heat treatment of metals and alloys can be improved by advanced methods of rapid heating using induction, laser, salt bath and infrared radiation. Application of rapid heating enhances the diffusion-controlled processes such as nucleation and growth of the second phases formed during precipitation hardening of aluminum alloys. In this study in order to observe the effect of rapid heating on mechanical properties of AA7075 and AA2024, precipitation hardening was performed in two furnaces, conventional and infrared. Mechanical properties and microstructure of alloys were studied and compared. Results showed hardness and strength of both alloys increased by using rapid heating. It was also observed that aging time was decreased from 24h for heating in conventional furnace to 2h when using infrared furnace for 7075 Al alloy. For 2024 Al alloy reduction in aging time was observed from 12h in conventional furnace to 1h in infrared one (more than 90% reduction in aging time). It was found that production costs were highly reduced when using infrared furnaces.

Keywords:

Rapid heating , Infrared radiation , Diffusion , Heat treatment