Introduction to Aluminum Alloys and Tempers

© 2000 ASM International. All Rights Reserved. Introduction to Aluminum Alloys and Tempers (#06180)

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Introduction to Aluminum Alloys and Tempers

J. Gilbert Kaufman

ASM International® Materials Park, OH 44073-0002 www.asminternational.org


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No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the written permission of the copyright owner. First printing, November 2000

Great care is taken in the compilation and production of this Volume, but it should be made clear that NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, ARE GIVEN IN CONNECTION WITH THIS PUBLICATION. Although this information is believed to be accurate by ASM, ASM cannot guarantee that favorable results will be obtained from the use of this publication alone. This publication is intended for use by persons having technical skill, at their sole discretion and risk. Since the conditions of product or material use are outside of ASM’s control, ASM assumes no liability or obligation in connection with any use of this information. No claim of any kind, whether as to products or information in this publication, and whether or not based on negligence, shall be greater in amount than the purchase price of this product or publication in respect of which damages are claimed. THE REMEDY HEREBY PROVIDED SHALL BE THE EXCLUSIVE AND SOLE REMEDY OF BUYER, AND IN NO EVENT SHALL EITHER PARTY BE LIABLE FOR SPECIAL, INDIRECT OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES WHETHER OR NOT CAUSED BY OR RESULTING FROM THE NEGLIGENCE OF SUCH PARTY. As with any material, evaluation of the material under end-use conditions prior to specification is essential. Therefore, specific testing under actual conditions is recommended. Nothing contained in this book shall be construed as a grant of any right of manufacture, sale, use, or reproduction, in connection with any method, process, apparatus, product, composition, or system, whether or not covered by letters patent, copyright, or trademark, and nothing contained in this book shall be construed as a defense against any alleged infringement of letters patent, copyright, or trademark, or as a defense against liability for such infringement. Comments, criticisms, and suggestions are invited, and should be forwarded to ASM International. ASM International staff who worked on this project included Veronica Flint, Manager, Book Acquisitions; Bonnie Sanders, Manager, Production; Carol Terman, Copy Editor; Kathy Dragolich, Production Supervisor; and Scott Henry, Assistant Director, Reference Publications. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Kaufman, J. G. (John Gilbert), 1931Introducton to aluminum alloys and tempers / J. Gilbert Kaufman. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. 1. Aluminum alloys. 2. Metals—Heat treatment. I. Title. TA480.A6 K36 2000 620.1’86—dc21 00-056544 ISBN 0-87170-689-X SAN: 204-7586 ASM International® Materials Park, OH 44073-0002 http://www.asminternational.org Printed in the United States of America



Contents Preface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vii CHAPTER 1: Introduction: The Nature of the Problem . . . . . . . 1 The Keys to Understanding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Characteristics of Wrought Aluminum Alloys . . . . . . . . . . . . Characteristics of Cast Aluminum Alloys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Definitions for Aluminum and Aluminum Alloys . . . . . . . . . . Applications of Aluminum Alloys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Microscopy of Aluminum and Aluminum Alloys . . . . . . . . . . Units and Unit Conversion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

. . . . . . .

. . . . . . .

.2 .3 .5 .5 .7 .7 .7

CHAPTER 2: Aluminum Alloy and Temper Designation Systems of the Aluminum Association . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Wrought Aluminum Alloy Designation System . . . . . . . . . . . Cast Aluminum Alloys Designation System . . . . . . . . . . . . . Designations for Experimental Aluminum Alloys . . . . . . . . . . Aluminum Alloy Temper Designation System . . . . . . . . . . . . Basic Temper Designations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Subdivisions of the Basic Tempers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

. . . . . . .

. 10 . 11 . 16 . 16 . 16 . 17 . 22

CHAPTER 3: Understanding Wrought and Cast Aluminum Alloys Designations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 The Wrought Alloy Series . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . How the System is Applied . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Principal Alloying Elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Understanding Wrought Alloy Strengthening Mechanisms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Understanding Wrought Alloy Advantages and Limitations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Other Characteristics Related to Principal Alloying Element . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Understanding Wrought Alloy Variations . . . . . . . . . . . . . Links to Earlier Alloy Designations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Unified Numbering System (UNS) Alloy Designation System for Wrought Alloys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The Cast Alloy Series . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . iii

. . . 23 . . . 23 . . . 25 . . . 25 . . . 26 . . . 28 . . . 30 . . . 31 . . . 31 . . . 32



How the Current Aluminum Cast Alloy Designation System is Applied . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Understanding Cast Alloy Strengthening Mechanisms . . . . . . Understanding Cast Alloy Advantages and Limitations . . . . . Examples of the Use of Variations in Cast Alloy Designations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Alloys for Different Casting Processes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Other Characteristics Related to Composition . . . . . . . . . . . Evolution of the Aluminum Cast Alloy Designation System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . UNS Alloy Designation System for Cast Alloys . . . . . . . . . .

. 32 . 33 . 34 . 35 . 35 . 35 . 35 . 36

CHAPTER 4: Understanding the Aluminum Temper Designation System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39 Tempers for Wrought Aluminum Alloys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Review of the Basic Tempers for Wrought Alloys . . . . . . . . Subdivisions of the Basic Tempers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Tempers Designating Residual Stress Relief of Heat Treated Products . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Temper Designations Identifying Modifications in Quenching . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Designations Indicating Heat Treatment by User . . . . . . . . . Tempers Identifying Additional Cold Work between Quenching and Aging . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Tempers Identifying Additional Cold Work Following Aging . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Tempers Designating Special Corrosion-Resistant Tempers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Temper Designation for Special or Premium Properties . . . . . Tempers for Cast Aluminum Alloys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Review of the Basic Tempers for Cast Alloys . . . . . . . . . . . Subdivisions of the Basic Temper Types for Cast Alloys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Importance to Understanding Aluminum Tempers . . . . . . . . . .

. 39 . 57 . 60 . 67 . 68 . 68 . 70 . 70 . 71 . 71 . 73 . 73 . 74 . 76

CHAPTER 5: Understanding Aluminum Fabricating Processes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77 Ingot and Billet Casting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Strip and Slab Casting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Hot and Cold Rolling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Extrusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Forging . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Cast Parts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Permanent Mold Casting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Sand Casting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . iv

. . . . . . . .

. . . . . . . .

. 77 . 78 . 78 . 79 . 79 . 80 . 80 . 81



Investment Casting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Die Casting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Combinations of Casting and Forging . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Heat Treatment of Aluminum Alloys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

. . . .

. 82 . 83 . 84 . 84

CHAPTER 6: Applications for Aluminum Alloys and Tempers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87 Applications by Alloy Class . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87 Wrought Alloys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87 Cast Alloys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108 Applications by Market Area . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115 Electrical Markets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115 Building and Construction Markets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116 Transportation Applications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116 Marine Transportation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117 Rail Transportation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117 Packaging Applications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118 Petroleum and Chemical Industry Components . . . . . . . . . . . 118 Other Markets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118 CHAPTER 7: Representative Micrographs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119 Wrought Aluminum Alloys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Welded Wrought Aluminum Alloys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Brazed Joints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Cast Aluminum Alloys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Welded Cast Aluminum Alloys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Welded Wrought-To-Cast Alloys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Welded Aluminum To Steel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Welded Aluminum to Copper . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

. . . . . . . .

. . . . . . . .

. 120 . 153 . 162 . 164 . 181 . 182 . 184 . 184

CHAPTER 8: Selected References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185 APPENDIX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 187 Subject Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 225 Alloy Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 243 Cast Alloys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 243 Wrought Alloys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 248

v



ASM International Technical Books Committee (1999-2000) Sunniva R. Collins (Chair) Swagelok/Nupro Company Eugen Abramovici Bombadier Aerospace (Canadair) A.S Brar Seagate Technology Inc. Ngai Mun Chow Det Norske Veritas Pte Ltd. Seetharama C. Deevi Phillip Morris, USA Bradley J. Diak Queen’s University Dov B. Goldman Precision World Products James F.R. Grochmal Metallurgical Perspectives Nguyen P. Hung Nanyang Technological University Serope Kalpakjian Illinois Institute of Technology

Gordon Lippa North Star Casteel Jacques Masounave Université du Québec Charles A. Parker (Vice Chair) AlliedSignal Aircraft Landing Systems K. Bhanu Sankara Rao Indira Gandhi Centre for Atomic Research Mel M. Schwartz Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation (retired) Peter F. Timmins University College of the Fraser Valley George F. Vander Voort Buehler Ltd.

vi



Preface The idea for this timely reference book was originally suggested by Tom Croucher, a California-based consulting metallurgist. Dr. Croucher and Harry Chandler of ASM International provided input for the first draft version. I broadened it out substantially to cover the understanding of the advantages and limitations of aluminum alloy/temper combinations in terms of the relationship of their composition, process history, and microstructure to service requirements. I would like to acknowledge Dr. John A. S. Green and the Aluminum Association, Inc. for making available critically important material for inclusion in this book. Among the Aluminum Association publications used as key references, notably on the alloy and temper designation system and aluminum terminology, were the following: O Aluminum Standards and Data O Standards for Aluminum Sand and Permanent Mold Castings O Aluminum: Technology, Applications, and Environment More complete citations to these and other reference materials are given in the Selected References, Chapter 8. Among the ASM International books used as major sources, most notably for micrographs, are the following: O Heat Treater’s Guide: Practices and Procedures for Nonferrous Alloys O ASM Specialty Handbook: Aluminum and Aluminum Alloys Finally, I want to acknowledge the publications of the American Foundrymen’s Society, Inc. and the Diecasting Development Council, whose publications Aluminum Casting Technology and Product Design for Die Casting, respectively, provided excellent resources for casting terminology and descriptions of casting procedures. J. Gilbert Kaufman Columbus, Ohio

vii

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Introduction to Aluminum Alloys and Tempers

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