Heat Treatment of

Aluminum
ENMT 613009

Wahyuaji NP – Myrna AM
Departemen Teknik Metalurgi dan Material FTUI

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Brief History
• 1906
• Alfred Wilm discovered that a rapidly cooled Al-Cu-Mg alloy
increased in hardness as it was left at room temperature; the
alloy hardened with age, hence age hardening
• 1919
• Mercia et.al. observed age hardening in Al-Cu alloy; their
experiments demonstrated decreasing solid solubility of copper
in aluminum with decrease in temperature during cooling. They
proposed that atoms assembled in clusters
Brief History
• 1938
• Guinier and Preston, in pioneering independent research using x-
ray scattering, found evidence for clustering of atoms into what
we now call Guinier-Preston zones (GP zones)
• 1950’s
• First direct microscopic observation of GP zones in the
transmission electron microscope (e.g. platelet GP zones by
Nicholson and Nutting); small precipitate particle were observed,
hence precipitation hardening
Basics of Precipitation
Hardening
• The strength and hardness of some metal alloys may be
enhanced by the formation of extremely small and uniformly
dispersed second-phase particles within original phase matrix
in a process known as Precipitation Hardening
• In order for an alloy system to be able to be precipitation-
strengthened, there must be a terminal solid solution that has
a decreasing solid solubility as the temperature decreases
Basics of Precipitation
Hardening
• Al-Cu Phase Diagram
Basics of Precipitation
Hardening
• Al-Cu Phase Diagram
Basics of Precipitation
Hardening
• Al-Cu Phase Diagram

530

480

2 3 5
Basics of Precipitation Hardening
• Solution heat treatment (Homogenizing)
• Heating at a high temperature within the single phase region, so
as to dissolve the alloying elements
• Quenching
• In order to form a supersaturated solid solution (SSSS) of alloying
elements in aluminum
• Aging
• The controlled decomposition of the supersaturated solid
solution to form a fine dispersion of precipitates
Basics of Precipitation
Hardening
• Al-Cu Phase Diagram

A C
Basics of Precipitation
Hardening
• Microstructure evolution
C (room temp)

SSSS

Fast cooling
A (room temp) B (hi temp)
Solution
treatment

Slow cooling

Al Matrix Al2Cu
Basics of Precipitation
Hardening
• Microstructure evolution For precipitation hardening
C (room temp)

SSSS

Fast cooling
A (room temp) B (hi temp)
Solution
treatment

Slow cooling

Al Matrix Al2Cu
Basics of Precipitation
Hardening
• Aging
Hardening Mechanisms
• Precipitation hardening
• The formation of a finely dispersed precipitate in the alloy is the
objective of this hardening process
• The fine precipitates in the alloy impede dislocation movement
by forcing the dislocation to cut through the precipitated particles
or go around them
• By restricting dislocation movement during deformation, the alloy
is strengthened
Hardening Mechanisms
Hardening Mechanisms

• Interaction of dislocations with hard particles (bypass).

 Hardening Mechanisms

• Interaction of dislocations with coherent precipitates

Basics of Precipitation Hardening

• G.P. zones observed by (a) bright field TEM and (b) High-Resolution
TEM. Note that the GP zones are only a few Angstrom thick.
Hardening Mechanisms
Hardening Mechanisms
Over aging
• The cause of over aging
• Increasing aging time causes coalescence of GP zones and the
appearance of other phases with coarser grains
• The increases in the separation of the particle facilitates the
circumvention and soften the metal
Over aging
• Aging
Over aging
• Microstructural development with aging time
Over aging
 Over aging
• Hardness as a function of aging time
at 130 °C and 190°C for Al-Cu binary
alloys.
Classification of Aluminum
Alloys
Classification of Aluminum
Alloys
Wrought Aluminum Alloy Groups Cast Aluminum Alloy Groups
Classification of Aluminum
Alloys
Classification of Aluminum
Alloys
Classification of Aluminum
Alloys
Mechanical properties of aluminum alloys can be improved in
several ways, but in general this can be done through a general
process of:
• solid-solution hardening,
• grain-boundary hardening,
• work or strain hardening, and
• aging or precipitation hardening
Nonheat-treatable alloys
• The initial strengths of the nonheat-treatable alloys depend
primarily upon the hardening effect of alloying elements such
as silicon, iron, manganese, and magnesium.
• These elements increase the strength of aluminum by
formation of dispersed phases in the metal matrix or by solid
solution.
• The nonheat-treatable alloys are mainly found in the 1XXX,
3XXX, and 5XXX series depending upon their major alloying
elements.
• Iron and silicon are the major impurities in commercially pure
aluminum but they do contribute to its strength.
• Magnesium is the most effective solution-strengthening
addition.
• Aluminum-magnesium alloys of the 5XXX series have relatively
high strength in the annealed condition.
• All of the nonheat-treatable alloys are work-hardenable.
• The nonheat-treatable alloys may be annealed by heating to an
elevated temperature to remove the effects of cold working and
improve ductility.
• The proper annealing schedule to use will depend upon the alloy
and its temper.
• When fusion welding the nonheat-treatable alloys, the heat-
affected zone may lose the strengthening effects of cold working.
• Thus, the strength in this zone may decrease to near that of
annealed metal.
Heat-treatable alloys
• The heat-treatable alloys are found in the 2XXX, 4XXX, 6XXX
and 7XXX series.
• The strength of any of these alloys depends only upon the
alloy composition, in the annealed condition as do the
nonheat-treatable alloys.
• However, copper, magnesium, zinc, and silicon, either singly or in
various combinations, show a marked increase in solid solubility in
aluminum with increasing temperature.
• Therefore, these alloys can be strengthened by appropriate
thermal treatments.
• Heat-treatable aluminum alloys develop their improved strength
by solution heat treating followed by either natural or artificial
aging.
• Cold working before or after aging may provide additional strength.
• Heat-treated alloys may be annealed to provide maximum ductility
with a sacrifice in strength properties.
• Annealing is achieved by heating the component at an elevated
temperature for a specified time, and then cooling it at a controlled
rate.
• During fusion welding, the heat-affected zone will be exposed to
sufficiently high temperatures to overage heat-treated metal.
• As a result, this zone will be softened to some extent.
HT of Aluminum Alloy
HT of Aluminum Alloy
HT of Aluminum Alloy
HT of Aluminum Alloy
HT of Aluminum Alloy
• Nonferrous alloys and precipitation hardened stainless
steels cannot be heat treated by the techniques used for
ferrous alloys
• Alloys do not undergo phase transformations
• Heat-treatable structure are hardened and strengthened by
precipitation hardening
• Process where small particles of a different phase
(precipitates) are uniformly dispersed in the matrix of the
original phase
HT of Aluminum Alloy
• 3 stages are involved in precipitation hardening
HT of Aluminum Alloy
• In solution treatment, the alloy is heated to within the solid-
solution alpha phase and then cooled rapidly by quenching
HT of Aluminum Alloy
• Alloy is reheated to an intermediate temperature for a period of
time and precipitation takes place
• Increase in strength is due to increased resistance to dislocation
movement in the region of the precipitates

Aging
• Precipitation process it is also called aging,
• Property improvement is known as age hardening
HT of Aluminum Alloy
Aging
• When carried out above room temperature, it is called artificial
aging
• Hardening of aluminum alloys over a period of time at room
temperature is called natural aging
• Natural aging can be slowed by refrigerating the quenched alloy
(cryogenic treatment)
HT of Aluminum Alloy
Aging
• An aged alloy can be used only up to a certain maximum
temperature in service
• But an over-aged part has better dimensional stability