Chen Xianhua

Microstructure, Mechanical Properties and Electromagnetic Shielding Effectiveness of Mg-Y-Zr-Nd Alloy

Abstract The as-cast Mg-Y-Zr- x Nd alloys with different Nd contents were prepared, and the effects of Nd content on microstructure, mechanical properties and electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding properties were investigated. The results show that the grain sizes are refined from 70.1 μm to 45.2 μm, discontinuous bone-shaped β phases are formed mostly in the triple junction of grain boundaries when the content of Nd increases to 2.63 wt%. The mechanical properties and EMI shielding capacity are both enhanced significantly by adding Nd element. The alloy with 2.63 wt% Nd has a good combination of mechanical properties and EMI properties. T6 heat treatment is able to further improve the EMI shielding effectiveness. The above-mentioned experiment results are attributed to the microstructural variation caused by adding different contents of Nd.

Research Progress in Magnesium Alloys as Functional Materials

Abstract Magnesium alloys have a significant advantage, low density over other structure metals currently and have been widely used in various fields such as transportation and aerospace. With the development of research and the enlargement of research scope, more advantages have been developed: high storage capacity, high theoretical volumetric energy density, extraordinarily high damping capacity, good biocompatibility, excellent shielding efficiency as well as impressive thermal conductivity. Therefore Mg alloys have the potential to be various functional materials, such as hydrogen storage material, rechargeable electrochemical batteries, damping material, biodegradable implant material, electromagnetic shielding material, and thermal conductive material. Unfortunately, each kind of functional material has bottlenecks needing to be broken through, and a lot of researches have to be carried out. This review comprehensively covers the research progress and the up-to-date summary of Mg and Mg alloys as functional materials in recent years. The six kinds of functional materials above all will be discussed.