V. N. Osipov

Structural and physicomechanical properties of directionally crystallized aluminum-silicon alloys

Aluminum-silicon alloys (from 8 to 25 wt % Si) have been prepared by directional crystallization of shaped samples by the Stepanov growth at a solidification rate of 103 μm s−1. The dependences of the microhardness, Young’s modulus, internal friction, yield stress, and ultimate tensile stress of the alloys on the silicon content have been studied. It has been shown that the ultimate tensile stress has a maximum, and the yield stress has a kink at 15 wt % Si; the composition corresponds to the eutectic composition at the solidification rate used. The silicon content in the eutectics increases with an increase in the solidification rate. The increase in the ultimate tensile stress is explained by an increase in the volume fraction of the more strength fine-crystalline structure of the eutectics as a result of the decrease in the volume fraction of more plastic dendrites of the primary crystals of the α-Al solid solution. The decrease in the ultimate tensile stress of the hypereutectic alloy is determined by the increase in the volume fraction of brittle primary silicon crystals of various shapes.

Single crystals of 2223 phase in the BiPbSrCaCuO system: Characterization and Knoop microhardness

Abstract Single crystals of 2223 phase have been prepared by flux growth method from KCl. Their crystal structure is tetragonal (I4/mmm), a=3.82 A , c=37.06 A . Chemical composition of crystals as determined by EDAX was Bi2.00Pb0.27Sr1.62Ca1.92Cu3.18O10+δ. Microhardness measurements with Knoop indenter carried out on (001) pinacoid face show polar hardness anisotropy of between 0.9 and 1.33 GPa.

Effect of lead doping in the system Bi-Sr-Ca-Cu-O on the formation of 2212 crystals, grown from a KCl flux using pre-synthesized compounds (precursors)

A combination of the solution-melt method and solid-phase synthesis of complex oxides has been used to obtain crystals of Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8 (2212). Partial substitution of bismuth by lead leads to a change in the orientation of the growth layers in the (001) plane of the 2212 crystal which has an orthorhombic lattice. An increase in the dimensions is noted along with an enhancement of the quality of the crystals when lead is introduced into the composition of the precursors.

Structure, microhardness, and strength of a directionally crystallized Al-Ge alloy

The structure, microhardness, and strength of binary directionally crystallized aluminum alloys with 35, 43, 53, 57, and 64 wt % germanium have been investigated. It has been shown that the eutectic microhardness is constant in the composition region under study. The microstrength of primary crystals of the solid solution of germanium in aluminum with the dendrite structure increases with increasing germanium concentration. However, the difference in the microhardnesses of the eutectic and dendrites, which was determined for each of compositions on the same specimen, does not exceed the measurement error. It has been assumed that the change in the strength of the alloy having the composition in the hypoeutectic region is determined by the redistribution of the volume fractions of the eutectic (α-Al and eutectic germanium) and the domains of primary crystals of the solid solution. This dependence can be described by the mixture rule. Above the eutectic composition, the alloy decomposes in a brittle manner; its strength is likely dependent not only on the content of the components, but also on the form and orientation of primary germanium crystals.

Kinetics of Silicon Precipitation in a Directionally Crystallized Binary Aluminum-Silicon Alloy

The precipitation of silicon atoms in aluminum in an Al-Si alloy has been studied using differential scanning calorimetry. The alloys containing 8, 13, and 15 wt % silicon were obtained by directional solidification of a ribbon pulled from the melt through a shaper by the Stepanov method at a rate of about 103 μm/s. From the characteristics of the exothermic effects observed in the temperature range 430–650 K, it has been found that the precipitation process leading to the formation of the Guinier-Preston zones occurs with the effective activation energy of 75 kJ/mol, and its intensity decreases with increasing silicon content in the alloy from 8 wt % to the eutectic content. The effect correlates with a decrease in the volume fraction of dendrites of the primary α-Al crystals in the alloy. It can be assumed that the precipitation occurs in the dendrite primary crystals of the solid solution. Based on this assumption, it has been concluded that, during directional solidification of an aluminum-silicon alloy at a rate of 103 μm/s, the metastable solid solution of silicon in aluminum, in which silicon atoms of the metallic lattice are transformed into clusters with covalent bonding forces, is formed during the dendrite growth of the primary crystals.

The effect of strontium on the mechanical properties of aluminum–silicon alloy

We have studied the influence of strontium additives on the microstructure and mechanical properties of an aluminum alloy with 15 wt % silicon prepared by directional crystallization using the Stepanov method at a solidification rate of 103 μm/s. The initial alloy has a fine-grained eutectic structure. The introduction of strontium leads to additional refinement of the structure and increases the tensile strength and elongation at break. These characteristics of a directionally crystallized alloy are higher than those of a eutectic alloy obtained by casting to a mold.

Kinetics of the precipitation of germanium in binary aluminum-germanium alloys produced by directed crystallization

The precipitation of germanium in aluminum-germanium alloys produced by directed crystallization according to the Stepanov’s method at a rate of 102 μm/s has been investigated using differential scanning calorimetry. The activation energy of the precipitation has been measured, and the dependence of the enthalpy of this process on the germanium content in the alloys in the range from 43 to 64 wt % has been studied. The change in the character of this dependence in the range of the eutectic concentration (53 wt % Ge) has been established.

Inelasticity and precipitation of germanium from a solid solution in Al-Ge binary alloys

The influence of precipitation of germanium atoms in a solid solution on the dependence of the inelasticity characteristics on the germanium content in aluminum-germanium alloys prepared by directional crystallization has been studied. It has been shown that the Young’s modulus defect, the amplitude-dependent decrement, and the microplastic flow stress at a specified cyclic strain amplitude have extreme values at the eutectic germanium content in the alloy. The eutectic composition of the alloy undergoes a ductilebrittle transition. It has been found that there is a correlation between the dependences of the Young’s modulus defect, amplitude-dependent decrement, microplastic flow stress, and specific entropy of the exothermal process of germanium precipitation on the germanium content in the hypoeutectic alloy. The concentration dependences of the inelasticity characteristics and their changes after annealing have been explained by the change in the resistance to the motion of intragrain dislocations due to different structures of the Guinier-Preston zones formed during the precipitation of germanium atoms.

Elasticity, anelasticity, and microplasticity of directionally crystallized aluminum-germanium alloys

The structure, Young’s modulus defect, and internal friction in aluminum-germanium alloys have been studied under conditions of longitudinal elastic vibrations with a strain amplitude in the range of 10−6−3 × 10−4 at frequencies about 100 kHz. The ribbon-shaped samples of the alloys with the germanium content from 35 to 64 wt % have been produced by drawing from the melt by the Stepanov method at a rate of 0.1 mm/s. It has been shown that the dependences of the Young’s modulus defect, logarithmic decrement, and vibration stress amplitude on the germanium content in the alloy at a constant strain amplitude have an extremum at 53 wt % Ge. This composition corresponds to the eutectic composition. The dependences of the Young’s modulus defect, the decrement, and vibration stress amplitude at a constant microstrain amplitude have been explained by the vibrational displacements of dislocations, which depend on the alloy structure.

Formation of a crystallization courtyard in eutectic systems and crystal growth

The so-called crystallization courtyard is investigated that forms in processes of mass crystallization around the Ge and Si crystals and their solid solutions (Ge+Si) during cooling of hypereutectic alloys in the Ge-Al, Si-Al, and (Ge+Si)-Al eutectic systems. For the first time, data on the composition and microhardness of this crystallization courtyard are given and its role is shown as a stopper of cracking in an Al-(Ge,Si) system during rapid cooling after the heating system is turned off. For the first time, it is suggested that a crystallization courtyard forms in all hypereutectic systems (including every system in which the amount of the taken solvent does not correspond to the eutectic point).