A scalable method for preparing Al–Mg–Si–Cu alloy profile with varies heterogeneous structures and their relationship with mechanical properties

This work reports a simple method for manufacturing heterogeneous structured Al–Mg–Si–Cu alloy profile modified by TiB2–TiC particles using conventional hot extrusion and solution heat treatment. The heterogeneous structures containing different proportions of coarse grains and fine grains can be regulated by the solution treatment time, and their relationships with the mechanical properties are studied. The results show that the formation of the heterogeneous structure in the alloy is attributed to the non-uniform distribution of the TiB2–TiC particles, which have strong inhibition effects on the recrystallization in the particle-rich zone. When the proportion of coarse/fine grains in the heterostructure is about 2:1, the mechanical properties of the solution-treated alloy profile achieved a high level: tensile strength and yield strength are 345 MPa and 227 MPa, respectively, which are 35% and 53% higher than those of the as-extruded alloy with almost no loss of elongation. This work provides a strategy to advance the scalable manufacturing of heterogeneous structured Al alloy profile for various applications.