Effects of Interactions Among Alloying Elements on the Microstructure, Phase Transitions, and Electrical Resistivity of the Cu81Al19 Alloy

Author(s)

Pinto, R. D. A. ^[1] ; Ferreira, L. D. R. ^[2] ; Silva, R. A. G. ^[1]

Affiliation

^[1] Univ Fed Sao Paulo UNIFESP, BR-09910720 Diadema, SP - Brazil

^[2] Univ Sao Paulo, BR-05508010 Sao Paulo, SP - Brazil

• Document type: Journal article
• Source: METALS AND MATERIALS INTERNATIONAL; SEP 2021.
• Web of Science Citations: 0

Abstract

Cu-Al alloys have been used for marine applications due to their corrosion resistance and smart materials based on the shape memory effect. A technological tendency for Cu-Al alloys is the development of increasingly complex formulations, although the role of alloying elements still unclear in comparison to other metallurgical systems, such as steels. In the present study, 2 at% Cu were substituted by equal quantities of Ni and Ga in the Cu81Al19 alloy, which are elements from the same period and similar in size to the Cu atom. The obtained alloys were analyzed by several characterization techniques. The results showed that the Ni addition increases the critical temperatures and decreases the microhardness values. The Ga addition has the opposite effect. Both alloying elements produce new phases in the microstructures, hamper the alpha phase ordering, accelerate the beta phase decomposition, and increase the conductivity of the Cu81Al19 alloy. From this study, it is possible to realize that small changes in atomic features (electronic structure, atomic radius, valence, electronegativity) from a portion of atoms are enough to obtain distinctive materials, which turns the design of new Cu-Al alloys and the prediction of their properties a challenging task. (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 19/06717-0 - Phase stability in multicomponent alloys
• Grantee: Ricardo Alexandre Galdino da Silva
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants