Discipline: Technology and Engineering
Subcategory: Materials Science
Session: 4
Ramon F. Padin Monroig - University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez Campus
Co-Author(s): Manny X. de Jesus(1), Hunter Henderson (2), Zachary Sims(2), Orlando Rios(2) and O. M. Suarez(1) (1) University of Puerto Rico at Mayagiez, PR, (2) Oak Ridge National Laboratory at Oak Ridge,TN
Previous work at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) demonstrated that the addition of cerium to aluminum-based alloys increases the thermal stability of the alloy within the 200-400°C range while maintaining its castability. Concurrently, it was observed that Ce addition to the melt causes an exothermic reaction. This causes certain compositions to become unstable when subject to heat treatments with temperatures near melting. Thus, although these novel lightweight alloys are an appealing alternative for the transportation industry, those results require a better comprehension of the thermodynamic stability of Al-Ce-Si system in the aluminum-rich corner. Hence, our goal has been to study the mechanism behind this reaction using differential thermal analysis to understand the phase transitions upon heating and melting. Therefore, improve the overall mechanical properties of the Al-Ce-Si system by adding Mg and optimizing potential heat treatments before being applied to samples of various compositions. Preliminary results showed how specific Mg/Si ratios of 0.9 and 1.8 can increase 5-fold the micro-hardness of the alloy (1000 MPa), when compared to pure aluminum (200 MPa). Now, we seek to confirm the optimum heat treatment specifications by correlating treating parameters of a T6 temper with the resulting mechanical properties and, in particular, the microhardness.
Funder Acknowledgement(s): This research was sponsored by the following: Puerto Rico's Louis Stokes alliance for minority Participation undergraduate research scholarship-ID: 11151 ; Critical Materials Institute, an Energy Innovation Hub funded by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy and Advanced Manufacturing Office. Work is performed at ORNL under contract DE-AC05-00OR22725; National Science Foundation under Grant No. 1345156 (CREST program) ; Transformational Initiative for Graduate Education and Research (TIGER), US Department of Education, Title V, Part B, Promoting Postbaccalaureate Opportunities for Hispanic Americans (PPOHA) Program (#P031M140035).
Faculty Advisor: O. M. Su?rez, oscarmarcelo.suarez@upr.edu
Role: Preparation of casting process of samples and partial work in cut,sectioning and polishing followed by training in operation of of micro hardness testing equipment and optical microscopy for mechanical and microstructural analysis.Data processing and statistical analysis of differential scanning calorimetry curves and microhardness for later publishing of results.