High strength high-toughness aluminum alloy and method of preparing the same
AssigneesSumitomo Electric Industries, Ltd., Japan Science and Technology Corporation
InventorsHisao Hattori, Toshihiko Kaji, Manabu Hashikura, Yoshishige Takano
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Abstract
An aluminum alloy is industrially producible and has higher strength and toughness than the prior art alloys. The high-strength high-toughness aluminum alloy includes a first phase of .alpha.-aluminum consisting of crystal grains whose mean crystal grain size is within the range of 60 to 1000 nm and a second phase of at least two different of intermetallic compounds consisting of crystal grains whose mean crystal grain sizes are within the range of 20 to 2000 nm. The crystal grains of the intermetallic compounds are dispersed so that they are only intermittently, and not continuously, linked throughout the alloy material.
Claims13
A high-strength high-toughness aluminum alloy comprising a first phase of .alpha.-aluminum crystal grains having a mean crystal grain size within the range of 60 to 1000 nm and a second phase comprising first and second intermetallic compounds that respectively have respectively different compositions, wherein said first intermetallic compound consists of first crystal grains having crystal grain sizes in a range from 20 to 900 nm, said second intermetallic compound consists of second crystal grains having crystal grain sizes in a range from 400 to 2000 nm, said first crystal grains are present in interiors of said .alpha.-aluminum crystal grains, said second crystal grains are distributed along a crystal grain boundary of said .alpha.-aluminum crystal grains, and said first and second crystal grains of said intermetallic compounds are dispersed relative to each other so as to establish a non-continuous intermittent linkage between said crystal grains of said intermetallic compounds.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.