TY - JOUR

T1 - Differential Scanning Calorimetry and Thermodynamic Predictions

T2 - A Comparative Study of Al-Zn-Mg-Cu Alloys

AU - Kolb, Gernot

AU - Scheiber, Stefanie

AU - Antrekowitsch, Helmut

AU - Uggowitzer, Peter

AU - Pöschmann, Daniel

AU - Pogatscher, Stefan

PY - 2016/8/3

Y1 - 2016/8/3

N2 - Al-Zn-Mg-Cu alloys are widely used in aircraft applications because of their superior mechanical properties and strength/weight ratios. Commercial Al-Zn-Mg-Cu alloys have been intensively studied over the last few decades. However, well-considered thermodynamic calculations, via the CALPHAD approach, on a variation of alloying elements can guide the fine-tuning of known alloy systems and the development of optimized heat treatments. In this study, a comparison was made of the solidus temperatures of different Al-Zn-Mg-Cu alloys determined from thermodynamic predictions and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) measurements. A variation of the main alloying elements Zn, Mg, and Cu generated 38 experimentally produced alloys. An experimental determination of the solidus temperature via DSC was carried out according to a user-defined method, because the broad melting interval present in Al-Zn-Mg-Cu alloys does not allow the use of the classical onset method for pure substances. The software algorithms implemented in FactSage®, Pandat™, and MatCalc with corresponding commercially available databases were deployed for thermodynamic predictions. Based on these investigations, the predictive power of the commercially available CALPHAD databases and software packages was critically reviewed.

AB - Al-Zn-Mg-Cu alloys are widely used in aircraft applications because of their superior mechanical properties and strength/weight ratios. Commercial Al-Zn-Mg-Cu alloys have been intensively studied over the last few decades. However, well-considered thermodynamic calculations, via the CALPHAD approach, on a variation of alloying elements can guide the fine-tuning of known alloy systems and the development of optimized heat treatments. In this study, a comparison was made of the solidus temperatures of different Al-Zn-Mg-Cu alloys determined from thermodynamic predictions and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) measurements. A variation of the main alloying elements Zn, Mg, and Cu generated 38 experimentally produced alloys. An experimental determination of the solidus temperature via DSC was carried out according to a user-defined method, because the broad melting interval present in Al-Zn-Mg-Cu alloys does not allow the use of the classical onset method for pure substances. The software algorithms implemented in FactSage®, Pandat™, and MatCalc with corresponding commercially available databases were deployed for thermodynamic predictions. Based on these investigations, the predictive power of the commercially available CALPHAD databases and software packages was critically reviewed.

KW - aluminium alloys

KW - Al-Zn-Mg-Cu alloys

KW - CALPHAD

KW - Differential scanning calorimetry

U2 - 10.3390/met6080180

DO - 10.3390/met6080180

M3 - Article

VL - 6.2016

JO - Metals : open access journal

JF - Metals : open access journal

SN - 2075-4701

IS - 8

ER -