Original Article

Dependency of mechanical properties on artificial aging conditions for EN AW 6082 aluminum alloy

Mechanical Engineering Department, Hacettepe University, Ankara, Turkey

^* e-mail: berkay.yuksel@hacettepe.edu.tr

Received: 12 October 2022
Accepted: 25 January 2023

Abstract

Aluminum 6xxx series alloys attract attention owing to their decent strength, formability and corrosion characteristics. Mechanical properties of these alloys can be altered via precipitation hardening by applying an aging treatment known as artificial aging (AA). This investigation was focused on the behavior of mechanical properties of EN AW 6082 alloy for various aging conditions. Mechanical property response for different heat treatment procedures were analyzed together with DSC results and TEM micrographs. Solution heat treatment (SHT) temperature was found to affect the obtained yield strengths after AA considerably and higher SHT temperatures lead to higher yield strength for same artificial aging condition. It was also shown that yield strength values obtained after 480 min—180 °C artificial aging can be surpassed in shorter times at higher artificial aging temperatures. Aging times as short as 60 min may be employed using temperatures above 200 °C to obtain higher strength than 480 min—180 °C aging. Linear relationships between Vickers hardness and mechanical strengths were suggested for the complete data of the study. Negative effects of over-aging on ductility were presented and β′′ precipitates which are responsible for hardening during aging were presented using TEM micrographs. Additionally, high cycle fatigue tests were conducted for AA procedures 480 min—180 °C and 240 min—200 °C and similar fatigue strengths were reported.