The Effect of Solution Treatment on the Si Particles’ Morphology Evolution and the Thermal Conductivity and Tensile Properties of Sb-Modified Al-8Si-0.6Mg Alloys

The effects of solution treatment time on the morphology evolution of Si particles and the thermal conductivity and tensile properties of Sb-modified alloys were studied. The results show that the evolution of Si particles follows four mechanisms: spheroidization, necking and splitting of particles with large aspect ratios, fusion of spherical particles, and coarsening controlled by diffusion. The first three mechanisms mainly occur at the early stage of solution treatment. The addition of Sb does not change the evolution law of the Si particles, but it does change the contribution of various evolution mechanisms, including promoting spheroidization, fusion, and coalescence, as well as significantly reducing the coarsening rate, which makes the thermal modification of Sb-modified alloys more effective. The increase in thermal conductivity during solution treatment is related to the decrease of the anharmonicity of lattice vibration, lattice wave scattering, and electron scattering of Si particles. The 0.4 wt. % Sb-modified alloy exhibits excellent tensile strength and elongation under as-cast T4- and T6-heat-treated conditions, because the modification significantly reduces the stress concentration of the Si particles and delays the germination and propagation of microcracks.