Effect of CeCl<sub>3</sub>-Containing Flux on Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of Mg Alloy Containing Rare Earth

The effects of CeCl3-containing fluxes on RE element loss, the high temperature mechanical properties, microstructure and corrosion properties of magnesium alloy containing RE have been studied. The results showed that a certain amount of CeCl3 in purification fluxes restrained the reaction between the Ce element and fluxes to decrease the loss of Ce in alloys. With the flux containing 9% CeCl3, the loss rate of alloy element Ce can be reduced from 26.9% to 3.4%, and the σb and δ of the alloys at 150°C counld be improved from 160.9MPa and 6.2% to 176.5MPa and 7.9% compared with that of conventional MgCl2-containing flux , respectively. Besides, the coarse β phase and rod-like RE phase were refined effectively by CeCl3-containing fluxes.