STUDY OF MICRO STRUCTURE AND HARDNESS ALONG WITH COMPRESSION TEST OF HEAT TREATED ALUMINIUM 2014 ALLOY

Microstructures, hardness and true stress strain through compression test have been studied for for Aluminum 2014 alloy. Heat treated surfaces were characterized with scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and optical microscopy to determine the mechanisms and phases. It was determined that the heat treated alloy with aging of 3 hours and 6 hours shows an excellent balance of high hardness and lower strain rates compared to non heat treated Al alloy. This was attributed to their more ductile body centered cubic (BCC) solid solution phase along with the formation of Mg2Si phases. The XRD analysis of non heat treated 2014 alloy shows the distribution of Mg2Si in Alloy as a measure element for strengthen the alloy. This study provides guidelines for fabricating novel, high compressive strength, and high hardness Al 2014 alloy for potential use where low weight high strength required.