EUROPEAN CONGRESS AND EXHIBITION ON ADVANCED MATERIALS AND PROCESSES - EUROMAT 2021

In recent years, the use of magnesium alloys in air transport has mainly been hampered by a ban on use because of its high flammability. In particular, the ban on the use of magnesium alloys on passenger seat design elements was prohibited by the Standard (AS) 8049C issued by SAE International. However, in 2015 this standard was revised and magnesium alloys meeting the flammability criteria were enabled.
Two magnesium alloys containing yttrium, gadolinium and calcium (4 – 4 – 2 and 2 – 2 – 1 wt. %) designed with emphasis on high ignition temperature and solid mechanical properties were processed by extrussion. Microstructure and mechanical properties were investigated in this work. Extrusion parametres (temperature and extrusion ratio) had a great impact on grain size and texture. Optimalized parameters led to finegrained homogenous microstructure with significantly improved mechanical properties. The microstructure was studied by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) including electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD). Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) was also used to determine the composition of secondary phases. The mechanical properties were studied by microhardness measurements, tensile and compression deformation tests.