CHAPTER ONE

1.1 INTRODUCTION
1.2 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY
Materials are at the core of all technological advances, and are essential
for human survival on earth. Aspects of daily life such as clothing,
transportation, construction, communication are influenced by materials. The
advancements of societies have been tied intimately to their ability to process
materials to meet their needs. Mastering the development, synthesis and
processing of these materials opens opportunities that were scarcely dreamed of
few decades ago. Everyday new limits and heights are attained in engineering
applications. This has forced materials science into a rapid ladder of
development. From the very heavy weight machine beds to the flyweight of
electronic circuit boards, high temperature performance of super alloys and the
versatility of ductile steels. Engineering materials have proven to be a long
chain of evolution in the history of technology (McNeil, 1990).
Mans search for engineering materials dates back to the Stone Age, the
period in which man depended solely on stones for tool making. In this era,
materials like flint and chert were shaped for use as cutting tools and weapons,
while basalt and sandstone were used as ground stone tools. Materials like
wood, leaves, bones and sediments were used as accessories in their

constructions. The early man understood the physics of materials, however

crude it may have been, thus they continued the search for better materials to
provide shelter, protect and make lives more comfortable (Forbes R.J 1971).
The Bronze Age brought into existence an exceptional innovation in
materials science- metalworking. This age is significant for its predominant
dependence on Copper, which at that time was adorned for its dcor and
excellent formability. Furthermore, a very creative art in materials science
alloying was established. Man understood that a certain mixture of elements in a
definite proportion could yield another material with favourable properties for
certain conditions. Whether he understood the physics of alloying, we wouldnt
know, but he certainly opened the stage for extensive research which today finds
many applications in engineering practice.
Engineering materials are grouped into three major classes: metals, nonmetals and polymers. Other groups of engineering materials include composites,
semiconductors, biomaterials and the latest group, Nano-materials. Metals are
however sub-divided into two groups, of ferrous and Non-ferrous. Non-ferrous
metals and their alloys have assumed increasingly important roles in modern
technology. Because of their number and the fact that their properties vary
widely, they provide an almost limitless range of properties for the design
engineer. While they tend to be more costly than Iron and Steel, these metals
often possess certain properties or combination of properties that are not
2

available in ferrous metals, such as Light weight, Strength at elevated

temperature, Good strength to weight ratio, Resistance to corrosion, High
electrical

and

thermal

conductivity

and

ease

of

fabrication

(www.keytometals.com).
Nearly all non-ferrous alloys possess at least two of the quantities just
listed, and some possess all. For many applications, specific combinations of
these properties are highly desirable, and the availability of materials that
provide them directly is a strong motivation for use of non-ferrous alloys.
Aluminium is one of the commonly used non-ferrous metals used for
engineering purposes (www.bir.org/industry/non-ferrous-metals).
In recent years, aluminium and its alloys have had high rate of
consumption compared to iron-steel products and are being used more in
industries such as electrical, chemical, medicine, construction, automotive and
aviation and their sub-industries and thus increasing their importance the more
(Arun et al., 2010; Sun et al., 1999 and Altenpohl, 1986).
Aluminium is the third most abundant element in the earth crust. It is the
most important element of group 3 of the periodic table. It is a light silver-white
metal, which is 2.7 times as heavy as water, soft but with good tensile strength,
and is an excellent conductor of heat and electricity. Aluminium melts at about
660oc and is easily cast, extruded and pressed. It is also ductile (suitable for
drawing into wire, and malleable-easy to roll into sheets and foil). An
3

aluminium structure weighs approximately half as much as a similar steel of

comparable strength.
Apart from its strength combined with light weight, Aluminium has
another useful property-resistance to corrosion. This is because of a thin hard
oxide film which forms on the surface, protecting the metal from further
oxidation. The oxide film can be thickened by anodizing and oxidation by an
electrolysis process. The anodized film can be dyed, which is useful for
architectural panels and household utensils. Powdered aluminium is used for
aluminium paints. In the powdered form, it is considerably more reactive than a
solid block of metal, which makes it useful as a strong reducing agent to remove
oxygen in chemical processes.
It is a silvery white metal with electronic configuration 1s 22s22p63s23p1.
The crystal structure is face cantered cubic (FCC). The element has an atomic
number of 13 and belongs to the group 2A elements of the periodic table known
as alkaline earth metals. Aluminium surfaces keep their apparent shine in dry
environments due to the formation of a clear protective oxide layer. Aluminium
also possesses high thermal and electrical conductivity, the outstanding
characteristics of aluminium is its light weight and its ease of fabrication. It has
good corrosion resistance and low density which make it particularly suitable
for application in the field of transportation on land, sea and in air. Its electrical
conductivity makes it suitable for many applications in the electrical industry. In
4

general, Aluminium is further used as: Aluminium reflectors are used on large
astronomical telescopes. Aluminium alloys have been used in buildings for
cladding panels, doors and windows frames, roofs, and Venetian blinds.
Aluminium foils are used for food packaging. It is used for the manufacture of
kitchen utensils, it also finds its application in the modern aircraft construction
industries because of its high strength to weight ratio.
The major advantages of using aluminium are tied directly to its
remarkable properties. Some of which includes:
Strength to weight ratio: Aluminium has a density around one third that of
steel and is used advantageously in applications where high strength and low
weight are required. This includes vehicles where low mass results in greater
load capacity and reduced fuel consumption. Aluminium is suited to cold
environments. It has the advantage over steel in that its tensile strength
increases with decreasing temperature while retaining its toughness. Steel on the
other hand becomes brittle at low temperature.
Corrosion Resistance: When exposed to air, layers of aluminium oxide form
almost instantaneously on the surface of the aluminium. This layer has an
excellent resistance to corrosion and can be enhanced with surface treatments
such as anodizing. It is fairly resistant to most acids but less resistant to alkalis.

Electrical Conductivity: Along with copper, aluminium has electrical

conductivity high enough for use as electrical conductor. Although the
conductivity of the commonly used conducting alloy (1350) is only around 62%
of annealed copper, one-third the weight and can therefore conduct twice as
much as copper of the same weight.
Thermal conductivity: The thermal conductivity of aluminium is about three
times greater than that of steel. This makes aluminium an important material for
both cooling and heating applications such as heat- exchanger.
Light and Heat Reflectivity: Aluminium is a good reflector of both visible
light and heat making it an ideal material for light fittings, thermal rescue
blankets and architectural insulation.
Toxicity: Aluminium is not only non-toxic but also does not release any odours
or taint products with which it is in contact. This makes aluminium suitable for
use in packaging for sensitive products such as food or pharmaceuticals where
aluminium foil is used. Combine with it being non- toxic property means
aluminium is used extensively in cooking utensils and kitchenware.
Recyclability: The recyclability of aluminium is unparalleled. When recycled
there is no degradation in properties and is compare to virgin aluminium.
Furthermore, recycling of aluminium only requires around 5 percent of the input
energy required to produce virgin aluminium metal (Azom Articles).

Figure 1.1: Principal designations of Aluminium

These properties of commercial aluminium alloys depend basically on the
amount of magnesium, copper, silicon, zinc, chromium and other alloying
elements present in them. The properties are also influenced by the
manufacturing techniques and heat treatment procedures employed (Ayoola
et al., 2012, Meyer, 2002 and Smallman, 2002).
The 7xxx-series aluminium alloys are attractive for structural
applications, since these alloys can be strengthened through heat treatment. The
7xxx alloys have elements such as Zn, Mg, and Cu that form precipitates in the
aluminium matrix when the alloys are heat treated. These precipitates are the
source of strengthening in the 7xxx alloys (Song.et.al, 2004)
The main properties of high strength 7xxx alloys as used predominantly
in aircraft wing applications are the strength, toughness and stress corrosion
cracking resistance. These properties are greatly determined by the main phases
7

in the alloys, i.e. GP zones, , , T, S, Mg2Si and Ferich intermetallic phases.

Thus, the balance of properties of 7xxx alloys can be optimised by
microstructural modifications via alloy compositional changes and heat
treatment variations (I. J. Polmear, 1995)
The first step in the manufacturing of 7xxx series aluminium alloys is
always casting, and the initial cast structure has an important effect on the
success of thermo-mechanical methods in the strengthening of 7xxx alloys.
Therefore, it is very important to define and distinguish the casting parameters
of AlZnMg alloy billets in their hot process-ability that will give the best cast
structure.
1.2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM
For 70 years, aluminium alloys have been the materials of choice for both
military and commercial aircraft structures. The ingot metallurgy (IM) alloys of
the 2000 (Al-Cu-Mg) and 7000 (Al-Zn-Mg-Cu) series used thus far show
several disadvantages caused by the production process. Such problems are
primarily coarse intermetallics constituent phases, coarse grains, and macro
segregation, resulting in low fracture toughness. Recent advances in aluminium
alloy and temper development are maintaining aluminium alloys as the
materials of choice for future commercial aircraft structures to meet cost and
weight savings objectives. Aluminium producers have increased research
activity in the area of advanced aluminium alloys to provide improved
8

performance characteristics. During the past decade increased efforts have been
made to improve the structural efficiency and properties of aerospace materials
through the development of lighter weight, stiffer and stronger materials via
rapid solidification processing (RSP) (Duan et al., 1993). Rapid solidification
processing improves the mechanical properties of many alloys in terms of
increased tensile strength, ductility and fatigue and crack propagation resistance
(Sanctis, 1991). Such improvements are mainly associated with large solid
solubility extensions of alloying elements, reduced macro segregation,
refinement of the alloy grain size and changes in the second phase particle size,
shape and distribution due to high cooling rates (possibly exceeding 106 Ks1).
There are a number of well established techniques that may be readily utilized
for rapid solidification. Alloys produced by atomization, one of the rapid
solidification techniques, followed by powder metallurgy (PM) consolidation
overcome the formation of coarse grains, coarse constituents, and macro
segregation because of the high cooling rates. Therefore, these RS-PM alloys
are characterized by very fine, homogeneous, and segregation free
microstructures combined with a fine distribution of intermetallics particles. On
the other hand, all PM alloys, without exception, typically contain fracture
inducing oxides that form on the powder surface and do not disappear during
consolidation.

1.3 AIM AND OBJECTIVES

The aim of this project is to investigate the mechanical properties of Al
alloy by the addition of zinc, magnesium and nickel.
The following objectives will be pursued;
To investigate the effect of zinc on the mechanical properties of Al
alloys
To investigate the effect of nickel on the mechanical properties of Al
alloys.
To investigate the effect of magnesium on the mechanical properties
of Al alloys
To study the effect of heat treatment on the mechanical properties and
microstructure of the investigated aluminium alloy.

1.4.

PURPOSE OF THE STUDY

The purpose of this study is to improve the mechanical properties of 7xxx

aluminium so as to make it useful in aerospace industries.

1.5 SCOPE OF THE STUDY
In this research the effect of Zinc and Nickel additions on the mechanical
properties of sand cast (Gypsum mould) modified 7xxx aluminium will be
studied. Zinc additions of varying percentages between 5 15 wt%, Nickel
10

additions of varying percentages of 2 and 7 wt% and a constant Magnesium of

2.5 wt% were combined to obtain the 7xxx aluminium. Heat treatment is done
at 5500 C and held for 4hours and another 2500 C during tempering and
thereafter the mechanical testing on the alloys is carried out according to
American Society for Testing and Material (ASTM) standards.
1.6 LIMITATIONS
1. Limited availability of funds.
2. Great delay during materials acquisition.
3. Inadequate power supply thereby causing delay in the research work.
4.

Much time wasted during the mechanical testing.

11