Analysis of Inclusions and Impurities Present in Typical HPDC, Stamping and Extrusion Alloys Produced with Different Scrap Levels

Manel da Silva; Jaume Pujante; Joanna Hrabia-Wiśnios; Bogusław Augustyn; Dawid Kapinos; Mateusz Węgrzyn; Sonia Boczkal

doi:10.3390/met14060626

Metals (May 2024)

Analysis of Inclusions and Impurities Present in Typical HPDC, Stamping and Extrusion Alloys Produced with Different Scrap Levels

Manel da Silva,
Jaume Pujante,
Joanna Hrabia-Wiśnios,
Bogusław Augustyn,
Dawid Kapinos,
Mateusz Węgrzyn,
Sonia Boczkal

Affiliations

Manel da Silva: Eurecat, Centre Tecnològic de Catalunya, Unit of Metallic and Ceramic Materials, Avda. Universitat Autònoma 23, 08290 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Spain
Jaume Pujante: Eurecat, Centre Tecnològic de Catalunya, Unit of Metallic and Ceramic Materials, Avda. Universitat Autònoma 23, 08290 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Spain
Joanna Hrabia-Wiśnios: Lukasiewicz Research Network—Institute of Non Ferrous Metals, Light Metals Centre, Pilsudski 19 Street, 32-050 Skawina, Poland
Bogusław Augustyn: Lukasiewicz Research Network—Institute of Non Ferrous Metals, Light Metals Centre, Pilsudski 19 Street, 32-050 Skawina, Poland
Dawid Kapinos: Lukasiewicz Research Network—Institute of Non Ferrous Metals, Light Metals Centre, Pilsudski 19 Street, 32-050 Skawina, Poland
Mateusz Węgrzyn: Lukasiewicz Research Network—Institute of Non Ferrous Metals, Light Metals Centre, Pilsudski 19 Street, 32-050 Skawina, Poland
Sonia Boczkal: Lukasiewicz Research Network—Institute of Non Ferrous Metals, Light Metals Centre, Pilsudski 19 Street, 32-050 Skawina, Poland

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/met14060626
Journal volume & issue: Vol. 14, no. 6
p. 626

Abstract

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The European Green Deal poses a two-pronged challenge for the automotive industry: migrating to solutions based on light structures, requiring lightweight concepts and light materials, while at the same time avoiding dependence on the importation of these advanced materials. Aluminium alloys are lightweight and cost-effective materials that can successfully meet the requirements of many structural applications; however, their production requires bauxite and other Critical Raw Materials (CRMs), such as Si and Mg. Aluminium alloys are fully recyclable, but scrap is usually contaminated and its use is related to an increment of impurities, tramp elements and undesired inclusions. Traditionally, the use of secondary alloys has been restricted to low-performance applications. The present work analyses the effect that the use of scrap has on the quantity of inclusions present in the alloy and on other properties relevant for material processing. This study was carried out using common alloys associated with three of the most common aluminium processes used in the car manufacturing industry: high-pressure die casting (HPDC) (AB-43500), extrusion (6063) and sheet metal forming (5754 and 6181). The reference alloys were mixed with different levels of scrap (0, 20, 40, 60, 80 and 100%), with an aim to keep the chemical composition as unaffected as possible. The inclusion level of the alloy was characterized using the Prefil Footprinter® test. In addition, the obtained materials, after being cast in an open mould, were subjected to metallographic characterization. Relevant properties were measured to assess the processability of the alloys for the corresponding transforming process using the flowability test for the HPDC alloy and high-temperature compression for the extrusion alloys. The results obtained suggest that the number of inclusions present in the melt highly increase with the amount of scrap used to produce the alloy. These inclusions are also related to a significant loss of flowability, but do not have a noticeable impact on microstructure.

Published in Metals

ISSN: 2075-4701 (Online)
Publisher: MDPI AG
Country of publisher: Switzerland
LCC subjects: Technology: Mining engineering. Metallurgy
Website: http://www.mdpi.com/journal/metals

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