Aluminum-tungsten-copper multi-component alloy and method for producing the same

Abstract

The application discloses a kind of aluminum-tungsten-copper multi-element alloy and preparation method thereof in the technical field of metal material and sintering manufacturing, the aluminum-tungsten-copper multi-element alloy includes the following mass parts of component: aluminum 13.5~17.6 parts, tungsten 70.0~77.0 parts, copper 9.0~12.0 parts, nickel 0.3~2.5 parts, molybdenum 0.1~2.0 parts, titanium 0.05~1.2 parts, zirconium 0.02~0.90 parts, boron 0.02~0.65 parts and impurity element 0.1~0.3 parts;Wherein, the impurity element includes oxygen, nitrogen, carbon and hydrogen.The aluminum-tungsten-copper multi-element alloy and preparation method thereof provided by the application have the advantages of high density, uniform structure and excellent specific strength by optimizing component design, which provides a new material solution for the fields of aerospace, electronic devices and other materials with high specific strength and comprehensive performance requirements.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of metallic materials and their sintering manufacturing technology, specifically to an aluminum-tungsten-copper multi-element alloy and its preparation method. Background Technology

[0002] Aluminum and its alloys are widely used in aerospace, automotive manufacturing, and other fields due to their light weight and good mechanical properties, and are particularly suitable for applications requiring high relative strength. However, pure aluminum and simple alloys have limitations in terms of high-temperature strength and wear resistance. Tungsten, as a high-melting-point metal, has excellent mechanical strength and high-temperature resistance, but its high density limits its applications. Copper, on the other hand, is known for its good electrical and thermal conductivity and can enhance the overall performance of alloys.

[0003] In recent years, aluminum-tungsten-copper (Al-W-Cu) alloys, as novel composite materials, have demonstrated unique advantages in high-specific-strength applications by combining the lightweight of aluminum, the high strength of tungsten, and the electrical and thermal conductivity of copper. However, under high tungsten content conditions, the melting method suffers from severe elemental segregation and uneven microstructure due to the high melting point and density difference of tungsten; mechanical alloying easily introduces impurities and causes significant grain refinement, affecting alloy performance; while traditional pressing and sintering processes suffer from insufficient sintering activity, making it difficult to achieve ideal density and interfacial bonding. These technical challenges severely restrict the preparation of high-performance Al-W-Cu alloys. Summary of the Invention

[0004] The purpose of this invention is to overcome the shortcomings of the prior art and provide an aluminum-tungsten-copper multi-element alloy and its preparation method. By optimizing the composition design, the prepared aluminum-tungsten-copper multi-element alloy has the advantages of high density, uniform structure and excellent specific strength, providing a new material solution for fields such as aerospace and electronic devices that have stringent requirements for material specific strength and comprehensive performance.

[0005] To achieve the above objectives, the present invention is implemented using the following technical solution:

[0006] On one hand, the present invention provides an aluminum-tungsten-copper multi-element alloy, comprising the following components in parts by weight: 13.5-17.6 parts aluminum, 70.0-77.0 parts tungsten, 9.0-12.0 parts copper, 0.3-2.5 parts nickel, 0.1-2.0 parts molybdenum, 0.05-1.2 parts titanium, 0.02-0.90 parts zirconium, 0.02-0.65 parts boron, and 0.1-0.3 parts impurity elements;

[0007] The impurity elements include oxygen, nitrogen, carbon, and hydrogen.

[0008] On the other hand, the present invention provides a method for preparing the aluminum-tungsten-copper multi-element alloy, comprising:

[0009] Weigh out raw material powders of aluminum, tungsten, copper, nickel, molybdenum, titanium, zirconium and boron according to the mass fraction, and perform mechanical alloying treatment on the raw material powders;

[0010] The mechanically alloyed powder is sieved to obtain powder with a particle size within a preset range.

[0011] The powder with a particle size within a preset range is sintered to obtain an aluminum-tungsten-copper multi-element alloy.

[0012] Furthermore, the aluminum, tungsten, and copper powders in the raw material powder all have a particle size of <100μm.

[0013] Furthermore, the preset particle size range is 10~90μm.

[0014] Furthermore, the mechanical alloying treatment is a wet ball milling process, including:

[0015] Weigh the raw material powder, zirconia balls, media and dispersant and load them into a ball mill jar at a mass ratio of 1:5:(2-3):0.01 for ball milling. The ball milling speed is 200-300 rpm and the ball milling time is 0.5-2 hours to obtain the ball-milled powder. The media is anhydrous ethanol and the dispersant is polyethylene glycol (PEG).

[0016] The ball-milled powder was placed in a vacuum drying oven and dried at 60-80℃ for 4 hours to obtain the final mechanically alloyed powder.

[0017] Furthermore, the sintering process includes:

[0018] Powder with a particle size within a preset range is filled into the sintering mold, and the sintering mold is assembled.

[0019] The assembled sintered mold is placed in a vacuum environment and pre-pressed under a pressure of 20-25 MPa.

[0020] The temperature is increased to 600-670℃ at a rate of 100℃ / min, the pressure is increased to 40-50 MPa, and maintained for 6-12 minutes. Then the temperature is cooled to room temperature to complete the sintering.

[0021] Furthermore, carbon paper is laid at the bottom of the sintering mold, and powder with a particle size within a preset range is filled into the sintering mold to form a powder layer. A layer of carbon paper is placed on top of the powder layer, and finally the sintering mold is assembled.

[0022] Furthermore, after obtaining the aluminum-tungsten-copper multi-element alloy through sintering, the process also includes machining the aluminum-tungsten-copper multi-element alloy.

[0023] Furthermore, the machining process includes:

[0024] Remove carbon paper from the surface of aluminum-tungsten-copper multi-element alloys;

[0025] Polishing treatment is performed on the surface of the aluminum-tungsten-copper multi-element alloy;

[0026] The aluminum-tungsten-copper multi-element alloy is processed according to the pre-designed drawings.

[0027] Compared with the prior art, the beneficial effects achieved by the present invention are as follows:

[0028] This invention provides an aluminum-tungsten-copper multi-element alloy and its preparation method. The aluminum-tungsten-copper multi-element alloy comprises the following components in parts by weight: 13.5–17.6 parts aluminum, 70.0–77.0 parts tungsten, 9.0–12.0 parts copper, 0.3–2.5 parts nickel, 0.1–2.0 parts molybdenum, 0.05–1.2 parts titanium, 0.02–0.90 parts zirconium, 0.02–0.65 parts boron, and 0.1–0.3 parts impurity elements. The impurity elements include oxygen, nitrogen, carbon, and hydrogen. Through optimized composition design, the prepared aluminum-tungsten-copper multi-element alloy exhibits advantages such as high density, uniform microstructure, and excellent specific strength, providing a novel material solution for fields such as aerospace and electronic devices that have stringent requirements for material specific strength and comprehensive performance. Detailed Implementation

[0029] The present invention will now be further described. The following embodiments are only used to more clearly illustrate the technical solution of the present invention, and should not be used to limit the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0030] Example 1

[0031] This embodiment provides an aluminum-tungsten-copper multi-element alloy and its preparation method, the preparation method comprising:

[0032] S1. Raw material weighing

[0033] Weigh out 15.0 g of aluminum powder (Al), 75.0 g of tungsten powder (W), 10.0 g of copper powder (Cu), 1.0 g of nickel powder (Ni), 1.0 g of molybdenum powder (Mo), 0.5 g of titanium powder (Ti), 0.3 g of zirconium powder (Zr), and 0.2 g of boron powder (B). All raw material powders used must have a purity of at least 99.5%, with aluminum, tungsten, and copper powders having a particle size less than 100 μm, and other additive element powders (nickel, molybdenum, titanium, zirconium, and boron powders) having a particle size less than 75 μm.

[0034] S2.1 Mixed Powder

[0035] The weighed powder and zirconia balls were loaded into a stainless steel ball mill jar at a ball-to-powder ratio of 5:1. Wet ball milling was performed using anhydrous ethanol as the medium, with the solvent added at twice the powder mass. Polyethylene glycol (PEG) was used as the dispersant (added at 1 wt% of the total powder mass). The ball mill speed was set to 300 rpm, and the milling time was 1 hour. Stirring was paused every 0.5 hours to check the powder mixing uniformity and prevent powder agglomeration or excessive breakage. After ball milling, the wet powder was placed in a vacuum drying oven and dried at 70°C for 4 hours. Afterward, the powder particle distribution and surface morphology were checked to ensure uniform mixing.

[0036] S2.2, Particle size detection

[0037] The powder particle size is measured by a particle size analyzer to ensure that it reaches the required size, i.e., 10~90μm.

[0038] S3, Screening

[0039] Select a sieve with a mesh size of 200-500 to sieve the mechanically alloyed powder to collect qualified powder with a particle size of 10-90μm.

[0040] S4.1 Equipment Initialization

[0041] Ensure the spark plasma sintering system is in normal working order and perform necessary calibration and maintenance.

[0042] S4.2 Powder Filling

[0043] Select a graphite mold, ensuring it is clean inside and out, free of residual impurities. The contact surfaces of the lower pressure head, graphite cavity, and upper pressure head must be smooth. Use high-quality graphite paper (0.2 mm thick), cutting it to an appropriate size according to the dimensions of the mold cavity's inner wall. Ensure the carbon paper completely covers the inner wall of the mold and the contact surfaces of the upper and lower pressure heads, avoiding direct contact between the powder and the mold. First, place a layer of the cut carbon paper at the bottom of the mold. Slowly pour the mixed Al-W-Cu powder into the mold, avoiding violent vibration that could cause powder stratification. Next, use a compaction tool or gently tap the mold to ensure a dense powder distribution, while avoiding excessive accumulation that could lead to uneven powder distribution. Place another layer of cut carbon paper on top of the powder, ensuring even coverage and compaction. Finally, place the upper pressure head on top of the carbon paper, ensuring close contact between the pressure head and the carbon paper. Assemble the mold (including the upper and lower pressure heads) and confirm that all components are tightly joined.

[0044] S4.3 Sintering process

[0045] After assembly, the mold is placed in the vacuum chamber of the SPS equipment, and the vacuum pump is turned on to evacuate to a high vacuum state (residual pressure controlled below 10 Pa) to prevent oxidation of the aluminum powder at high temperatures. Pre-compression is then performed at 27.5 MPa to ensure close contact of the powder particles and reduce porosity. During the initial heating phase, the heating rate is set at 100℃ / min, with a target temperature of 650℃; the pressure is gradually increased to 45 MPa during the heating process. Once the temperature reaches 650℃, it is held for 8 minutes to complete sintering. After sintering, the equipment is allowed to cool naturally to room temperature.

[0046] S5.1 Remove the contamination layer from the carbon paper coating:

[0047] Use appropriate tools and methods to remove the carbon paper coating used in the sintering process;

[0048] S5.2 Surface Polishing

[0049] The parts are surface-polished to ensure that the surface finish meets the design requirements.

[0050] S5.3, Dimensional finishing:

[0051] According to the design drawings, the parts are precision machined to ensure that the size and shape of the parts meet the requirements.

[0052] Example 2

[0053] This embodiment provides an aluminum-tungsten-copper multi-element alloy and its preparation method. The preparation method differs from that in Embodiment 1 in that step S1 is as follows:

[0054] S1. Raw material weighing

[0055] Accurately weigh 14.0 g of aluminum powder (Al), 76.5 g of tungsten powder (W), 11.0 g of copper powder (Cu), 2.0 g of nickel powder (Ni), 1.5 g of molybdenum powder (Mo), 0.8 g of titanium powder (Ti), 0.6 g of zirconium powder (Zr), and 0.4 g of boron powder (B). All raw material powders used must have a purity of at least 99.5%, with aluminum, tungsten, and copper powders having a particle size less than 100 μm, and other additive element powders (nickel, molybdenum, titanium, zirconium, and boron powders) having a particle size less than 75 μm.

[0056] The remaining steps are the same as in Example 1.

[0057] The aluminum-tungsten-copper multi-element alloys provided in Examples 1 and 2 were tested to evaluate their mechanical properties and performance under actual service conditions. The test methods included:

[0058] (1) Sample preparation: The aluminum-tungsten-copper multi-element alloys provided in Example 1 and Example 2 were prepared into test samples using spark plasma sintering (SPS).

[0059] (2) Mechanical property test: Hardness test is performed on the test samples to determine the Vickers hardness of each group of samples.

[0060] (3) Density test: The density of the test samples is tested to determine the density of each group of samples.

[0061] Density was measured using the Archimedes water displacement method, with deionized water as the medium.

[0062] The final test results are shown in Tables 1 and 2.

[0063] Table 1

[0064] sample Vickers hardness (HV) Example 1 570 HV Example 2 635 - 665 HV

[0065] Table 2

[0066] sample Theoretical density Actual density Density Example 1 9.356 g / cm³ 9.12 g / cm³ 97.4% Example 2 9.547 g / cm³ 9.38 g / cm³ 97.4%

[0067] Table 3 shows the Vickers hardness ranges for standard aluminum alloys (2024, 2219, 2618, 2124, 7075), all of which are typical literature reports or material handbook reference values ​​under common heat treatment conditions (usually T6 or T4, depending on the alloy grade).

[0068] Table 3

[0069] Alloy type Optimal Vickers hardness (HV) 2024 aluminum alloy 150-160 HV 2219 aluminum alloy 135-145 HV 2618 aluminum alloy 140-150 HV 2124 aluminum alloy 145-155 HV 7075 aluminum alloy 170-190 HV

[0070] Comparing Tables 1 and 3, it can be seen that the Vickers hardness of the samples prepared by the aluminum-tungsten-copper multi-element alloys provided in Examples 1 and 2 is much higher than that of conventional aluminum alloys. As shown in Table 2, the samples prepared by the aluminum-tungsten-copper multi-element alloys provided in Examples 1 and 2 also have extremely high density.

[0071] This is because the aluminum-tungsten-copper multi-element alloys provided in Examples 1 and 2 contain up to 70-77 parts by mass of tungsten, making the material essentially a metal matrix composite with high-hardness, high-modulus tungsten particles as the main reinforcing phase. The tungsten phase bears the main load and hinders matrix deformation, which is the primary source of high hardness. Secondly, copper and various trace elements such as nickel, molybdenum, titanium, zirconium, and boron in the alloy further strengthen the aluminum-copper matrix through solid solution strengthening, the formation of dispersed second phases (such as intermetallic compounds and borides), and grain refinement mechanisms. Finally, the manufacturing processes employed—mechanical alloying (MA) and spark plasma sintering (SPS)—play a crucial role: the MA process introduces significant work hardening and refines the grains to an ultrafine level, while the SPS technology can effectively suppress grain growth while rapidly densifying (achieving a high density of ~97.4%), thereby maintaining the ultrafine grain structure and ensuring good bonding between the reinforcing phase and the matrix. The combined effect of these factors (high volume fraction of hard phase reinforcement, multi-element alloying synergistic strengthening, ultrafine grains and high density) endows this Al-W-Cu alloy with a hardness level far exceeding that of traditional precipitation-strengthened aluminum alloys.

[0072] The embodiments of the present invention have been described above. However, the present invention is not limited to the specific embodiments described above. The specific embodiments described above are merely illustrative and not restrictive. Those skilled in the art can make many other forms under the guidance of the present invention without departing from the spirit and scope of the claims. All of these forms are within the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. An aluminum-tungsten-copper multi-element alloy, characterized in that, It is composed of the following components in parts by weight: 13.5–17.6 parts aluminum, 70.0–77.0 parts tungsten, 9.0–12.0 parts copper, 0.3–2.5 parts nickel, 0.1–2.0 parts molybdenum, 0.05–1.2 parts titanium, 0.02–0.90 parts zirconium, 0.02–0.65 parts boron, and 0.1–0.3 parts impurity elements; The impurity elements include oxygen, nitrogen, carbon, and hydrogen; The preparation method of the aluminum-tungsten-copper multi-element alloy includes: Weigh out raw material powders of aluminum, tungsten, copper, nickel, molybdenum, titanium, zirconium and boron according to the mass fraction, and perform mechanical alloying treatment on the raw material powders; The mechanically alloyed powder is sieved to obtain powder with a particle size within a preset range. The powder with a particle size within a preset range is sintered to obtain an aluminum-tungsten-copper multi-element alloy. The mechanical alloying treatment is a wet ball milling process, including: Weigh the raw material powder, zirconia balls, media and dispersant and load them into a ball mill jar at a mass ratio of 1:5:(2-3):0.01 for ball milling. The ball milling speed is 200-300 rpm and the ball milling time is 0.5-2 hours to obtain the ball-milled powder. The media is anhydrous ethanol and the dispersant is polyethylene glycol (PEG). The ball-milled powder was placed in a vacuum drying oven and dried at 60-80℃ for 4 hours to obtain the final mechanically alloyed powder. The sintering process includes: Powder with a particle size within a preset range is filled into the sintering mold, and the sintering mold is assembled. The assembled sintered mold is placed in a vacuum environment and pre-pressed under a pressure of 20-25 MPa. The temperature is increased to 600-670℃ at a rate of 100℃ / min, the pressure is increased to 40-50 MPa, and maintained for 6-12 minutes. Then the temperature is cooled to room temperature to complete the sintering.

2. The aluminum-tungsten-copper multi-element alloy according to claim 1, characterized in that: The aluminum, tungsten, and copper powders in the raw material powder all have a particle size of <100μm.

3. The aluminum-tungsten-copper multi-element alloy according to claim 1, characterized in that: The preset particle size range is 10~90μm.

4. The aluminum-tungsten-copper multi-element alloy according to claim 1, characterized in that: Carbon paper is laid at the bottom of the sintering mold, and powder with a particle size within the preset range is filled into the sintering mold to form a powder layer. A layer of carbon paper is placed on top of the powder layer, and finally the sintering mold is assembled.

5. The aluminum-tungsten-copper multi-element alloy according to claim 4, characterized in that: After obtaining the aluminum-tungsten-copper multi-element alloy through sintering, the process also includes machining the aluminum-tungsten-copper multi-element alloy.

6. The aluminum-tungsten-copper multi-element alloy according to claim 5, characterized in that: The machining process includes: Remove carbon paper from the surface of aluminum-tungsten-copper multi-element alloys; Polishing treatment is performed on the surface of aluminum-tungsten-copper multi-element alloy; The aluminum-tungsten-copper multi-element alloy is processed according to the pre-designed drawings.