Aluminum alloy material for additive manufacturing and preparation method therefor, and aluminum alloy part

Abstract

The present application provides an aluminum alloy material for additive manufacturing and a preparation method therefor, and an aluminum alloy part. The aluminum alloy material comprises, in percentage by mass: Mg: 0.1 wt.% to 5.0 wt.%; Zn: 0.001 wt.% to 2.0 wt.%; Si: 0.001 wt.% to 1.0 wt.%; Mn: 0.001 wt.% to 1.0 wt.%; Ti+Zr: 0.1 wt.% to 3.0 wt.%; Fe: less than or equal to 0.5 wt.%; Cu: less than or equal to 0.5 wt.%; Cr: less than or equal to 0.5 wt.%; O+N: less than or equal to 0.1 wt.%; and the balance being Al and at least one inevitable impurity element.

Description

Aluminum alloy materials for additive manufacturing and their preparation methods, aluminum alloy parts

[0001] This application claims priority to the following Chinese patent application: Chinese Patent Application No. 202510124780.9, filed on January 26, 2025, entitled "Aluminum Alloy Material for Additive Manufacturing and Preparation Method Thereof, Aluminum Alloy Parts," the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. Technical Field

[0002] This disclosure relates to the field of metallic materials technology, and in particular to aluminum alloy materials for additive manufacturing, methods for their preparation, and aluminum alloy parts. Background Technology

[0003] Aluminum alloy parts are widely used in aerospace, automotive industry and electronic devices due to their low density, high specific strength, excellent plasticity and processing performance, good electrical and thermal conductivity, and wear and corrosion resistance.

[0004] Additive manufacturing technologies, such as selective laser melting (SLM), are new technologies for manufacturing both metallic and non-metallic parts, characterized by speed, efficiency, and high reliability. Compared to existing machining technologies, additive manufacturing can directly produce parts with complex shapes, achieving rapid, integrated prototyping and significantly improving material utilization and production efficiency.

[0005] Currently, aluminum alloy materials suitable for additive manufacturing technology, such as Al-Si aluminum alloys (e.g., AlSi...), are available. 10 Aluminum alloys such as Mg, AlSi7Mg, and Al-Mg-Sc, when manufactured using additive manufacturing techniques, may exhibit uneven surface color, striations, black spots, and blackening during anodizing. Although 6XXX series aluminum alloys are easy to color during anodizing, their high susceptibility to hot cracking makes it difficult to obtain crack-free and dense aluminum alloy parts using additive manufacturing. These issues limit the application of aluminum alloy parts in consumer electronics and other fields requiring anodizing.

[0006] In view of the above, there is an urgent need to develop an aluminum alloy material for additive manufacturing to solve the problems of cracking of aluminum alloy materials in the additive manufacturing process and uneven surface color of aluminum alloy parts after anodizing, as well as the appearance of horizontal lines, black spots and blackening. Summary of the Invention

[0007] This disclosure provides aluminum alloy materials for additive manufacturing, methods for preparing the same, and aluminum alloy parts; it can solve the problems of easy cracking of aluminum alloy materials during additive manufacturing and uneven surface color, horizontal lines, black spots, and blackening of aluminum alloy parts after anodizing.

[0008] The technical solution disclosed herein is implemented as follows:

[0009] In a first aspect, this disclosure provides an aluminum alloy material for additive manufacturing, wherein, by weight percentage, the aluminum alloy material comprises:

[0010] Mg: 0.1 wt.% to 5.0 wt.%;

[0011] Zn: 0.001 wt.% to 2.0 wt.%;

[0012] Si: 0.001 wt.% to 1.0 wt.%;

[0013] Mn: 0.001 wt.% to 1.0 wt.%;

[0014] Ti+Zr: 0.1 wt.% to 3.0 wt.%;

[0015] Fe: less than or equal to 0.5 wt.%;

[0016] Cu: less than or equal to 0.5 wt.%;

[0017] Cr: less than or equal to 0.5 wt.%;

[0018] O+N: less than or equal to 0.1 wt.%;

[0019] The balance includes Al and at least one unavoidable impurity element.

[0020] In some examples, Ti+Zr, by mass percentage, is 0.89 wt.% to 3.0 wt.%.

[0021] In some examples, the Fe+Cu+Cr content is less than or equal to 0.5 wt.% by mass.

[0022] In some examples, Fe+Cu+Cr: less than or equal to 0.25 wt.% by mass percentage.

[0023] In some examples, the content of each of the at least one impurity element is less than or equal to 0.05 wt.% by mass percentage.

[0024] In some examples, the aluminum alloy material is a powder, rod, wire, or filament.

[0025] In some examples, the aluminum alloy material is a powder material, and the particle size of the powder in the powder material is less than or equal to 73 μm.

[0026] In a second aspect, this disclosure provides a method for preparing an aluminum alloy material for additive manufacturing, the method being used to prepare the aluminum alloy material for additive manufacturing according to the first aspect, the method including gas atomization, plasma atomization, rotating electrode treatment, or mechanical alloying.

[0027] Thirdly, this disclosure provides an aluminum alloy part obtained by additive manufacturing from an aluminum alloy material for additive manufacturing as described in the first aspect.

[0028] In some examples, the aluminum alloy parts, after heat treatment, have a tensile strength greater than or equal to 305 MPa and less than or equal to 551 MPa, a yield strength greater than or equal to 263 MPa and less than or equal to 544 MPa, and an elongation greater than or equal to 9.0% and less than or equal to 21.5%.

[0029] The heat treatment process parameters are as follows: holding at 150°C to 450°C for 2 to 8 hours and then cooling in air.

[0030] This disclosure provides aluminum alloy materials for additive manufacturing, their preparation methods, and aluminum alloy parts. Through alloy composition design, under the rapid cooling conditions of additive manufacturing, fine Al3Zr and / or Ti particles generated during solidification with the matrix Al are used as heterogeneous nucleation sites to refine the grain size, reduce the hot cracking tendency of the aluminum alloy parts, and thereby improve the formability of the aluminum alloy parts. Furthermore, by controlling the amounts of Si, Fe, Cu, and Cr in the aluminum alloy material, the problems of uneven surface color, horizontal streaks, black spots, and blackening on the anodized aluminum alloy parts are addressed. Brief description of the attached figures

[0031] The features and advantages of one or more embodiments of this disclosure will become more readily apparent from the following description with reference to the accompanying drawings. The drawings are not drawn to scale and some features may be enlarged or reduced to show details of specific components. In the drawings:

[0032] Figure 1 is a microstructure diagram of the heat-treated aluminum alloy part provided in Embodiment 1 of this disclosure in the forming direction XY.

[0033] Figure 2 is a microstructure diagram of the heat-treated aluminum alloy part provided in Embodiment 1 of this disclosure in the forming direction Z.

[0034] Figure 3 is a room temperature tensile stress-strain curve of the heat-treated aluminum alloy part provided in Embodiment 1 of this disclosure.

[0035] Figure 4 is a microstructure diagram of the heat-treated aluminum alloy part in the forming direction XY provided in Embodiment 2 of this disclosure.

[0036] Figure 5 is a microstructure diagram of the heat-treated aluminum alloy part provided in Embodiment 2 of this disclosure in the forming direction Z.

[0037] Figure 6 is a room temperature tensile stress-strain curve of the heat-treated aluminum alloy part provided in Embodiment 2 of this disclosure.

[0038] Figure 7 is a microstructure diagram of the heat-treated aluminum alloy part in the forming direction XY provided in Embodiment 3 of this disclosure.

[0039] Figure 8 is a microstructure diagram of the heat-treated aluminum alloy part provided in Embodiment 3 of this disclosure in the forming direction Z.

[0040] Figure 9 is a room temperature tensile stress-strain curve of the heat-treated aluminum alloy part provided in Embodiment 3 of this disclosure.

[0041] Figure 10 is a microstructure diagram of the heat-treated aluminum alloy part in the forming direction XY provided in Embodiment 4 of this disclosure.

[0042] Figure 11 is a microstructure diagram of the heat-treated aluminum alloy part provided in Embodiment 4 of this disclosure in the forming direction Z.

[0043] Figure 12 is a room temperature tensile stress-strain curve of the heat-treated aluminum alloy part provided in Embodiment 4 of this disclosure.

[0044] Figure 13 is a microstructure diagram of the heat-treated aluminum alloy part provided in Embodiment 5 of this disclosure in the forming direction XY.

[0045] Figure 14 is a microstructure diagram of the heat-treated aluminum alloy part provided in Embodiment 5 of this disclosure in the forming direction Z.

[0046] Figure 15 is a room temperature tensile stress-strain curve of the heat-treated aluminum alloy part provided in Embodiment 5 of this disclosure.

[0047] Figure 16 is a microstructure diagram of the heat-treated aluminum alloy part in the forming direction XY provided in Embodiment 6 of this disclosure.

[0048] Figure 17 is a microstructure diagram of the heat-treated aluminum alloy part provided in Embodiment 6 of this disclosure in the forming direction Z.

[0049] Figure 18 is a room temperature tensile stress-strain curve of the heat-treated aluminum alloy part provided in Embodiment 6 of this disclosure.

[0050] Figure 19 is a microstructure diagram of the heat-treated aluminum alloy part provided in Embodiment 7 of this disclosure in the forming direction XY.

[0051] Figure 20 is a microstructure diagram of the heat-treated aluminum alloy part provided in Embodiment 7 of this disclosure in the forming direction Z.

[0052] Figure 21 is a room temperature tensile stress-strain curve of the heat-treated aluminum alloy part provided in Embodiment 7 of this disclosure.

[0053] Figure 22 is a schematic diagram of the surface morphology of the aluminum alloy part after anodizing according to an embodiment of this disclosure.

[0054] Figure 23 is a schematic diagram of the surface morphology of the aluminum alloy part provided in Comparative Example 1 of this disclosure after anodizing.

[0055] Figure 24 is a schematic diagram of the surface morphology of the aluminum alloy part provided in Comparative Example 2 of this disclosure after anodizing.

[0056] Figure 25 is a schematic diagram of the surface morphology of the aluminum alloy part provided in Comparative Example 3 of this disclosure after anodizing. Detailed Implementation

[0057] The technical solutions in this disclosure will now be clearly and completely described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0058] It should be noted that the anodizing treatment in this disclosure is also called anodizing treatment, which is a surface treatment process that forms an oxide film on the surface of aluminum alloy parts through electrolysis, aiming to improve their corrosion resistance and wear resistance, etc.

[0059] As mentioned earlier, aluminum alloy parts made from Al-Si and Al-Mg-Sc aluminum alloys suitable for additive manufacturing are prone to uneven surface color, horizontal streaks, black spots, and blackening during anodizing. The inventors of this disclosure have discovered that these problems occur on the surface of the aluminum alloy parts after anodizing due to the high proportion of elements such as Si, Fe, Cu, and Cr in the aluminum alloy material. This is mainly because these elements may cause uneven growth of the oxide film on the surface of the aluminum alloy parts or adverse reactions with the electrolyte during anodizing, leading to horizontal streaks, black spots, and blackening on the surface. Fe and Cu are the main elements affecting the surface color of the aluminum alloy parts after anodizing. Specifically, Si forms needle-like or plate-like eutectic silicon during additive manufacturing. These morphologies of eutectic silicon may affect the uniform formation of the oxide film during anodizing, resulting in uneven growth of the oxide film on the surface of the aluminum alloy parts. During anodizing, chromium (Cr) forms uneven oxides that interfere with the uniform formation of the oxide film, resulting in uneven color on the surface of aluminum alloy parts. Fe can form various intermetallic compounds with the Al matrix, which may cause oxide film cracking or uneven coloring during anodizing. Finally, Cu (Cu) may increase the porosity of the oxide film during anodizing, reducing its uniformity and density, and increasing the risk of horizontal streaks, black spots, and blackening on the surface of aluminum alloy parts.

[0060] Understandably, the uneven color, horizontal lines, black spots, and blackening that appear on the surface of aluminum alloy parts after anodizing may negatively affect their corrosion resistance and wear resistance.

[0061] Based on the above description, this disclosure provides an aluminum alloy material for additive manufacturing, wherein the aluminum alloy material comprises, by weight percentage:

[0062] Mg: 0.1 wt.% to 5.0 wt.%;

[0063] Zn: 0.001 wt.% to 2.0 wt.%;

[0064] Si: 0.001 wt.% to 1.0 wt.%;

[0065] Mn: 0.001 wt.% to 1.0 wt.%;

[0066] Ti+Zr: 0.1 wt.% to 3.0 wt.%;

[0067] Fe: less than or equal to 0.5 wt.%;

[0068] Cu: less than or equal to 0.5 wt.%;

[0069] Cr: less than or equal to 0.5 wt.%;

[0070] O+N: less than or equal to 0.1 wt.%;

[0071] The balance includes Al and at least one unavoidable impurity element.

[0072] The aluminum alloy material for additive manufacturing disclosed herein utilizes Zr and / or Ti as grain refiners. Specifically, under the rapid cooling conditions of additive manufacturing, the fine Al3Zr and Al3Ti particles formed by Zr and / or Ti with the matrix Al during solidification can serve as heterogeneous nucleation nuclei. These heterogeneous nucleation nuclei help refine the grains, reduce or eliminate coarse columnar grains, thereby reducing the tendency of aluminum alloy parts to develop hot cracks during additive manufacturing and significantly improving the formability of aluminum alloy parts.

[0073] Furthermore, element Mn promotes the formation of numerous reinforcing phases during additive manufacturing. These reinforcing phases remain stable at high temperatures and do not dissipate or change due to prolonged service. Therefore, these elements help maintain the room temperature and high temperature strength of aluminum alloy parts, ensuring their performance under extreme temperature conditions.

[0074] In addition to the above, the content of element Si in the aluminum alloy material for additive manufacturing provided in this disclosure is controlled within the range of 0.001 wt.% to 1.0 wt.%, and the contents of elements Fe, Cu, and Cr are each controlled below 0.5 wt%. Therefore, when the aluminum alloy parts are obtained through additive manufacturing and then anodized, the oxide film is formed more uniformly and densely, reducing porosity and defects, thereby avoiding the occurrence of phenomena such as horizontal lines, black spots, and blackening, and ensuring the corrosion resistance and wear resistance of the aluminum alloy parts surface.

[0075] In some possible implementations, the total content of Ti and Zr, by mass percentage, is greater than or equal to 0.89 wt.% and less than or equal to 3.0 wt.%.

[0076] By rationally controlling the content of elements Ti and Zr, the content of Al3Zr and Al3Ti particles in aluminum alloy parts can be precisely controlled, thereby reducing the tendency of aluminum alloy materials to hot crack during additive manufacturing and improving the mechanical properties and high-temperature stability of aluminum alloy parts.

[0077] In some possible implementations, the total content of Fe, Cu and Cr by mass percentage is less than or equal to 0.5 wt.%.

[0078] Understandably, in practice, Fe, Cu, and Cr may be incorporated into the aluminum alloy material as impurities. To ensure that the aluminum alloy parts maintain excellent surface quality after anodizing, this disclosure limits the total content of Fe, Cu, and Cr to below 0.5 wt.% to reduce the potential negative impacts of these elements. In some examples, the total content of Fe, Cu, and Cr by mass percentage is less than or equal to 0.25 wt.%.

[0079] In some possible implementations, the content of each of the at least one impurity element is less than or equal to 0.05 wt.% by mass percentage.

[0080] During the preparation of aluminum alloy materials, some other impurity elements, such as hydrogen (H), are inevitably introduced. It is understandable that if the content of these impurity elements in the aluminum alloy material is too high, these impurity elements will form stress concentration points in the aluminum alloy parts, thereby affecting the strength of the parts. Moreover, in some cases, excessive impurity elements may also affect the strength and hardness of the heat-treated aluminum alloy parts. Therefore, in this disclosure, the content of each impurity element is limited to less than or equal to 0.05 wt.%.

[0081] In some possible implementations, the aluminum alloy material is a powder, rod, wire, or filament.

[0082] It should be noted that the aforementioned bars, wires, or filaments are aluminum alloy materials with different shapes and / or sizes. In the embodiments of this disclosure, bars refer to elongated aluminum alloy materials with a circular or non-circular (e.g., rectangular, hexagonal) cross-section. Wires refer to elongated aluminum alloy materials with a diameter between a few millimeters and tens of millimeters (e.g., 5.5mm to 30mm). Fibers refer to elongated aluminum alloy materials with a diameter less than a few millimeters (e.g., less than 5.5mm).

[0083] In the embodiments of this disclosure, the aluminum alloy material described above can be a rod, wire, or filament. Alternatively, the rod, wire, or filament can be prepared from powdered aluminum alloy material. In some examples, the method for preparing the rod, wire, or filament from aluminum alloy powder can be a powder metallurgy method, etc.

[0084] In some possible implementations, the aluminum alloy material is a powder material, and the particle size of the powder in the powder material is less than or equal to 73 μm.

[0085] In additive manufacturing, smaller particle sizes improve the flowability of aluminum alloy materials. However, excessively fine particles may attract each other due to electrostatic effects, reducing flowability. Therefore, appropriately sized aluminum alloy particles contribute to uniform spreading. Furthermore, appropriately sized particles provide a larger surface area, increasing laser energy absorption efficiency and improving the uniformity of melting and solidification. Of course, appropriately sized aluminum alloy particles also reduce the porosity of additively manufactured aluminum alloy parts, increasing their density and thus enhancing their mechanical properties.

[0086] Secondly, this disclosure provides a method for preparing aluminum alloy materials for additive manufacturing. This method is used to prepare the aluminum alloy materials for additive manufacturing described in the foregoing technical solution. The method includes gas atomization, plasma atomization, rotating electrode treatment, or mechanical alloying.

[0087] It should be noted that this preparation method is used to prepare powdered aluminum alloy materials. The preferred method is gas atomization. Compared with other powder preparation methods, gas atomization can produce a large amount of powdered aluminum alloy material in a shorter time, resulting in high preparation efficiency and minimizing the introduction of impurities and inclusions during the preparation process. Furthermore, the powdered aluminum alloy material prepared by gas atomization also exhibits better sphericity, leading to better flowability and compaction during additive manufacturing. In addition, the rapid cooling rate during gas atomization facilitates the formation of fine, uniform microstructures, contributing to improved mechanical properties of aluminum alloy parts manufactured from this powdered aluminum alloy material.

[0088] In some examples, the aluminum alloy material prepared above needs to be dried and then sealed and stored in a vacuum after drying. Understandably, drying the prepared aluminum alloy material in a vacuum or in an inert gas environment can, on the one hand, avoid introducing impurities during the drying process, and on the other hand, remove moisture or other solvents from the aluminum alloy material, thereby improving its quality and stability, and also facilitating its storage.

[0089] Finally, this disclosure provides an aluminum alloy part, which is obtained by additive manufacturing of the aluminum alloy material used for additive manufacturing as described in the foregoing technical solution.

[0090] In some possible implementations, the aluminum alloy parts described above, after heat treatment, have a tensile strength greater than or equal to 305 MPa and less than or equal to 551 MPa, a yield strength greater than or equal to 263 MPa and less than or equal to 544 MPa, and an elongation greater than or equal to 9.0% and less than or equal to 21.5%.

[0091] The process parameters corresponding to the above heat treatment are: holding at 150℃ to 450℃ for 2 to 8 hours and then cooling in air.

[0092] It should be noted that when the aluminum alloy material is in powder form or is a wire with a very small diameter that conforms to the additive manufacturing process, the aforementioned aluminum alloy parts can be manufactured using additive manufacturing in this embodiment. When the aluminum alloy material is in bar, wire, or wire with a large diameter that does not conform to the additive manufacturing process, in this embodiment, the aforementioned bar, wire, or wire needs to be pre-processed into powder or wire that conforms to the additive manufacturing process. The specific processing method is not described in detail in this embodiment.

[0093] The technical solution of this disclosure will be described in detail below through specific embodiments.

[0094] Example 1

[0095] An aluminum alloy material for additive manufacturing, comprising, by weight percentage: Mg: 1.9 wt.%; Zn: 2.0 wt.%; Si: 1.0 wt.%; Mn: 0.1 wt.%; Fe: 0.06 wt.%; Ti: 0.03 wt.%; Zr: 0.07 wt.%; Cu: 0.03 wt.%; Cr: 0.03 wt.%; O: 0.02 wt.%; N: 0.06 wt.%; with the remainder being Al and unavoidable impurity elements.

[0096] In some examples, the aluminum alloy material provided in Example 1 is prepared using a vacuum atomization method and stored in a sealed environment. Before the additive manufacturing process, the aluminum alloy material first undergoes vacuum drying at 150°C for 2 hours. After vacuum drying, it is sieved to select powder material with a particle size ranging from 15 μm to 53 μm.

[0097] Before using the aluminum alloy material provided in Example 1 for additive manufacturing, a three-dimensional model of the target aluminum alloy part is first sliced ​​according to a set thickness. Then, the aluminum alloy material is added to the powder hopper of the additive manufacturing equipment. When the oxygen content in the forming chamber of the additive manufacturing equipment drops to a set value, the laser beam begins to scan the aluminum alloy material laid on the substrate of the additive manufacturing equipment and melts the aluminum alloy material according to the contour obtained from the slicing process to produce a metallurgical bond. This process is repeated layer by layer until the target aluminum alloy part is manufactured. Finally, the additively manufactured aluminum alloy part is heat-treated at 175°C for 8 hours and then cooled in air. The microstructure of the heat-treated aluminum alloy part in the forming direction XY and forming direction Z are shown in Figures 1 and 2, respectively. Furthermore, the tensile strength of the heat-treated aluminum alloy part is 305 MPa, the yield strength is 276 MPa, and the elongation is 12.5%. The room temperature tensile stress-strain curve is shown in Figure 3.

[0098] It should be noted that in the above forming directions XY, X refers to the length direction of the substrate in the forming chamber of the additive manufacturing equipment, and Y refers to the width direction of the substrate. The above forming direction Z refers to the thickness direction of the substrate.

[0099] Example 2

[0100] An aluminum alloy material for additive manufacturing, comprising, by weight percentage: Mg: 1.4 wt.%; Zn: 0.001 wt.%; Si: 0.2 wt.%; Mn: 0.3 wt.%; Fe: 0.07 wt.%; Ti: 0.35 wt.%; Zr: 0.54 wt.%; Cu: 0.06 wt.%; Cr: 0.01 wt.%; O: 0.01 wt.%; N: 0.05 wt.%; with the remainder being Al and unavoidable impurity elements.

[0101] In some examples, the aluminum alloy material provided in Example 2 is prepared using a vacuum atomization method and stored in a sealed environment. Before the additive manufacturing process, the aluminum alloy material first undergoes vacuum drying at 120°C for 2 hours. After vacuum drying, it is sieved to select powder material with a particle size ranging from 20 μm to 53 μm.

[0102] Before using the aluminum alloy material provided in Example 2 for additive manufacturing, a three-dimensional model of the target aluminum alloy part is first sliced ​​according to a set thickness. Then, the aluminum alloy material is added to the powder hopper of the additive manufacturing equipment. When the oxygen content in the forming chamber of the additive manufacturing equipment drops to a set value, the laser beam begins to scan the aluminum alloy material laid on the substrate of the additive manufacturing equipment and melts the aluminum alloy material according to the contour obtained from the slicing process to produce a metallurgical bond. This process is repeated layer by layer until the target aluminum alloy part is manufactured. Finally, the additively manufactured aluminum alloy part is heat-treated at 180°C for 6 hours and then cooled in air. The microstructure of the heat-treated aluminum alloy part in the forming direction XY and forming direction Z are shown in Figures 4 and 5, respectively. Furthermore, the heat-treated aluminum alloy part has a tensile strength of 325 MPa, a yield strength of 263 MPa, and an elongation of 18.0%. The room temperature tensile stress-strain curve is shown in Figure 6.

[0103] Example 3

[0104] An aluminum alloy material for additive manufacturing, comprising, by weight percentage: Mg: 2.8 wt.%; Zn: 0.9 wt.%; Si: 0.7 wt.%; Mn: 0.2 wt.%; Fe: 0.11 wt.%; Ti: 0.5 wt.%; Zr: 0.9 wt.%; Cu: 0.04 wt.%; Cr: 0.1 wt.%; O: 0.032 wt.%; N: 0.023 wt.%; with the remainder being Al and unavoidable impurity elements.

[0105] In some examples, the aluminum alloy material provided in Example 3 is prepared using a vacuum atomization method and stored in a sealed environment. Before the additive manufacturing process, the aluminum alloy material first undergoes a vacuum drying treatment at 150°C for 2 hours. After vacuum drying, it is sieved to select powder materials with a particle size ranging from 20 μm to 63 μm.

[0106] Before using the aluminum alloy material provided in Example 3 for additive manufacturing, a three-dimensional model of the target aluminum alloy part is first sliced ​​according to a set thickness. Then, the aluminum alloy material is added to the powder hopper of the additive manufacturing equipment. When the oxygen content in the forming chamber of the additive manufacturing equipment drops to a set value, the laser beam begins to scan the aluminum alloy material laid on the substrate of the additive manufacturing equipment and melts the aluminum alloy material according to the contour obtained from the slicing process to produce a metallurgical bond. This process is repeated layer by layer until the target aluminum alloy part is manufactured. Finally, the additively manufactured aluminum alloy part is heat-treated at 320°C for 2 hours and then cooled in air. The microstructure of the heat-treated aluminum alloy part in the forming direction XY and forming direction Z are shown in Figures 7 and 8, respectively. Furthermore, the tensile strength of the heat-treated aluminum alloy part is 381 MPa, the yield strength is 349 MPa, and the elongation is 21.5%. The room temperature tensile stress-strain curve is shown in Figure 9.

[0107] Example 4

[0108] An aluminum alloy material for additive manufacturing, comprising, by weight percentage: Mg: 5.0 wt.%; Zn: 1.1 wt.%; Si: 0.6 wt.%; Mn: 0.4 wt.%; Fe: 0.08 wt.%; Ti: 0.8 wt.%; Zr: 0.8 wt.%; Cu: 0.1 wt.%; Cr: 0.03 wt.%; O: 0.03 wt.%; N: 0.037 wt.%; the remainder being Al and unavoidable impurity elements.

[0109] In some examples, the aluminum alloy material provided in Example 4 is prepared using a vacuum atomization method and stored in a sealed environment. Before the additive manufacturing process, the aluminum alloy material first undergoes a vacuum drying treatment at 200°C for 2 hours. After vacuum drying, it is sieved to select powder materials with a particle size ranging from 29 μm to 73 μm.

[0110] Before using the aluminum alloy material provided in Example 4 for additive manufacturing, a three-dimensional model of the target aluminum alloy part is first sliced ​​according to a set thickness. Then, the aluminum alloy material is added to the powder hopper of the additive manufacturing equipment. When the oxygen content in the forming chamber of the additive manufacturing equipment drops to a set value, the laser beam begins to scan the aluminum alloy material laid on the substrate of the additive manufacturing equipment and melts the aluminum alloy material according to the contour obtained from the slicing process to produce a metallurgical bond. This process is repeated layer by layer until the target aluminum alloy part is manufactured. Finally, the additively manufactured aluminum alloy part is heat-treated at 160°C for 7.5 hours and then cooled in air. The microstructure of the heat-treated aluminum alloy part in the forming direction XY and forming direction Z are shown in Figures 10 and 11, respectively. Furthermore, the heat-treated aluminum alloy part has a tensile strength of 403 MPa, a yield strength of 361 MPa, and an elongation of 21.0%. The room temperature tensile stress-strain curve is shown in Figure 12.

[0111] Example 5

[0112] An aluminum alloy material for additive manufacturing, comprising, by weight percentage: Mg: 1.13 wt.%; Zn: 0.3 wt.%; Si: 0.2 wt.%; Mn: 0.2 wt.%; Fe: 0.15 wt.%; Ti: 0.5 wt.%; Zr: 0.6 wt.%; Cu: 0.15 wt.%; Cr: 0.2 wt.%; O: 0.02 wt.%; N: 0.043 wt.%; with the remainder being Al and unavoidable impurity elements.

[0113] In some examples, the aluminum alloy material provided in Example 5 is prepared using a vacuum atomization method and stored in a sealed environment. Before the additive manufacturing process, the aluminum alloy material first undergoes vacuum drying at 120°C for 2 hours. After vacuum drying, it is sieved to select powder material with a particle size ranging from 20 μm to 63 μm.

[0114] Before using the aluminum alloy material provided in Example 5 for additive manufacturing, a three-dimensional model of the target aluminum alloy part is first sliced ​​according to a set thickness. Then, the aluminum alloy material is added to the powder hopper of the additive manufacturing equipment. When the oxygen content in the forming chamber of the additive manufacturing equipment drops to a set value, the laser beam begins to scan the aluminum alloy material laid on the substrate of the additive manufacturing equipment and melts the aluminum alloy material according to the contour obtained from the slicing process to produce a metallurgical bond. This process is repeated layer by layer until the target aluminum alloy part is manufactured. Finally, the additively manufactured aluminum alloy part is heat-treated at 310°C for 2.5 hours and then cooled in air. The microstructure of the heat-treated aluminum alloy part in the forming direction XY and forming direction Z are shown in Figures 13 and 14, respectively. Furthermore, the tensile strength of the heat-treated aluminum alloy part is 352 MPa, the yield strength is 305 MPa, and the elongation is 16.0%. The room temperature tensile stress-strain curve is shown in Figure 15.

[0115] Example 6

[0116] An aluminum alloy material for additive manufacturing, comprising, by weight percentage: Mg: 0.1 wt.%; Zn: 2.0 wt.%; Si: 0.001 wt.%; Mn: 1.0 wt.%; Fe: 0.06 wt.%; Ti: 1.2 wt.%; Zr: 1.8 wt.%; Cu: 0.02 wt.%; Cr: 0.01 wt.%; O: 0.021 wt.%; N: 0.048 wt.%; with the remainder being Al and unavoidable impurity elements.

[0117] In some examples, the aluminum alloy material provided in Example 6 is prepared using a vacuum atomization method and stored in a sealed environment. Before the additive manufacturing process, the aluminum alloy material first undergoes a vacuum drying treatment at 200°C for 2 hours. After vacuum drying, it is sieved to select powder materials with a particle size ranging from 20 μm to 63 μm.

[0118] Before using the aluminum alloy material provided in Example 6 for additive manufacturing, a three-dimensional model of the target aluminum alloy part is first sliced ​​according to a set thickness. Then, the aluminum alloy material is added to the powder hopper of the additive manufacturing equipment. When the oxygen content in the forming chamber of the additive manufacturing equipment drops to a set value, the laser beam begins to scan the aluminum alloy material laid on the substrate of the additive manufacturing equipment and melts the aluminum alloy material according to the contour obtained from the slicing process to produce a metallurgical bond. This process is repeated layer by layer until the target aluminum alloy part is manufactured. Finally, the additively manufactured aluminum alloy part is heat-treated at 350°C for 3 hours and then cooled in air. The microstructure of the heat-treated aluminum alloy part in the forming direction XY and forming direction Z are shown in Figures 16 and 17. Furthermore, the heat-treated aluminum alloy part has a tensile strength of 551 MPa, a yield strength of 544 MPa, and an elongation of 9.0%. The room temperature tensile stress-strain curve is shown in Figure 18.

[0119] Example 7

[0120] An aluminum alloy material for additive manufacturing, comprising, by weight percentage: Mg: 0.8 wt.%; Zn: 1.6 wt.%; Si: 0.6 wt.%; Mn: 0.001 wt.%; Fe: 0.5 wt.%; Ti: 0.7 wt.%; Zr: 0.6 wt.%; Cu: 0.5 wt.%; Cr: 0.5 wt.%; O: 0.7 wt.%; N: 0.3 wt.%; with the remainder being Al and unavoidable impurity elements.

[0121] In some examples, the aluminum alloy material provided in Example 7 is prepared using a vacuum atomization method and stored in a sealed environment. Before the additive manufacturing process, the aluminum alloy material first undergoes a vacuum drying treatment at 200°C for 2 hours. After vacuum drying, it is sieved to select powder materials with a particle size ranging from 20 μm to 63 μm.

[0122] Before using the aluminum alloy material provided in Example 7 for additive manufacturing, a three-dimensional model of the target aluminum alloy part is first sliced ​​according to a set thickness. Then, the aluminum alloy material is added to the powder hopper of the additive manufacturing equipment. When the oxygen content in the forming chamber of the additive manufacturing equipment drops to a set value, the laser beam begins to scan the aluminum alloy material laid on the substrate of the additive manufacturing equipment and melts the aluminum alloy material according to the contour obtained from the slicing process to produce a metallurgical bond. This process is repeated layer by layer until the target aluminum alloy part is manufactured. Finally, the additively manufactured aluminum alloy part is heat-treated at 300°C for 3 hours and then cooled in air. The microstructure of the heat-treated aluminum alloy part in the forming direction XY and forming direction Z are shown in Figures 19 and 20. Furthermore, the heat-treated aluminum alloy part has a tensile strength of 416 MPa, a yield strength of 379 MPa, and an elongation of 15.0%. The room temperature tensile stress-strain curve is shown in Figure 21.

[0123] In addition, it should be noted that after heat treatment, the aluminum alloy parts manufactured in Examples 1 to 7 are subjected to machining, polishing and sandblasting processes, and finally anodizing. The surface color of the aluminum alloy parts is uniform and consistent, and there are no uneven horizontal lines, black spots or other blackening phenomena. Its morphological schematic diagram is shown in Figure 22.

[0124] Comparative Example 1

[0125] An aluminum alloy material for additive manufacturing, comprising, by weight percentage: Mg: 1.13 wt.%; Zn: 0.3 wt.%; Si: 0.2 wt.%; Mn: 0.2 wt.%; Fe: 0.05 wt.%; Ti: 1.6 wt.%; Zr: 1.9 wt.%; Cu: 0.03 wt.%; Cr: 0.02 wt.%; O: 0.05 wt.%; N: 0.03 wt.%; with the remainder being Al and unavoidable impurity elements.

[0126] In some examples, the aluminum alloy material provided in Comparative Example 1 was prepared using a vacuum atomization method and stored in a sealed environment under vacuum. Before the additive manufacturing process, the aluminum alloy material was first subjected to vacuum drying at 200°C for 2 hours. After vacuum drying, it was sieved to obtain powder material with a particle size ranging from 20 μm to 63 μm.

[0127] Before using the aluminum alloy material provided in Comparative Example 1 for additive manufacturing, a three-dimensional model of the target aluminum alloy part is first sliced ​​according to a set thickness. Then, the aluminum alloy material is added to the powder hopper of the additive manufacturing equipment. Once the oxygen content in the forming chamber of the additive manufacturing equipment drops to a set value, a laser beam begins scanning the aluminum alloy material laid on the substrate of the additive manufacturing equipment, melting the material according to the contour obtained from the slicing process to create a metallurgical bond. This process is repeated layer by layer until the target aluminum alloy part is manufactured. Finally, the additively manufactured aluminum alloy part is heat-treated at 300°C for 3 hours and then cooled in air.

[0128] In addition, it should be noted that after heat treatment, the aluminum alloy parts manufactured in Comparative Example 1 underwent machining, polishing, and sandblasting processes. Finally, after anodizing, the oxide film formed on the surface was uneven and showed horizontal lines, as shown in Figure 23.

[0129] Comparative Example 2

[0130] An aluminum alloy material for additive manufacturing, comprising, by weight percentage: Mg: 1.2 wt.%; Zn: 0.25 wt.%; Si: 0.4 wt.%; Mn: 0.1 wt.%; Fe: 0.51 wt.%; Ti: 0.02 wt.%; Zr: 0.06 wt.%; Cu: 0.13 wt.%; Cr: 0.15 wt.%; O: 0.02 wt.%; N: 0.06 wt.%; with the remainder being Al and unavoidable impurity elements.

[0131] In some examples, the aluminum alloy material provided in Comparative Example 2 was prepared using a vacuum atomization method and stored in a sealed environment. Before the additive manufacturing process, the aluminum alloy material was first subjected to vacuum drying at 200°C for 2 hours. After vacuum drying, it was sieved to obtain powder material with a particle size ranging from 20 μm to 63 μm.

[0132] Before using the aluminum alloy material provided in Comparative Example 2 for additive manufacturing, a three-dimensional model of the target aluminum alloy part is first sliced ​​according to a set thickness. Then, the aluminum alloy material is added to the powder hopper of the additive manufacturing equipment. Once the oxygen content in the forming chamber of the additive manufacturing equipment drops to a set value, a laser beam begins scanning the aluminum alloy material laid on the substrate of the additive manufacturing equipment, melting the material according to the contour obtained from the slicing process to create a metallurgical bond. This process is repeated layer by layer until the target aluminum alloy part is manufactured. Finally, the additively manufactured aluminum alloy part is heat-treated at 300°C for 3 hours and then cooled in air.

[0133] Furthermore, it should be noted that after heat treatment, the aluminum alloy parts manufactured in Comparative Example 2 underwent machining, polishing, and sandblasting processes. Finally, after anodizing, black spots appeared on the surface of the aluminum alloy parts, as shown in Figure 24.

[0134] Comparative Example 3

[0135] An aluminum alloy material for additive manufacturing, comprising, by weight percentage: Mg: 2.8 wt.%; Zn: 0.9 wt.%; Si: 2.3 wt.%; Mn: 0.2 wt.%; Fe: 0.7 wt.%; Ti: 0.3 wt.%; Zr: 1.1 wt.%; Cu: 1.1 wt.%; Cr: 0.07 wt.%; O: 0.02 wt.%; N: 0.06 wt.%; with the remainder being Al and unavoidable impurity elements.

[0136] In some examples, the aluminum alloy material provided in Comparative Example 3 was prepared using a vacuum atomization method and stored in a sealed environment. Before the additive manufacturing process, the aluminum alloy material was first subjected to vacuum drying at 200°C for 2 hours. After vacuum drying, it was sieved to obtain powder material with a particle size ranging from 20 μm to 63 μm.

[0137] Before using the aluminum alloy material provided in Comparative Example 3 for additive manufacturing, a three-dimensional model of the target aluminum alloy part is first sliced ​​according to a set thickness. Then, the aluminum alloy material is added to the powder hopper of the additive manufacturing equipment. Once the oxygen content in the forming chamber of the additive manufacturing equipment drops to a set value, a laser beam begins scanning the aluminum alloy material laid on the substrate of the additive manufacturing equipment, melting the material according to the contour obtained from the slicing process to create a metallurgical bond. This process is repeated layer by layer until the target aluminum alloy part is manufactured. Finally, the additively manufactured aluminum alloy part is heat-treated at 300°C for 3 hours and then cooled in air.

[0138] Furthermore, it should be noted that after heat treatment, the aluminum alloy parts manufactured in Comparative Example 3 underwent machining, polishing, and sandblasting processes, and finally anodizing. As a result, the surface color of the aluminum alloy parts was uneven, as shown in Figure 25.

[0139] It is understandable that the surface of aluminum alloy parts will appear, for example, red after anodizing. However, in this disclosure, in order to clearly show the problems such as uneven color, striations, and black spots on the surface, the surface color of the anodized aluminum alloy parts is shown as white in Figures 22 to 25. For example, in Figure 22, the surface of the aluminum alloy parts is shown as pure white to indicate that there are no problems such as uneven color, striations, and black spots on the surface.

[0140] It should be noted that the technical solutions described in this disclosure can be combined arbitrarily as long as they do not conflict.

[0141] The above description is merely a specific embodiment of this disclosure, but the scope of protection of this disclosure is not limited thereto. Any variations or substitutions that can be easily conceived by those skilled in the art within the scope of the technology disclosed in this disclosure should be included within the scope of protection of this disclosure. Therefore, the scope of protection of this disclosure should be determined by the scope of the claims.

Claims

1. An aluminum alloy material for additive manufacturing, characterized in that, The aluminum alloy material comprises, by weight percentage: Mg: 0.1 wt.% to 5.0 wt.%; Zn: 0.001 wt.% to 2.0 wt.%; Si: 0.001 wt.% to 1.0 wt.%; Mn: 0.001 wt.% to 1.0 wt.%; Ti+Zr: 0.1 wt.% to 3.0 wt.%; Fe: less than or equal to 0.5 wt.%; Cu: less than or equal to 0.5 wt.%; Cr: less than or equal to 0.5 wt.%; O+N: less than or equal to 0.1 wt.%; The balance includes Al and at least one unavoidable impurity element.

2. The aluminum alloy material for additive manufacturing according to claim 1, characterized in that, Ti+Zr: 0.89 wt.% to 3.0 wt.% by mass percentage.

3. The aluminum alloy material for additive manufacturing according to claim 1, characterized in that, By mass percentage, Fe+Cu+Cr: less than or equal to 0.5 wt.%.

4. The aluminum alloy material for additive manufacturing according to claim 1, characterized in that, By mass percentage, Fe+Cu+Cr: less than or equal to 0.25 wt.%.

5. The aluminum alloy material for additive manufacturing according to claim 1, characterized in that, The content of each of the at least one impurity element is less than or equal to 0.05 wt.% by mass percentage.

6. The aluminum alloy material for additive manufacturing according to claim 1, characterized in that, The aluminum alloy material is a powder, rod, wire, or filament.

7. The aluminum alloy material for additive manufacturing according to claim 5, characterized in that, The aluminum alloy material is a powder material, and the particle size of the powder in the powder material is less than or equal to 73 μm.

8. A method for preparing aluminum alloy materials for additive manufacturing, characterized in that, The preparation method is used to prepare aluminum alloy materials for additive manufacturing according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the preparation method includes gas atomization, plasma atomization, rotating electrode treatment, or mechanical alloying.

9. An aluminum alloy part, characterized in that, The aluminum alloy part is obtained by additive manufacturing from the aluminum alloy material for additive manufacturing as described in any one of claims 1 to 7.

10. The aluminum alloy part according to claim 9, characterized in that, The aluminum alloy parts, after heat treatment, have a tensile strength greater than or equal to 305 MPa and less than or equal to 551 MPa, a yield strength greater than or equal to 263 MPa and less than or equal to 544 MPa, and an elongation greater than or equal to 9.0% and less than or equal to 21.5%. The heat treatment process parameters are as follows: holding at 150°C to 450°C for 2 to 8 hours and then cooling in air.

Images