Measurement of young's modulus and hardness of Al-50 wt % Sn alloy phases using nanoindentation

Abstract

The nanoindentation method was used to measure the Young's modulus and hardness of the phases of the alloy Al-50 wt % Sn: alpha-aluminum and eutectic. Samples are obtained in different ways, i.e., traditionally via the transition of the melt into a homogeneous structural state by heating to a certain temperature, followed by cooling using the cooling rate greater by the order than that of the traditional method and via the addition of 0.06 wt % Ti and 1 wt % Zr to the binary alloy. It has been found that the most significant effect of the Al-50 wt % Sn phases on the Young's modulus is the transition of the melt into a homogeneous structural state and the introduction of Zr into the melt. As part of the mathematical theory of elasticity, a numerical evaluation of the interfacial pressure that arises due to the difference between Young's modulus of alpha aluminum and eutectic has been performed. The calculation has showed that the extra pressure is nine times less for the alloy formed through the transition of the melt into a homogeneous structural state than for the alloy produced via a traditional way.