Hot and Cold Forming Behaviour of Magnesium Alloys AZ31 and

AZ61

Lotfi Chabbi, Wolfgang Lehnert, Rudolf Kawalla

Freiberg University of Mining and Technology, Institute of Metal Forming (Germany)
Frank Lehnert
BMW Group München (Germany)

1 Introduction

Current tendencies in Mg production and consumption give rise to the expectation that Mg
will play an important role in lightweight construction in the future. Mg materials are used
especially where the acceleration of masses has to be combined with low weight, high
strength and good machining ability, i.e. in the automobile, aircraft and space industries. At
the moment, however, mainly Mg cast materials are used in the automobile industry. In spite
of the possibility of improving their use properties by targeted forming technologies, the use
of formed components made from Mg alloys has so far been restricted to single applications.
Modern cost-efficient and material-oriented technologies must be introduced when new
production capacities are created. Experimental investigations into the deformation behavior
and rolling capacity of Mg materials shall provide the basis for such modern technologies.
Investigations focused on alloys AZ 31 and AZ 61. In the first part of the article, the hot
and cold forming behavior is examined for the example of alloy AZ 61 by torsion and
upsetting tests under technologically relevant conditions. The second part is dedicated to the
rolling capacity of the two alloys, which is determined by rolling experiments, the effects of
rolling on the microstructure and mechanical properties, and the technological limits.

2 Material – Original Microstructure – Experimental

Alloys AZ 31 and AZ 61 were available for the technological investigations; their chemical
composition is described in Table 1. Aluminium and zinc are the main alloying elements in
both cases: AZ 31 contains approx. 2,6 % Al while AZ 61 contains approx. 5,9 % Al. The Zn
content is approx. 0,9 % for both alloys. Al and Zn have a hardening effect due to solid-
solution hardening, precipitation hardening and grain refining.

Table 1: Chemical composition of investigated materials in [%]

Alloy Al Zn Si Ni Cu Mn Fe
AZ 31 2,54 0,848 0,0199 0,0178 0,00210 0,351 0,0764
AZ 61 5,89 0,853 0,0241 0,00113 0,00505 0,216 0,00235

The development of modern metal forming technologies for the rolling of Mg materials
requires knowledge of the metallurgical and material physical characteristics, thermodynamic

Magnesium Alloys and their Applications. Edited by K. U. Kainer.

© WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH, Weinheim. ISBN: 3-527-30282-4
622

conditions and the stress state during forming. Further important factors are the features and
peculiarities of the original microstructure and the forming behavior / formability of the
investigated material, since microstructural changes during hot forming are the result of the
interaction between hardening and softening. Therefore, the investigation of the
microstructure and the determination of the flow stress and the deformation at cracking or
fracture, i.e. the so-called forming degree at fracture or formability, which are functions of the
forming degree, temperature and deformation rate, is highly important. It allows to determine
the stresses and forces necessary for deformation and, most important, the practical limits of
deformation.
Figure 1 shows optical micrographs of the original microstructure of AZ 61 at two
magnifications. It is evident that there is a eutectic (δ+γ) in this alloy, even though the
microstructure should consist only of high-magnesium solid solution crystals δ with γ
segregates according to its phase diagram. In our earlier investigations [1] the same
microstructural characteristics were found for AZ 31. In both alloys, the γ components were
subject to contact crystallization to the primary δ solid solution crystals, so that the γ phase
remains isolated in compact form at the grain boundaries of the primary δ solid solution
crystals. It has also to be taken into account that the γ phase (Al8Mg5) is harder than the δ
phase. The reason for the occurrence of the eutectic even for Al < 12.6 % is the strong
segregation. Similar phenomena and findings have already been reported in the literature [2].
Furthermore, REM investigations and energy-dispersive X-ray analysis have shown the
original material to contain AlMn precipitates alongside MgAl precipitates.
The deformation behavior of the alloy AZ 61 - the experiments for AZ 31 were described in
[3] - is most suitably determined by recording flow curves σF = σF(ϕ) in torsion and upsetting
experiments at constant deformation rate and temperature. Taking into account the features of
the original microstructure, hot-forming specimens were always annealed at 450 °C for an
extended period of time prior to deformation. Annealing was combined with heating to the
deformation temperature. This high-temperature treatment was intended to produce a
concentration homogenization in the δ solid solution crystals, to largely dissolve the γ phase
and MnAl precipitates, and to at least coagulate their remainders. This long-time heating
treatment was used in all cases of hot forming, to be sure to have an identical microstructure
state. The deformation temperature was varied in 50 K steps between 200 and 450 °C. Three
deformation rates were always given to characterize the flow curve families as completely as
possible.
Upsetting experiments were conducted for the cold forming range. The deformation
temperature was fixed between room temperature and 200 °C, whereas the deformation rate
was kept constant at 0,8 s-1 .
The rolling capacity of AZ 31 and AZ 61 was assessed by pilot-scale rolling tests;
simultaneously, the effects on the microstructure and mechanical properties were determined.
The rolling tests took place on a two-high rolling mill with P ≤ 160 kW, Fmax = 2400 kN, Mmax
= 60 kNm, Dw = 334 mm. Material of 170 mm ∅ was used in all experiments. The objective
was to produce strip of 1,5 mm thickness with good surface quality and properties. The multi-
step hot forming was carried out with a rolling speed of 1 m/s. Heating was done in an electric
furnace, to 500 °C for AZ 31 and to 450 °C for AZ 61. In all tests, the furnace and rolling
temperatures were measured, as well as the rolling forces, rolling torques, and handling and
forming times in each pass.
 623

Figure 1: Original microstructure of AZ 61

3 Hot Forming Behavior of Mg Material AZ 61

Figure 2 shows an example of the flow curve family for ϕ&= 0.8. The curves show the flow
stress to be very low at high temperatures (homologous temperature 0,72 – 0,64), and the
formability of the material to be relatively good. The latter is due to the dynamic
recrystallization in the course of deformation. With decreasing deformation temperature, the
forming degree at fracture is reduced. This is an indication for the softening by dynamic
recrystallization being counteracted by strong hardening. As early as below a homologous
temperature of 0.56, there are no clear signs of complete recrystallization any longer. With
decreasing temperature, the flow stress maximum moves to higher σf values.

300
Homologous temperature

250 0,32

0,40
Flow stress [MPa]

200

0,48
150 Deformation rate = 0,8 [1/s]

0,56
100
0,64

0,72
50

0
0 0,2 0,4 0,6 0,8 1 1,2
Degree of deformation
Figure 2: Hot flow curves of AZ 61, recorded in torsion test at a deformation rate of 0.8 s-1
624

The restricted recrystallization process and the decreasing number of sliding planes have a
strong influence on the formability (Figure 3). The probability of crack formation is the
higher, the lower the deformation temperature and the higher the deformation rate. While the
forming degree at fracture (ϕBr) is 1,10 at 450 °C independently of the deformation rate, this
characteristic moves to lower values with decreasing forming temperatures; thus, a forming
degree at fracture of between 0,32 and 0,43 was determined at a homologous temperature
between 0,32 and 0,40. This means that the final deformation temperatures must not be lower
than 300 °C (better 350 °C) in hot forming, and that the handling times before and between
passes must always be short to avoid temperature losses.

1,2

ϕ&1 < ϕ&2

Reference forming degree at fracture

0,8

0,6 ϕ&1
ϕ&2
0,4

0,2

0
0,2 0,3 0,4 0,5 0,6 0,7 0,8
Homologous tempearure

Figure 3: Hot formability of AZ 61

4 Cold Forming Behavior of Mg Material AZ 61

Figure 4 shows the cold flow curves recorded in upsetting tests. Hardening decreases with
increasing deformation temperature; the flow curve maximum moves to lower values and
higher forming degrees. Hardening at temperatures below 200 °C leads to an increase of the
flow stress σF until the formability is exhausted. With increasing forming degree, the flow
stress increases to a maximum and then decreases up to fracture. Signs of dynamic
recrystallization are observed in the flow curve family only starting from a homologous
temperature of 0,32. These results supplement the findings of the hot torsion tests.
Figure 5 illustrates the dependence of the formability on the deformation temperature. With
decreasing deformation temperature, the forming degree at fracture is strongly reduced. It
reaches its lowest value between room temperature and the homologous temperature 0,19.
Therefore, direct cold rolling of AZ 61 appears to be hardly realistic.
 625

450
Homologous temperature
400
RT
350 0,13
0,26
Flow stress [MPa]

300

250

200
0,32
150

100
Deformation rate = 0,8 [1/s]
50

0
0 0,2 0,4 0,6 0,8 1
Degree of deformation
Figure 4: Cold flow curves of AZ 61, recorded in upsetting test

0,35

0,33
Reference forming at fracture

0,31

0,29

0,27

0,25

0,23

0,21

0,19

0,17

0,15
0 0,05 0,1 0,15 0,2 0,25 0,3
Homologous temperature

Figure 5: Cold formability of AZ 61 (cold upsetting test)

5 Results of Rolling Tests

Prior to rolling, the original material was subjected to annealing for an extended period of
time to homogenize the microstructure, uniformly heat the rolling stock, and partially dissolve
the primary precipitates. Heating conditions were selected on the basis of the phase diagram
of Mg-Al and the initial material dimensions. The final strip thickness of 1,5 mm was reached
only after several steps of rolling. This was necessary since formability deteriorates with a
thinner metal body and thus faster cooling. The rolling plans and strategies were designed
with due regard to the special features of the cast microstructure, the deformation behavior
and formability, and the objective of a good surface quality. We found that Mg rolling stock
626

does not stick to the rolls above the recrystallization temperature, so that no lubrication was
required. After rolling, all strips were annealed for one hour at 300 °C.
In view of its chemical composition and required properties, AZ 31 is preferentially used
for components under average mechanical load at good chemical resistance. In contrast, AZ
61 is used for components under average to strong mechanical load. Table 2 lists the expected
spectrum of mechanical properties of the two alloys at room temperature.

Table 2: Properties of AZ31 and AZ61 at room temperature

Alloy Rp0,2 [MPa] Rm [MPa] A5 [%]
AZ 31 150 - 170 230 - 250 10 - 16
AZ 61 180 - 200 260 - 280 8 - 10

Table 3 lists the attained average strength and elongation values of AZ 31 along, across and
at 45° to the rolling direction. It is evident that the strength characteristics in soft annealed
state are similar to the known values for this material. The elongation values are clearly
higher than the required values. Therefore, the obtained mechanical properties are seen as
very positive. The results show that it is possible to obtain a good strength-toughness
combination in hot rolled strip made from AZ 31. The most important prerequisite, apart from
the defect-free quality of the original material, is to keep the deformation temperature above
the recrystallization temperature. There are no major differences in the mechanical properties
depending on the position of the specimen with regard to the rolling direction, which was also
confirmed by hardness measurements and measurements of the average δ grain size along and
across the rolling direction. The average grains sizes were 11,5 µm in rolling direction and
12,9 µm across the rolling direction. At room temperature, the produced strip shows a mean
vertical anisotropy rm between 1,48 and 2,08. This is comparable to the values of IF 03 steel
(rm ≅ 2,0) or the deep drawing steel St 14 (rm ≅ 1,7) and allows the prediction that these strips
have a good deep drawing ability. Furthermore, a mean hardening exponent nm between 0,20
and 0,24 and a stretch forming value s (s = Rm/Rp0,2 + n + 2 ∗ r min) of s = 3,33 were
determined, so that processing by stretch forming is possible as well.

Table 3: Mechanical properties of AZ 31

Direction Rp0,2 [MPa] Rm [MPa] Ag [%] A50 [%] n* r
longitudinal 137-172 239-254 9,3-18,2 11,7-23,3 0,20-0,24 1,23-2,13
transverse 133-163 241-256 13,9-18,1 14,8-23,3 0,21-0,25 1,35-1,80
45° 136-163 245-256 16,3-17,1 18,5-23,8 0,21-0,23 1,61-2,24
* in the range 2 % to Ag

Table 4 lists the properties of AZ 61. For this material, the average tensile strength and
elongation values are on the same level as the required values. In contrast, the yield strength is
lower than the required value in all directions.
The mean vertical anisotropy rm in the annealed state varies between 1.04 and 1.54 for this
alloy, which is sufficiently high but lower than the value of AZ 31. The relatively low yield
strength and vertical anisotropy of AZ 61 are most probably due to the parameters of the
recrystallization annealing, which were only formally fixed but not analyzed in detail. The
results allow the conclusion that the strip rolled from AZ 61 fulfilled the requirements at least
in principle; however, the potential of the alloy AZ 61 can most probably be improved by
optimizing the rolling and annealing parameters.
 627

Table 4: Mechanical properties of AZ 61 at room temperature

Direction Rp0,2 [MPa] Rm [MPa] Ag [%] A50 [%] n* r
longitudinal 131-163 246-266 7,7-10,2 7,8-10,3 0,20-0,25 1,12-2,15
transverse 134-151 264-275 9,2-15,1 9,8-15,3 0,23-0,27 0,92-1,32
45° 133-153 241-270 7,4-11,8 7,9-11,9 0,22-0,26 1,00-1,77
* in the range 2 % to Ag

6 Conclusion

At high temperatures, the material AZ 61 has a very low flow stress and an acceptable
formability. With decreasing deformation temperature, hardening is counteracted by less
pronounced softening by recovery and beginning dynamic recrystallization, so that the
softening process is restricted. This leads to poorer formability with decreasing deformation
temperature. Cold torsion and upsetting tests showed partial recrystallization to begin only at
a deformation temperature of 200 °C. Formability is particularly poor between 20 and 120 °C.
The mechanical properties of the two Mg alloys in terms of strength characteristics are
equivalent to those of Al automobile body sheet alloys in soft, non-hardened state. Due to the
hexagonal crystal lattice, the elongation values Ag and A50 are somewhat lower; the same
applies to cold formability. The forming degree at fracture is lower, so that at too strong a
deformation there is the hazard of shear crack formation at 45° to the load direction. At
temperatures above 250 °C, a marked improvement of the deformation behavior was
confirmed experimentally. For complex sheet shapes, deformation should therefore be
conducted above this threshold value.

7 References

[1] W. Lehnert, L. Chabbi, Besonderheiten beim Umformen von Magnesium-werkstoffen,

Lecture, MEFORM 99, Freiberg, 24. Und 25. März, 1999, Procedings
[2] H. Schumann, H., Metallographie, Deutscher Verlag für Grundstoffindustrie, Leipzig,
1991
[3] L. Chabbi, W. Lehnert, Hot and Cold Forming Behaviour of Mg-Materials, Lecture,
International Conference and Exhibition Magnesium Alloys and their Applications, April
28-30, 1998, Wolfsburg, Germany, Conference Book, p. 313-317