Welding in the World

https://doi.org/10.1007/s40194-020-00952-w

RESEARCH PAPER

Electron beam welding behavior of a 5083-H15 alloy containing Zr

and Sc
Yu-Chih Tzeng 1 & Ren-Yu Chen 2

Received: 25 April 2020 / Accepted: 25 June 2020

# International Institute of Welding 2020

Abstract
This study discusses the effects of the addition of Sc and Zr on the microstructure, and mechanical and corrosion properties of an
electron beam welded 5083-H15 alloy. The results show that the addition of Sc and Zr to a 5083 alloy exerted a remarkable effect
on grain refinement resulting in an enhancement of the mechanical properties. Moreover, the addition of Sc and Zr prompted
precipitation of Al3 (Sc, Zr) precipitate in the heat-affected zone during the electron beam welding, thereby hindering the
movement of dislocations and inhibiting recrystallization, effectively improving the tensile strength, joint efficiency, and hard-
ness of the welded joint. Combined additions of Sc and Zr to a 5083 alloy led to a remarkable enhancement in the resistance to
intergranular corrosion at the weld joints as determined via nitric acid mass loss tests for a reduction from 9.72 to 3.61 mg/cm2.
The main reason for the improvement in corrosion resistance is the addition of Sc and Zr. Recrystallization at the welded joint was
inhibited by the formation of the Al3 (Sc, Zr) phase during the electron beam welding which acted to suppress the formation of the
β phase along the grain boundaries in the welded zone.

Keywords Electron beam welding . Microstructure . Al3 (Sc, Zr) . Mechanical properties . Al-Mg alloy

1 Introduction
The 5xxx series Al-Mg alloys, specifically the H116 and
H321 temper grade alloys, have been used in marine applica-
tions for several decades [1]. The most commonly accepted
marine grade Al-Mg alloy being AA5083 [2] due to its high
strength, easy weldability, and good formability. Although
AA5083 alloys are widely used in the marine industry, some
critical problems associated with them remain related to (i)
corrosion control and (ii) weldability. These two problems
are the biggest issues hindering the application of these alloys
in the marine environment. It is well known that the Al–Mg
Recommended for publication by Commission IX - Behaviour of Metals
Subjected to Welding
* Yu-Chih Tzeng
a0932467761@gmail.com
1
Department of Power Vehicle and Systems Engineering,
Chung-Cheng Institute of Technology, National Defense University,
Taoyuan City 33551, Taiwan
2
Department of Marine Mechanical Engineering, R.O.C. Naval
Academy, Kaohsiung City 81345, Taiwan
alloys tend to become “sensitized” [3, 4]. This occurs when
the intermetallic β phases (Mg2Al3) precipitate at the grain
boundaries to form a continuous mesh. The sensitized Al–
Mg alloys are susceptible to intergranular attack, including
intergranular corrosion (IGC) or stress corrosion cracking
(SCC) [5]. It has been found in several studies [6–8] that the
addition of minor alloying elements, such as scandium (Sc),
zirconium (Zr), or both, can dramatically improve the strength
[6] and effectively decrease the susceptibility of an aluminum
alloy to sensitization damage [9]. The combined addition of
Sc and Zr to an aluminum alloy can refine the grains and
improve the mechanical strength of the material [8, 10]. The
Al3 (Sc, Zr) precipitates can also pin the grain boundaries,
inhibiting the growth of grains and improve the thermal sta-
bility of the alloy at high temperatures [11–13].
A particular issue with the usage of the 5xxx series Al-Mg
alloy for marine structures is the welding process [2, 14],
including gas tungsten arc welding (GTAW), gas metal arc
welding (GMAW), plasma arc welding (PAW), etc. [15]. The
welding process is indispensable for the creation of the joints
in a hull, for example, or for the production of other structural
components. The most reliable and commonly used form of
welding for shipbuilding is GMAW [15], but the generation of
the large amounts of heat that occurs during this process

inevitably results in welding defects [16–19]. These defects
can result in problems such as distortion or deformation of the
workpiece, and therefore, straightening is required. Changes
in the microstructure of the materials in the weld bead which
occur at high welding temperatures can alter the original struc-
ture of the material matrix. These changes in the microstruc-
ture will affect the mechanical properties of the material and
cause it to become vulnerable to corrosion. The weld bead and
heat-affected zone are prone to intergranular corrosion and
stress corrosion when the welded Al-Mg alloys are in a cor-
rosive environment, which leads to a reduction in the corro-
sion resistance, and a decrease in the mechanical properties of
the material, with the potential for severe loss [20–22]. To
remedy these issues, some innovative welding technologies,
e.g., hybrid laser arc welding (HLAW) [23] and electron beam
welding (EBW) [14, 24, 25], have been developed for use in
the marine sector to enhance the mechanical and corrosion-
resistant properties of the welded structure.
One researcher [26] pointed out that the advantages of
electron beam (EB) welding are that although the width of
the bead is narrow, the depth of the bead can reach more than
2 in., and it can solidify instantaneously, making it suitable for
thick plate welding, such as aircraft beams and so on.
Compared to GMAW, electron beam welding is a more ad-
vanced welding method. In electron beam welding, the weld-
ment is placed in a vacuum with a high-speed electron beam
incident upon it [27, 28]. The kinetic energy derived from the
beam is converted into heat that melts the weldment. The weld
seam formed during welding has a large aspect ratio, small
welding stresses, and less deformation. Electron beam
welding can also reduce the occurrence of pores, inclusions,
and cracks, effectively decreasing the severity of defects that
would have been caused by the use of the GMAW or GTAW
methods [26, 27].
Much research has been carried out and progress has been
made in terms of the weldability of aluminum alloys [14,
29–31]. In the past, the focus has largely been on the use of
GTAW and GMAW [32, 33]. However, there have been a few
reports on the effects of electron beam welding on 5083 alloys
containing Sc and Zr. The main objective of this paper is to
widen the knowledge related to the electron beam welding
behavior of 5083 alloys containing Sc and Zr additions.
Thus, the microstructure evolution, mechanical, and corrosion
properties of the studied alloy are also examined.
2 Experimental procedure
Pure aluminum ingots (99.9%) were melted in an electrical
resistance furnace. After the ingots were completely melted at
760 °C, pure Mg and master alloys of Al-Mn, Al-Zr, Al-Sc,
and suitable elements were added in sequence. After adequate
fusion and agitation, 30 min of degasification with pure Ar gas
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was applied, followed by a 10-min rest period. The melted
alloy was then poured into a preheated (300 °C) metallic mold
with the dimensions of 125 mm × 100 mm × 25 mm. The
chemical composition of the alloys as analyzed by optical
emission spectroscopy (OES) is given in Table 1.
Two sets of 5083 alloys were prepared for the experiments,
denoted alloy A and alloy B (0.1Sc-0.1Zr) based on their Sc
and Zr content. Both alloys were homogenized at 480 °C for
8 h and then quenched in water. The homogenized alloys were
hot rolled at 450 °C, then annealed at 400 °C for 1 h, followed
by cold rolling to a thickness of 4 mm (H15 treatment) at room
temperature. Finally, 4-mm 5083-H15 alloy sheets were then
obtained.
The EB fusion zones were prepared using a Sciaky VX4
198 × 134 × 126 W2020 Electron Beam Welder operating
with a vacuum atmosphere better than 6 × 10−3 Pa. For joining
4-mm-thick 5083-H15, at a constant accelerating voltage
50 kV, beam focus 20 mA, and welding speed 1524 (mm/
min), the beam current was systematically increased to define
the operating window permitting full penetration welding
while minimizing porosity and cracking. The effect of beam
focus location was examined by varying the z-axis position of
the beam from a distance of 3 mm above the top surface to
12 mm below the bottom surface. The electron beam was
oscillated to have a circular path with a diameter ( f ) between
2 and 2.5 mm at a constant frequency of 10 kHz.
Specimens for tensile testing and ASTM G67 corrosion
testing were sliced from various regions in the welded joint
using a wire-cut electrical discharge machine, as shown in
Fig. 1. The distribution of the microhardness in the horizontal
direction for a cross section of the weld joint was measured by
a Matsuzawa Seiki Mht2 Vickers microhardness tester with a
load of 300 g and dwell time of 10 s at intervals of 0.5 mm.
The tensile tests were carried out with an MTS-810 universal
material tensile tester at a strain rate of 1 mm/min to examine
the ultimate tensile strength. The size of the specimens was
designed based on the ASTM B557M standard. For both al-
loys, three tensile samples were used to be tested.
In order to observe the grain structure, samples of the elec-
tron beam-welded alloys were electrolyzed at a voltage of
20 V D.C. for 90 s using Barker’s reagent (5 mL HBF4 with
100 mL H2O) based on ASTM E407. An optical microscope
(OM, Olympus BX60M) and scanning electron microscope
(LV-SEM, JEOL JAM-35CF) were utilized to observe the
microstructure and surface corrosion. The microstructure and
Table 1 Chemical composition of the studied alloys (wt%)
Alloy Si Fe Mn Mg Cr Zn Sc Zr Al
A 0.04 0.04 0.79 4.68 0.15 < 0.002 – – bal.
B 0.03 0.04 0.78 4.63 0.15 < 0.002 0.1 0.1 bal.
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Fig. 1 Sampling location and

geometry of the tensile test
sample and G67 corrosion sample
(A—tensile sample, B—G67
corrosion sample); definitions for
measurements performed on the
EB welding of 5083 (SL is seam
length, SW is seam width, and
WP is weld penetration)

Fig. 2 The microstructure of the

matrix of H15 alloys A and B
(0.1Sc + 0.1Zr) before electron
beam welding

precipitation phases were investigated by transmission elec-
tron microscopy (TEM). The TEM samples were prepared
using a double-beam-focused ion beam system (FIB). The
electron back scatter diffraction (EBSD) analysis was per-
formed using a JEOL JSM-7800F prime field emission gun
scanning electron microscope equipped with an EBSD system
(JEOL JSM-7800F Prime).
Corrosion testing was conducted according to the ASTM
G67 nitric acid mass loss test (NAMLT) to quantify the degree
of sensitization to intergranular corrosion, wherein the test

Fig. 3 TEM images of the

microstructure of 5083-H15 al-
loy: a alloys A and b B (0.1Sc +
0.1Zr)
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Fig. 4 A cross-sectional metallographic graph of the H15 alloy A-welded bottom of the weld junction boundary between the fusion zone and the
joint: a the top of the weld, b the top weld junction boundary between the heat-affected zone, and e the matrix
fusion zone and the heat-affected zone, c the bottom of the weld, d the

Fig. 5 A cross-sectional metallographic graph of the H15alloy B the bottom of the weld, d the bottom of the weld junction boundary
(0.1Sc + 0.1Zr) welded joint: a the top of the weld, b the top of the weld between the fusion zone and the heat-affected zone, and e the matrix
junction boundary between the fusion zone and the heat-affected zone, c
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Fig. 6 EBSD maps of 5083–H15 alloys. a Alloys A and b B (0.1Sc + 0.1Zr)
samples were immersed in a nitric acid solution (70 vol.%) at
30 °C for 24 h.
3 Results and discussion
3.1 Microstructural analysis
Figure 2 shows the metallography of H15 alloys A and B
(0.1Sc + 0.1Zr) before electron beam welding. The elongated
grains are oriented in the rolling direction in both alloys.
However, a comparison of TEM images of the microstructure
of H15 alloys A and B (0.1Sc + 0.1Zr) shows that in addition
to the fine spherical Al3 (Sc, Zr) phase, the width of the grains
is much narrower in alloy B (0.1Sc + 0.1Zr) than alloy A (see
Fig. 3). This shows that the addition of Sc and Zr to the 5083
alloy can effectively refine the grains. Similar effects have
been observed by other authors for commercial 2219 (Al-
Cu-Mn) and 5754 (Al–Mg–Mn) Al alloys [34, 35].
Figures 4 and 5 present cross-sectional metallographic
graphs of welded joints in the H15 alloys A and B (0.1Sc +
0.1Zr), respectively. Electron beam welding is a fusion joining
process that produces coalescence of the materials by heating.
Fig. 7 TEM micrograph of Al3
(Sc, Zr) precipitates in the heat-
affected zone of alloy B (0.1Sc +
0.1Zr): a a large amount of fine
Al3 (Sc, Zr) precipitates are dis-
tributed throughout the matrix
and b blocking the movement of
dislocations
The results show the production of joints in the H15 alloys A
and B (0.1Sc + 0.1Zr) with high depth-to-width ratios and
smaller heat-affected zones. The microstructure of the weld
bead is shown in Figs. 4a and 5a. The distinct columnar grains
are observed in both alloys. These columnar grains are gener-
ated from the melting boundary towards the center of the weld
bead. Approaching the center of the weld bead, the appear-
ance is dominated by an equiaxed grain structure. In general,
the growth rate is larger at the fusion line than that in the
interior of the weld pool. The ratio of the temperature gradient
to the growth rate decreases from the fusion line to the interior
of the weld pool. In other words, constitutional supercooling
increases from the fusion line to the interior of the weld pool,
which leads to the change in the solidification structure from
columnar dendritic to equiaxed. A comparison of the weld
joints in the alloy A and alloy B (0.1Sc + 0.1Zr) shows a zone
of fine equiaxed grains next to the fusion line in alloy B
(0.1Sc + 0.1Zr); see Fig. 5b, c and d. This result indicates that
the combined addition of Sc and Zr to the 5083 alloy has led to
refinement of the grain structure at the fusion boundary by
precipitation of the primary Al3 (Sc, Zr) phases which formed
as heterogenous nuclei during solidification [36, 37]. The mi-
crostructure of the heat-affected zone of H15 alloy B (0.1Sc +

Fig. 8 Distribution curves of the
microhardness for the H15 alloys
A and B (0.1Sc + 0.1Zr) at the
welded joints
0.1Zr) was significantly different from that of alloy A. The
EBSD maps of the heat-affected zones in alloys A and B
(0.1Sc + 0.1Zr) are shown in Fig. 6. As can been seen in
Fig. 6a, the microstructure in the heat-affected zone of the
welded joint in alloy A consists mainly of equiaxed grains
about 35 μm in size, which can be attributed to the thermal
cycling process during electron beam welding. The results
indicate recrystallization during the electron beam welding
process. However, the microstructure in the heat-affected zone
of the weld joint in alloy B (0.1Sc + 0.1Zr) mainly had an
Fig. 9 The stress-strain curves of
5083-H15 alloy
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elongated grain structure, with fine equiaxed grains embedded
in a few areas (as shown in Fig. 6b).
The reason for the above phenomena can be ex-
plained by an examination of the heat-affected zone in
the TEM micrograph of the alloy B (0.1Sc + 0.1Zr)-
welded joint. Figure 7 shows that a large amount of
fine Al3 (Sc, Zr) precipitates (finer than 10 nm) are
distributed throughout the matrix in the heat-affected
zone of alloy B (0.1Sc + 0.1Zr), which is consistent with
the results obtained in past studies [11–13]. The fine
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Table 2 The tensile strength of the 5083 alloy 3.2 Mechanical properties
Alloy H15 Welded joint Joint efficiency
3.2.1 Hardness testing
A UTS (MPa) 345.7 (1.0) 277.3 (8.4) 80.4%
YS (MPa) 258.5 (4.2) 169.0 (2.1) Microhardness values were measured across the centerline of
EL (%) 14.3 (1.3) 8.7 (0.5) the electron beam-welded joints to identify changes in the
B UTS (MPa) 369.9 (2.2) 316.9 (4.3) 85.6% microstructure. As can be seen in Fig. 1, a full penetration
YS (MPa) 281.4 (2.3) 195.1 (3.0)
weld with a depth of 4 mm accompanied by a weld pool
EL (%) 12.8 (0.7) 7.5 (0.3)
4 mm in diameter. To understand the microhardness distribu-
Standard deviations are listed in parenthesis tion across the welded joints, the hardness of the weld metal
was measured at half of the penetration depth. Figure 8 shows
the microhardness distribution across transverse cross-
sections of the weld joints of the H15 alloys A and B
Al3 (Sc, Zr) precipitates, which have higher thermal (0.1Sc + 0.1Zr). The alloy A hardness profiles show a gradual
stability, are still coherent with the Al matrix in the decrease from 100 Hv in the base metal to 75 Hv at the cen-
heat-affected zone, effectively inhibiting the movement terline of the weld over a distance of 10 mm from the weld
of dislocations (as shown in Fig. 7b) and resisting re- centerline. This decrease in the hardness can be attributed to
crystallization, leading to precipitation strengthening in the destruction of the grain structure formed during the pro-
the heat-affected zone of the welded joints in H15 alloy duction process of the alloy (as shown in Fig. 4) by electron
B (0.1Sc + 0.1Zr). Therefore, the matrix structure in the beam welding. Note that Fig. 8 shows the evolution of the
heat-affected zone of H15 alloy B (0.1Sc + 0.1Zr) main- hardness profiles for the H15 alloy B (0.1Sc + 0.1Zr) welded
tains an elongated grain structure compared to H15 al- joint, where an increase in the hardness was observed in the
loy A [10, 38, 39]. heat-affected zone with the addition of Sc and Zr, reaching
The base metal microstructures of H15 alloys A and B values of 105 Hv after the welding. The increase in hardness
(0.1Sc + 0.1Zr) are shown in Figs. 4e and 5e, respectively. in the H15 alloy B (0.1Sc + 0.1Zr) welded joint is attributed to
Since this region is not affected by the high temperature ther- the addition of Sc and Zr. The addition effectively inhibited
mal cycling that occurs during welding, the base metal micro- recrystallization of the alloy during the welding process due to
structure of the welded joints retains the same elongated struc- the formation of a high-density finely-dispersed Al3 (Sc, Zr)
ture attained during the H15 process. phase. The Al3 (Sc, Zr) phase has high thermal stability during

Fig. 10 SEM fractographs of the

5083-H15 tensile specimens: a
alloy A, b alloy B (0.1Sc + 0.1Zr),
c alloy A weld joint, and b alloy B
weld joint

Table 3 G67 test of
studied alloys (mg/cm2) Alloy A B
H15 2.96 (0.64) 2.01 (0.02)
As-welded 9.72 (0.08) 3.61 (0.02)
S tandard deviati ons are li ste d in
parenthesis
the welding cycle, which can strongly pin dislocations and
grain boundaries, hindering the movement of dislocations
(as shown in Fig. 7) and grain boundary migration. This ef-
fectively suppresses the occurrence of recrystallization, lead-
ing to fine grain strengthening and dispersion strengthening.
In summary, the presence of coherent finely dispersed Al3 (Sc,
Zr) particles ensures that the microstructure of the matrix is
still dominated by a fibrous structure, which in turn results in a
low degree of softening of the matrix. This is the main cause
of the increased hardness of the heat-affected zone in alloy B
(0.1Sc + 0.1Zr).
3.2.2 Tensile tests
Transverse tensile testing was carried out to evaluate the effect
of the addition of Sc and Zr on the mechanical properties and
joint efficiency of the 5083-H15 alloys. Figure 9 shows the
stress-strain curves obtained for the base metal and electron
beam-welded joints of H15 alloys A and B (0.1Sc + 0.1Zr).
The ultimate tensile strength, yield strength, and percent elon-
gation of the base metal and welded joints are shown in
Table 2. The results reveal that the tensile strength and the
yield strength of the H15 alloy B (0.1Sc + 0.1Zr) are higher
than those of H15 alloy A. The enhancement in tensile
strength for H15 alloy B (0.1Sc + 0.1Zr) is attributed to the
Sc and Zr additions which provide strengthening through
grain refinement (as shown in Fig. 3) accompanied by a re-
duction of ductility.
As indicated in Fig. 9, the ultimate tensile strength values
of the weld joints ranged from 277 to 296 MPa, the yield
strength values ranged from 169 to 195 MPa, and the fracture
elongation from 7.0 to 8.7%. The electron beam-welded joints
showed lower yield strength, ultimate tensile strength, and
Fig. 11 SEM images of the
surface corrosion morphology of
the welded joints after the nitric
acid mass loss tests: a alloys A
and b B (0.1Sc + 0.1Zr)
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fracture elongation than the base metal. The decrease in tensile
strength for the welded joints is mainly attributed to the effects
of abnormal grain growth (as shown in Figs. 4 and 5).
However, the tensile strength and yield strength of the H15
alloy B (0.1Sc + 0.1Zr) welded joints are significantly higher
than those of the H15 alloy A-welded joints. The reason for
the improvement in tensile strength is a contribution from the
precipitation hardening and grain refinement caused by the
formation of fine coherent A13 (Sc, Zr) precipitates distributed
in the heat-affected zone of the H15 alloy B (0.1Sc + 0.1Zr)
welded joint (as shown in Fig. 7). Therefore, we obtained a
joint efficiency (the ratio of ultimate tensile strength of the
welded joint to the ultimate tensile strength of the base metal)
of 85.6% for the H15 alloy B (0.1Sc + 0.1Zr) welded joints
and 80.4% for the H15 alloy A-welded joints. The result
shows that the addition of Sc and Zr produced a 5% increase
in the joint efficiency compared to the 5083 alloy without the
addition of Sc and Zr. It is suggested that the addition of Sc
and Zr is beneficial to the preservation of good mechanical
properties in electron beam-welded joints.
In order to determine the failure behavior of the welded
joints, SEM examination was performed of the fracture
surface of tensile tested specimens (as shown in
Fig. 10). The macroscopic observations revealed ductile
fracture surfaces in the H15 alloys A and B (0.1Sc +
0.1Zr), whereas the fracture surfaces of the welded joints
showed a blend of cleavage facets with areas of dimple
rupture indicative of quasi-cleavage fractures. Note the
presence of planar facets in the fracture surface of the
welded joints which likely indicate quasi-cleavage frac-
tures. These changes confirm that electron beam welding
tends to produce brittle fractures.
3.2.3 Nitric acid mass loss tests
Table 3 shows the results of the nitric acid mass loss tests
(ASTM G67) of the welded joints in H15 alloys A and B
(0.1Sc + 0.1Zr). The ASTM G67 standard suggests that for
good intergranular corrosion resistance in wrought 5xxx series
Al-Mg-based alloys, the mass loss per unit area should be less
than 15 mg/cm2. Wrought H15 Al-Mg alloys are specially
rolled to avoid grain boundary precipitation and to improve
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their resistance to intergranular corrosion and stress corrosion
cracking [40]. The mass losses per unit area of H15 alloys A
and B (0.1Sc + 0.1Zr) are 2.96 mg/cm2 and 2.01 mg/cm2,
respectively. The results indicate that both alloy A and alloy
B (0.1Sc + 0.1Zr) have sufficient resistance against intergran-
ular corrosion.
Moreover, the mass loss per unit area values for alloy B
(0.1Sc + 0.1Zr) after electron beam welding remained low
(less than 4 mg/cm2). The results show that the addition of
Sc and Zr to the 5083 alloy rendered it unsusceptible to inter-
granular corrosion even after the electron beam welding
process.

Fig. 12 Bright field and high

angle annular dark field STEM
images of the weld junction
boundary between the fusion
zone and the heat-affected zone in
the welded joints: a alloys A, b B
(0.1Sc + 0.1Zr), and c EDS ele-
mental mapping of β phase

SEM observations of the morphology of the corrosion sur-
face in the heat-affected zone and fusion zone of the electron
beam-welded joints after the nitric acid mass loss tests are
shown in Fig. 11. Figure 11a shows intergranular corrosion
in the heat-affected zone of alloy A and partial pitting in the
fusion zone. However, in alloy B (0.1Sc + 0.1Zr), there is
obvious pitting corrosion only at the boundary of the weld
junction between the fusion zone and the heat-affected zone,
as shown in Fig. 11b. SEM observations of the surfaces of
alloys A and B (0.1Sc + 0.1Zr) show that alloy B (0.1Sc +
0.1Zr) has better corrosion resistance than alloy A with less
intergranular corrosion and pitting.
Figure 12 shows the bright field and high angle annular
dark field STEM images of the weld junction boundaries
between the fusion zone and the heat-affected zone of
alloys A and B (0.1Sc + 0.1Zr). From Fig. 12a, it can be
observed that β phase precipitates (Al3Mg2) are generated
along the grain boundaries in H15 alloy A. The intergran-
ular corrosion performance of alloy A is greatly affected
by the distribution of these β phase precipitates. The pre-
cipitates have a corrosion potential of about − 1.29 V
(SCE), which is much lower than the corrosion potential
of the aluminum matrix [41]. Therefore, there is greater
corrosion at the anode relative to the aluminum matrix.
The alloy is more susceptible to intergranular corrosion
when the β phase precipitates are continuously distributed
at the grain boundaries. The grains in the heat-affected
zone of the H15 alloy A recrystallized during electron
beam welding, making it easier for the β phase to precip-
itate uniformly along the grain boundaries to form a mesh.
This is the main reason for the occurrence of intergranular
corrosion in the heat-affected zone of the H15 alloy A
weld joint, resulting in increases of the mass loss per unit
area of the alloy to 9.72 mg/cm2 (as shown in Table 3).
However, in Fig. 12b, the β phase precipitates at the grain
boundaries in alloy B are in a semi-continuous state. The
reason is that the combined addition of Sc and Zr can
maintain the elongated grain structure in the heat-
affected zone during electron beam welding through the
precipitation of the Al3 (Sc, Zr) phase. The Al3 (Sc, Zr)
precipitates inhibit recrystallization, decreasing nucleation
sites for β phase precipitates at the grain boundaries and
impeding the path of corrosion. Continuous β phase pre-
cipitate formation leads to a mass loss per unit area of
only 3.61 mg/cm2, as shown in Table 3. Figure 12c shows
the results of STEM-energy dispersive X-ray analysis
(EDS) mapping of the platelet-like precipitates, with
lengths of 150 to 200 nm, distributed throughout the ma-
trices which are confirmed to be β (Mg2Al3) phase pre-
cipitates with high levels of Al and Mg elements. The
results show that the addition of Sc and Zr to the 5083-
H15 alloy improved resistance to intergranular corrosion
even after the electron beam welding process.
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4 Conclusions
This paper discusses the effect of addition of Sc and Zr on the
microstructure, mechanical, and corrosion properties of an
electron beam-welded 5083-H15 alloy. The conclusions are
summarized below:
(1) The addition of Sc and Zr to the 5083 alloy had a remark-
able effect on grain refinement through the formation of
fine spherical Al3 (Sc, Zr) phases resulting in an en-
hancement of the mechanical properties.
(2) The addition of Sc and Zr to the 5083 alloy not only led
to the production of fine Al3 (Sc, Zr) phases, but also
inhibited recrystallization in the weld zone during the
electron beam welding process. This provided the 5083
alloy containing Sc and Zr with better mechanical prop-
erties and joint efficiency.
(3) Adding Sc and Zr to the 5383 alloy can suppress the
continuous formation of the β phase along the grain
boundaries during sensitization treatment leading to a
significant improvement in the corrosion resistance of
welded joints.
Acknowledgments The authors thank the Instrumentation Center at
National Tsing Hua University for the assistance in Cs-TEM analysis
and thank Dr. Li-Wei Tseng for assisting SEM analysis.
Funding information The authors received financial support from the
National Chung-Shan Institute of Science and Technology under
Contract No. NCSIST-1164-V402(108).
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