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Role of Mg2Si precipitates size in determining the ductility of A357 cast alloy

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DOI: 10.1016/j.matdes.2019.108280

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 Materials and Design 186 (2020) 108280

Contents lists available at ScienceDirect

Materials and Design

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/matdes

Role of Mg2Si precipitates size in determining the ductility of A357

cast alloy
Ghulam Asghar, Liming Peng ∗, Penghuai Fu, Lingyang Yuan, Yue Liu
National Engineering Research Center of Light Alloy Net Forming and State Key Laboratory of Metal Matrix Composite, School of Materials Science and Engineering, Shanghai Jiao Tong University,
200240, Shanghai, PR China

H I G H L I G H T S G R A P H I C A L A B S T R A C T

• Various heating conditions alter the

length of Mg2Si precipitates while pro-
ducing identical shape & size of Si parti-
cles.
• Peak-aging generates βʺ precipitates
whereas; over-aging causes partial
transformation of βʺ into βʹ precipitates.
• Variations in precipitates length do not
affect strength properties however; the
ductility is influenced rather noticeably.
• Relationships among precipitates size,
ductility, and Q. I exhibit the vital role
of precipitation kinetics for A357 alloy.

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: This study evaluates the heat treatment effects on microstructural and mechanical properties of A357 alloy. So-
Received 31 May 2019 lution treatments performed at 540 °C for 6, 8, and 10 h represent identical microstructures and show that the
Received in revised form 10 August 2019 eutectic phase is partially dissolved into the matrix, resulting in Si particles of similar shape and size. Contrarily,
Accepted 15 October 2019
heat treatment parameters influence Mg2Si precipitates length rather considerably; 8 h solution treated-peak
Available online 19 October 2019
aged condition produces the smallest sized needle-shaped βʺ precipitates and contributes principally in the
Keywords:
achievement of higher ductility. It is identified that over-aging not only enhances the length of the precipitates;
Solution and aging treatments however, it also causes the partial transformation of needle-shaped βʺ into rod type βʹ precipitates. This phenom-
Mg2Si precipitates size enon is the core reason for the reduction in hardness and ductility simultaneously, while enhancement in
Mechanical properties strength characteristics slightly upon over-aging. Entropy values of differential scanning calorimetry thermo-
DSC grams and calculated dimples diameter of fractured surfaces are fairly aligned with mechanical properties and
Ductility of A357 alloy agree with microstructural characterizations of nano-sized precipitates analyses. Developed relationships
among precipitates size (length), ductility, and quality index indicate that precipitation mechanism does not
merely contribute to the achievement of superior strength properties; nevertheless, it also plays a crucial role
in determining the ductility of A357 cast alloy.
© 2019 Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license
(http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).

1. Introduction

∗ Corresponding author. The applications of Al-Si-Mg alloys in aerospace and automobile in-
E-mail address: plm616@sjtu.edu.cn (L. Peng). dustry have been increasing considerably from the last two decades due

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.matdes.2019.108280
0264-1275/© 2019 Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).
2 G. Asghar et al. / Materials and Design 186 (2020) 108280
to their tremendous castability, better corrosion resistance, and higher
strength to weight ratio. To achieve a suitable combination of mechan-
ical properties, cast components are subjected to the solution and aging
treatments. However, it is extremely important to identify an optimum
set of solution and aging treatment parameters to achieve better
strength along with reasonable ductility [1-5]. It is believed that the
strength is governed by the precipitation kinetics. Whereas, the ductility
is controlled and affected by several factors such as secondary dendrite
arm spacings, Mg contents, Fe rich intermetallics phase, shape and size
of the eutectic phase silicon particles and the extent of the
spheroidization of secondary phase [6–11].
There are two ways to transform and modify the size and shape of
the eutectic phase to achieve a nodular shaped Si particle; the first one
is by the addition of some modifier [12]. Consequently, numerous stud-
ies have been reported emphasizing on the modification of the eutectic
phase using Sr [13–16], Sb [17], Sc [18,19], Nd [20] and rare earth ele-
ment Ce [21] to obtain the globular and fine shape of silicon particles.
Solution treatment is the second method to obtain the spherical shape
of eutectic phase Si particles. It dissolves secondary (eutectic) phase
into the matrix and alters the morphology of eutectic silicon by
transforming it into the round shape, whereas the strengthening meta-
stable precipitates (Mg2Si) are consolidated during the aging process
[2–4,7,22–24]. Edwards and Donlon conducted comprehensive studies
to evaluate the structure of Mg2Si precipitates and reported their exis-
tence in Guinier Preston (GP) along [001]Al, and [010]Al, axes, the precip-
itation sequence initiating form → atoms of Mg and Si → formation of
co-clusters of Mg and Si → Needle-shaped βʺ→ Rod-shaped βʹ →
Plate-shaped β [25,26]. The morphology of these precipitates remains
unresponsive to the solidification rate, solution, and aging treatments;
contrarily, the size and shape show some definite changes under differ-
ent aging conditions [26].
Various approaches have been devised to characterize the precipita-
tion kinetics covering different aspect, such as First-principle method is
coupled with precipitates nucleation based on entropy and cluster en-
ergy [27]. Computer-aided atomic-scale simulation is deployed along
with the Monte Carlo method to study the precipitation mechanism
and to illustrate results [28]. A three-dimensional phase-field model is
utilized to characterize the morphology, growth, and precipitates size
to predict the strength properties [29]. Age hardening process parame-
ters are modeled and correlated with yield strength first by Shercliff and
Asby [30]. This isothermal age-hardening model was successfully tested
and applied to a variety of industrial alloys [31–33]. It was further mod-
ified by combining structural and strengthening models to predict aging
behavior during non-isothermal treatment [34]. One of the most classi-
cal analytical-based models for precipitation kinetics is the KWN model,
which was developed by Kampmann and Wagner for globular shaped
precipitates of binary alloys [35]. Qiang Du et al. modified this model
and applied to the non-spherical needle shape βʺ precipitates by inte-
grating it with CALPHAD software [36]. It was further customized for
non-isothermal heat treatment [37] and prediction of age hardening
and strength behavior of Al alloys [38,39]. During the last three decades
several methods, simulation techniques, analytical and numerical
models have been developed dealing with age hardening characteris-
tics, precipitation kinetics and strength properties of Al alloys
[31,40–42]. Nevertheless, most of the designed models address the pre-
cipitation kinetics and age-hardening responses in terms of yield
strength [32,33,39,41–44]. On the other hand, rarely a study has been
reported addressing the influence of heat treatment conditions on the
size of precipitates and the contribution of precipitation behavior in de-
termining the ductility of cast parts.
Therefore, this research is focused on evaluating the effects of heat
treatment parameters on precipitation kinetics and consequently the
role of these precipitates in determining the ductility of Al-7.4Si-
0.55 Mg (A357) alloy. The study has been conducted by plotting the
age-hardening responses at 175 °C to identify the peak aging parame-
ters. The microstructures characterizations are compiled using optical
microscopy (OM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and transmis-
sion electron microscopy (TEM) images. Tensile tests are performed to
analyze the strength properties and fracture mechanism. Differential
scanning calorimetry (DSC) test is conducted to study the thermal prop-
erties to analyze the structure transformation phenomenon of meta-
stable Mg2Si precipitates.
2. Experimental procedure
An Al ingot of commercial purity of 99.7 wt % was cut into small
pieces, dried at 200 °C to take out moisture, and then melted in a graph-
ite crucible using an electric resistance furnace at 690 °C. When Al
melted completely, Mg (99.9 wt % pure) was added and mixed for
2–3 min, then the temperature was raised to 740 °C and Al-20 wt % Si
and Al-10 wt % of Ti master alloys were included. The master alloys;
Al-5Ti-1B (0.2 wt %) and Al-10 wt %Sr were used as grain refiner and
modifier, respectively. To remove hydrogen from the melt, commer-
cially available degassing reagent, a mixture of chloride salts
(NaCl + KCl + CaCl2) 0.8% of the total weight of the melt was added
and stirred for 5 min. After degassing, the slag was removed and left
the melt for homogenization for 20 min and then poured at 720 ± 5
°C into Y-shaped iron molds already preheated at 200 °C for 3 h. The ex-
perimental composition of Al-7.5Si-0.6Mg-0.16Ti (A357) alloy mea-
sured through ARL-3460 Spectrum Analyzer is given in Table 1.
The sections cut from the bottom of casted samples were solution
treated at 540 ± 1 °C for 6, 8, and 10 h and quenched in water at
room temperature. To find out the peak aging times at 175 °C, Vicker
Hardness (HV) tests were performed by employing 5 kg load for 15 s,
the average and standard deviation values were calculated from 10 in-
dentations. Rectangular shape (three samples for each heat treatment
condition) tensile test bars of 3.5 mm width, 2.2 mm thickness and
15 mm gauge length were cut after solution treatment with electric dis-
charge wire-cut machining (EDM); aged according to the identified
peak aging times and polished before testing on Zwick-20 kN material
testing machine using crosshead speed of 1 mm/min. The fractured sur-
faces of tensile samples were examined through a Phenom XL Desktop
SEM.
The metallographic samples for OM (used Olupus XJL-30) and SEM
analyses were prepared by standard polishing method and etched
with diluted 5% HF solution for 3 s. Polarized light image samples
were prepared by passing 20 V direct current (DC) from Barker solution
for 120 s. Eutectic (secondary) phase quantitative calculations and α-Al
grain size measurements were accomplished through Image Pro-Plus
(IPP) software. The measured grain size value was computed using
the linear intercept technique by taking the average value of 150 inde-
pendent measurements. The JOEL-2010 TEM equipment operated at
200 kV was used to study the morphology of Mg2Si precipitates. DSC
tests were conducted at a heating rate of 10 °C/min on STA 449 F3 Jupi-
ter lab equipment over a range of temperatures from 50 °C to 450 °C.
3. Results and discussion
3.1. As-cast optical micrographs
Fig. 1 shows the as-cast (AC) microstructures of A357 alloy, representing very fine sec-
ondary dendrite arms spacings. The average grain size of the α-Al phase is around 640 ±
107 μm measured from Polarized Light image as depicted in Fig. 1a. Eutectic phase silicon
particles in small fibrous shapes are uniformly distributed around primary α-Al dendritic
structure without having any casting defects as displayed in Fig. 1b.
Table 1
Experimental composition (wt. %) of cast alloy (A357).
Alloy Si Mg Ti Sr Fe Al
A357 7.40 0.55 0.15 0.02 0.18 Balance
 G. Asghar et al. / Materials and Design 186 (2020) 108280 3

Fig. 1. As-cast microstructures of A357 alloy: (a) Polarize light image (b) Optical micrograph.

3.2. Heat treatment and age hardening characteristics 3.3. Microstructures after heat treatment

Age hardening responses of solution treated samples at 540 ± 1 °C for 6, 8, and 10 h at
an aging temperature of 175 °C are displayed in Fig. 2. Although, identical aging trends are
displayed by 6, 8, and 10 h solution treatments; nonetheless, the shortest peak aging time
is identified for 10 h solution treated samples. It is also recognized that peak hardness
value is decreased by 2 HV for 10 h solution treatment as compared to 6 and 8 h samples.
Peak hardness values (128, 128, and 126 HV) are achieved after 10, 6, and 5 h for 6, 8, and
10 h solution treatments, respectively. It indicates that prolonged solution treatment time
(10 h) reduces peak aging time (5 h) and slightly decreases peak hardness value.
Fig. 2. Vicker Hardness trends at aging temperature 175 °C for 6, 8, and 10 h solution
treated samples at 540 °C.
Solution and aging treatments are conducted according to the peak hardening re-
sponses and the parameters are listed in Table 2. Fig. 3a-c exhibits the microstructures
of 6, 8, and 10 h solution treated-peak aged samples, respectively. The eutectic phase is
partially dissolved into the matrix after heat treatment by yielding fine nodular shaped
facets of Si particles. It is hard to identify the variation by examining OM images and to dis-
tinguish the difference in the morphology of the eutectic phase, as all micrographs repre-
sent the identical shape of the Si particles. The measured values in Table 2 express that
various heat treatment conditions produce analogous microstructures apart from slight
variations due to the coarsening of Si particles among the various treatment conditions.
It demonstrates that on achieving the full modification of the eutectic phase, different so-
lution treatment times (6, 8, and 10 h) do not have much effect on the shape and size of Si
particles. Fig. 3d-f represents Back Scattered-SEM images under the same heat treatment
(6, 8, and 10 h) conditions as carried out for optical micrographs. It confirms the presence
of the needle-shaped Fe rich intermetallics in all heat treated conditions, which may affect
the mechanical properties, especially the ductility is reduced significantly [9–11,18,45].
The average values calculated from 270 independent measurements of Fe rich intermetal-
lics are 6.78 ± 3.3, 6.91 ± 3.4, and 6.94 ± 3.7 μm for 6, 8, and 10 h solution treated-peak
aged conditions, respectively.
Fig. 4 represents the TEM micrographs along with their selected area electron diffrac-
tion (SAED) patterns of heat-treated samples showing meta-stable Mg2Si precipitates.
These precipitates are observed along [001]Al axis, as their existence along the same axis
is also claimed by different authors in literature [25,26,40,46]. Needle-like Mg2Si precipi-
tates are identified in (a), (b), and (c) micrographs of 6, 8, and 10 h solution treated-
peak aged samples, respectively. While few rod-shaped precipitates are also found along
with needle-type precipitates in Fig. 4d and inserted sub-micrograph. A careful examina-
tion of all micrographs reveals that the size of the precipitates (especially length) is not the
same for all heat treatment conditions. Therefore, the average length values are computed
from 300 precipitates (Mg2Si) along with their standard deviations for each heat treat-
ment condition and recorded in Table 3. It can be recognized (in Table 3) that the mean
length is altered considerably under various heat treatment parameters, a similar phe-
nomenon is studied and reported by H. Liao [47]. The smallest sized precipitates (20 ±
2.9 nm) are generated for 8 h solution treated-peak aged (175 °C for 6 h) condition; how-
ever, it is quite interesting that average length is increased spectacularly from 20 ± 2.9 to
33 ± 7.2 nm upon over aging (at 175 °C for 12 h) of 8 h solution treated sample, as it can be
noticed in Fig. 4d as well. Whereas, the mean length values of Mg2Si precipitates are 26 ±
3.7 and 29 ± 3.4 nm for 6 h solution treated plus peak-aged (at 175 °C for 10 h) and 10 h
solution treated plus peak-aged (at 175 °C 5 h) samples, respectively.
Since the peak-aged microstructures in Fig. 4a-c are illustrating clearly that they con-
tain needle-like precipitates. Contrarily, some rod-shaped precipitates are also visible
along with lengthened needle-like precipitates in Fig. 4d of over-aged condition. However,
it can't be recognized from the TEM images that what kinds of these needle-like and rod

Table 2
Quantitative characteristics of Si eutectic phase after heat treatment.

Sample Code Solution Treatment (Temp × h) Aging Length (μm) Diameter (μm) Percent Area (%) Aspect Ratio

Temp (˚C) Time (h)

S6 540 °C × 6 175 10 4.04 ± 0.33 3.07 ± 0.21 9.75 ± 0.91 1.72 ± 0.09
S8 540 °C × 8 175 06 4.02 ± 0.36 3.15 ± 0.34 10.12 ± 1.04 1.75 ± 0.10
S10 540 °C × 10 175 05 4.09 ± 0.28 3.09 ± 0.30 10.20 ± 1.10 1.79 ± 0.13

Note: S6, S8, and S10 represent 6, 8, and 10 h solution treatments, respectively.
4 G. Asghar et al. / Materials and Design 186 (2020) 108280
Fig. 3. Microstructures of A357 alloy: (a–c) Optical micrographs and (d–f) Back scattered SEM images; (a, d), (b, e), and (c, f) represent 6, 8, and 10 h solution treated samples, respectively;
for peak aging times at 175 °C of particular samples see Fig. 2.
type precipitates and crystallographic structures are. Edwards and Miao [25,48] conducted
comprehensive studies and reported that needle-like structures are βʺ precipitates, which
usually are generated in peak aged state, while rod shapes particles are βʹ precipitates pro-
duced upon over-aging. Additionally, they also claimed that over-aging not only increases
the length of Mg2Si precipitates; nevertheless, it also partially transforms needle-shaped
βʺ into rod-shaped βʹ precipitates. Therefore, DSC analyses were used to investigate and
validate the crystallographic structures and precipitate's types for peak-aged condition
as well as the partial transformation of meta-stable Mg2Si precipitates for the over-aged
state.
3.4. DSC analyses
DSC is performed to study the changes in the structure of meta-stable Mg2Si precipi-
tates at different thermal states. As it is an effective tool to analyze the thermal responses
of precipitates and the consequent transformation of their structures [9,48]. Fig. 5 shows
DSC traces of as-quenched, peak-aged, and over-aged samples, which were all 8 h solution
treated. It is noticed that all phase-transformation peaks in the DSC curves are exothermic
peaks, indicating that these peaks represent the precipitation along with the dissolution
phenomenon of some certain phases. DSC thermal response of as-quenched sample indi-
cates that three exothermic peaks/curves are prominently generated from the precipitat-
ing sequence of Needle-shaped βʺ → Rod-shaped βʹ → Plate-shaped β [40,48,49].
Compared to the DSC curve of as-quenched sample, the peaks representing βʺ phase in
the curves of peak-aged and over-aged samples are disappeared and represent that only
βʹ and β precipitates are produced, which implies that βʺ precipitates had already formed
during the aging treatment before DSC testing. Furthermore, the βʹ peaks in DSC curves of
peak-aged and over-aged samples are believed to be caused by the transformation from
pre-existed βʺ into βʹ during DSC test heating.
Another important point to be noticed in Fig. 5 is that there is a considerable difference
among the intensities of βʹ curves of all three tested conditions; therefore, the entropy/
heat of reaction values are computed by integrating the areas under the curves [9]. Higher
entropy value (7.256 J/g) of peak-aged condition demonstrates that larger numbers of
pre-existed βʺ precipitates are transformed into βʹ precipitates during DSC testing. On
the other hand, the entropy value (4.006 J/g) of βʹ precipitates is decreased for over-
aged sample, which indicates that βʺ had already partially transformed into βʹ phase in
the over-aged sample so that it led to the reduction in exothermic heat of reaction during
DSC heating. To combine with the phenomenon that happened in Fig. 4d, where the par-
tial transformation of needle-shaped precipitates has happened in the substructures of
Fig. 4d, when 8 h solution treated sample is over-aged up to 12 h, it partially changed
the needle-shaped into rod-shaped precipitates as 8 h solution treated sample is over-
aged up to 12 h. It is believed that needle-like precipitates are βʺ and rod-types are βʹ
precipitates.
Therefore, the curves and peaks of DSC thermograms and their calculated entropy
values illustrate that needle-like βʺ precipitates are generated at peak-aged condition,
while these precipitates are partially transformed into rod-shaped βʹ in the over-aged
state. These results approve the findings of Edwards and Miao's [25,48] TEM work,
which also revealed that over-aging transforms/alters the structure of βʺ precipitates
into βʹ precipitates, resulting in the enhancement of precipitates length. Hence, these in-
vestigations validate the findings of microstructures of Fig. 4 and prove that the peak-
age condition generates needle-like βʺ precipitates; whereas, the over-aging causes the
fractional transformation of needle-shaped βʺ into rod-shaped βʹ and substantial en-
hancement in the length of precipitates.
3.5. Mechanical properties
3.5.1. Tensile results
Tensile test results plotted in Fig. 6a express that the strength is increased consider-
ably after heat treatment, while the elongation is dropped slightly for 6 h solution
treated-peak aged samples at 175 °C as compare to the as-cast (AC) condition. The yield
strength (YS) and ultimate tensile strength (UTS) values remained almost identical for
various heat treatment conditions. On the other hand, the elongation is improved rather
significantly for 8 h solution treated-peak aged condition as compared to 6 and 10 h solu-
tion treated-peak aged states. Interestingly, over-aged samples achieved a little higher
strength (YS) value as compared to the peak-aged samples, while the elongation is
dropped down to (from 8.0 to 3.1%) an extremely lower point.
Since the eutectic phase (Si) characteristics are almost similar (Table 2) for all heat
treatment parameters; nevertheless, the precipitates (Mg2Si) length is varied considerably
by changing the heat treatment conditions as illustrated in Table 3. Liao and Sha [47,50]
addressed the age-hardening responses and their influence on Mg2Si precipitates and ar-
gued that precipitates structure and size are altered considerably by changing the heat
treatment conditions. The maximum value of ductility (8.0% elongation) gained by 8 h
 G. Asghar et al. / Materials and Design 186 (2020) 108280 5

Fig. 4. TEM images along with their SAED patterns of A357 alloy (a) 6, (b) 8, and (c) 10 h solution treated-peak aged samples at 175 °C for 10, 6, and 5 h, respectively, whereas (d) 8 h
solution treated-over aged at 175 °C for 12 h.

solution treated-peak aged samples at 175 °C as shown in Fig. 6a corresponds to the
smallest sized (20 ± 2.9 nm) Mg2Si precipitates as observed in Fig. 4b for the same heat
treatment condition. As the length of Mg2Si precipitates is increased from 26 ± 3.7 to 29
± 3.4 nm for 6 and 10 h solution treated-peak aged samples, respectively, the ductility
values are also decreased accordingly as displayed in Fig. 6a.
Although, the over aging slightly contributes to the enhancement of strength proper-
ties, however, the ductility is reduced dramatically to a very low point (3.1%). The transfor-
mation of needles-like βʺ to rod-shaped βʹ and the rapid increase in the length of Mg2Si
precipitates (20 ± 2.9 nm to 33 ± 7.2 nm as displayed in Table 3) are the major reasons
of this abrupt decrease in the ductility value upon over-aging. The important point to be
observed here is that the precipitates density (enlisted in Table 3) is slightly decreased
as compared to the peak-aged samples, which is most probably due to the overall enlarge-
ment of precipitates length. The larger sized precipitates occupy more space than usual,
which is the main reason for this slight decrease in the density value. Since the variation
is extremely small, therefore; it is still comparable with the peak-aged conditions without
highlighting any significant difference.
Hence, it can be inferred that over-aging is not only responsible for the reduction in
hardness values as declared by Edwards [25]. Besides, it also plays a key role in lowering
the ductility (from 8.0 to 3.1%) as well, as it is analyzed for 8 h solution treated-over
aged samples (at 175 °C for 12 h). As it is already observed in Fig. 6a, the samples
possessing the smallest sized precipitates (20 ± 2.9 nm according to the substructure
Fig. 4b and Table 3) achieved the maximum elongation (ductility). Thus, it can be con-
cluded that precipitation mechanism does not simply contribute to the setting up of
strength properties, moreover; it also plays a vital role in determining the ductility of
cast parts/components.
A quality index (Q. I) is a useful measure to categorize and assess the mechanical be-
havior of materials in a single view under different conditions. Numerous studies and
models [51–55] have been reported about standardization of strength properties;

Table 3
Properties of Mg2Si (precipitates) at various heat treatment conditions.

Properties Conditions

S6-175 (P. A 10 h) S8-175 (P. A 6 h) S10-175 (P. A 5 h) S8-175 (O. A 12 h)

Precipitates Size (nm) 26 ± 3.7 20 ± 2.9 29 ± 3.4 33 ± 7.2

Density (cm−2) 23.946 × 10−2 24.279 × 10−2 24.944 × 10−2 23.613 × 10−2

Note: P. A = Peak Aged, O. A = Over Aged.

6 G. Asghar et al. / Materials and Design 186 (2020) 108280
Fig. 5. DSC traces of A357 alloy in as-quenched, peak-aged, and over-aged conditions, all
samples were 8 h solution treated.
nonetheless, all these models have some limitations. Din, T. et al. conducted an ample
study for aerospace alloys including A356/357 and developed a useful equation, which ef-
fectively accounts for both strength and ductility to measure the Q. I value for A356/357
alloy [56].
Q :I ¼ YS0:2 o f f þ 50  % Elongation ð1Þ
Fig. 6b displays the plot of Q. I values calculated according to Eq. (1). It includes nu-
merical values of as-cast (AC), 6, 8, and 10 h solution treated-peak aged conditions
along with an over-aged state (at 175 °C for 12 h). It exhibits that 8 h solution treated-
peak aged (at 175 °C) samples achieved the highest Q. I value among all the tested condi-
tions. It reveals that 8 h solution treatment and 6 h aging at 175 °C are the most suitable
heat treatment parameters to obtain optimum microstructural and strength properties
of A357 alloy.
3.5.2. Fracture surfaces
Fig. 7 displays the fractured surfaces of samples after tensile tests. The as-cast sample
(Fig. 7a) exhibits cleavage fracture, while the fracture mechanism is transformed into dim-
ples shape after heat treatment. Some cleavage planes can still be seen in 6 and 10 h solu-
tion treated-peak aged samples (in Fig. 7b and d respectively) along with 8 h solution-
treated over-aged sample for 12 h (in Fig. 7e). On the other hand, 8 h solution treated-
peak aged sample (Fig. 7c) represents the finest dimples shape and the least cleavage
planes area among all the observed samples justifying the reason for higher elongation.
Fig. 6. Strength properties of A357 alloy: (a) Tensile test results of as-cast and heat-treated samples (b) plot of the quality index.
Fig. 7f exhibits the graphical representation of the changes in dimples diameter under
different heat treatment conditions. The average and standard deviation values of dimples
diameter are calculated using a linear intercept method from 750 independent measure-
ments (taken from SEM micrographs of fractured surfaces) for each heat treatment condi-
tion. The smallest value of dimples diameter (6.3 ± 1.9 μm) along with least standard
deviation validates the reason for higher ductility of 8 h solution treated-peak aged sam-
ples. While the maximum value of dimples diameter (8.9 ± 3.6 μm) of over-aged samples
corresponds to the enhancement in Mg2Si precipitates length and reduction in ductility.
The significant variations in dimples diameter against different heat treatment conditions
show that maximum and least dimples sizes are exhibited by the over and peak aged sam-
ples, respectively; which provide fair evidence of a certain correlation between ductility
and precipitates size (length).
3.6. Relationships development
3.6.1. Relationship b/w precipitates size and ductility of A357 alloy
Fig. 8 displays the plotted numerical values of ductility and precipitates size (length),
which indicates that there exists a definite inverse relationship between them. It exhibits
that the smaller the length of the precipitates, the higher is the ductility value and vice
versa. In other words, it communicates that the length of precipitates and ductility are in-
versely related to each other. Although, Chen R [40]. addressed the Mg2Si precipitation
phenomenon in detail and developed an effective model to predict the strength properties
and elongation as well. Nevertheless, it is focused primarily on establishing a correlation
between strength and age hardening time. The limitation of this model is that it does
not account for the changes in precipitates size and transformations (from needles-like
βʺ to rod-shaped βʹ upon over-aging) happening due to the variations in heat treatment
parameters. Whereas, the developed relationship (in Fig. 8) of precipitation kinetics of
A357 alloy in this study successfully addresses the contribution of precipitation kinetics
in the establishment of the ductility.
3.6.2. Relationship b/w precipitates size and Q. I of A357 alloy
The developed relationship in Fig. 9 between the quality index and precipitates size
(length) exhibits that the combined effect (Q. I) of mechanical properties is even better
aligned with the precipitates numerical measurements. It illustrates that the precipitation
mechanism establishes and controls the overall mechanical behavior of the studied alloy;
despite, merely affecting any single variable of the strength characteristics (YS and UTS) or
ductility. Since it has already been described in details and proved through the microstruc-
tures examinations (Fig. 4), DSC thermograms investigations (Fig. 5) and strength proper-
ties analyses (Fig. 6) that the variations in heat treatment parameters induce some obvious
changes in the size/length and structure of meta-stable Mg2Si precipitates, which ulti-
mately determine the mechanical response of A357 cast alloy.
4. Conclusions
This study investigated the role of various heat treatment parame-
ters in developing the precipitation kinetics and provided a brief insight
into the contribution of Mg2Si precipitates in determining the ductility
of A357 alloy. Based on the presented results and detailed discussion,
the findings can be summarized as follow;
 G. Asghar et al. / Materials and Design 186 (2020) 108280 7

Fig. 7. SEM images of fractured surfaces of tensile samples: (a) as-cast (b–d) 6, 8, and 10 h solution-treated (at 540 °C) and peak-aged (at 175 °C for 10, 6, and 5 h) samples correspondingly;
whereas (e) over-aged (at 175 °C for 12 h), (f) plot of dimples average diameter.

1. Solution treatments conducted at 540 °C for 6, 8, and 10 h partially
dissolve the eutectics phase into the α-matrix and produce nodular
shaped Si particles possessing identical shape and size in terms of as-
pect ratio, length, and diameter. In the meanwhile, the size of Mg2Si
precipitates is affected significantly by the various heat treatment pa-
rameters. Although, the changes in precipitates length do not
influence the strength properties much, however, the ductility is af-
fected quite considerably.
2. Microstructural evaluation and strength properties express that bet-
ter ductility is achieved due to the reduced length (20 ± 2.9 nm) of
needle-shaped βʺ precipitates for 8 h solution treated-peak aged
condition as compared to 6 and 10 h (26 ± 3.7 and 29 ± 3.4 nm,

Fig. 8. The relationship between ductility and precipitates size. Fig. 9. The relationship between quality index and precipitates size.
8 G. Asghar et al. / Materials and Design 186 (2020) 108280
respectively) solution treated-peak aged samples. Whereas, the duc-
tility is decreased abruptly upon over-aging (at 175 °C for 12 h) be-
cause of the partial transformation of needles-like βʺ precipitates
into rod-shaped βʹ and the enhancement of precipitates length
(from 20 ± 2.9 to 33 ± 7.2 nm) noticeably.
3. The developed relationship among precipitates size (length), ductil-
ity, and quality index elucidates that precipitation mechanism is
equally important in the accomplishment of better ductility and
higher strength properties.
4. Therefore, it can be declared that on achieving the full modification of
the eutectic phase, precipitation kinetics not simply contributes to
the setting up of strength characteristics but also plays a critical
role in determining the ductility of A357 alloy.
Data availability
The raw/processed data required to reproduce these findings are
available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.
Author contribution
As being the authors of this research paper, we declare that the work
is entirely original, any raw data exiting in the article can be provided.
Besides, the work has never been submitted/published in any other
journal.
Authors’ individual contributions:
1. Ghulam Asghar: Planned and conducted the experiments and per-
formed all required test and analyzed the data.
2. Liming Peng*: Reviewed the article, helped in improving the over-
all structure of the paper and provided technical suggestions and ar-
ranged the funding support.
3. Penghuai Fu: Helped in completing the SEM and TEM experiments
required to address the reviewer’s comments and to revise the
manuscript.
4. Lingyang Yuan: Helped in completing the experiments and pro-
vided useful technical support to analyze the data.
5. Yue Liu: Provided support to accomplish the TEM work and DSC
analysis.
Acknowledgment:
This work is funded by the National Key Research and Development
Program of China (2016YFB0301000), Shanghai Rising-Star Program
(15QB1402700) and National Natural Science Foundation of China
(51671128 & 51771113). The authors are also thankful to Instrument
Analysis Center of SJTU for providing experimental and testing facilities.
Appendix A. Supplementary data
Supplementary data to this article can be found online at https://doi.
org/10.1016/j.matdes.2019.108280.
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