Influence of hetero-duplex structure on mechanical properties of Mg-Al/Cu-Zn alloys

▶ Hetero-duplex structure containing both structural and spatial heterogeneities form in a series of Mg-Al-Zn and Mg-Cu-Al alloys. ▶ A hetero-duplex Mg72Cu5Zn23 alloy with the uniform dispersion of the spherical duplex colonies exhibits high yield strength of 455 MPa with reasonable plasticity of ∼5%. ▶ A hetero-duplex Mg70Al3Zn22 alloy consisting of typical facet duplex colonies undergoes catastrophic failure without macroscopic plasticity. ▶ The interfacial morphology of the hetero-duplex structure can play an important role to control the plasticity of the hetero-duplex alloys.