Study on the nanostructure formation mechanism of hypereutectic Al-17.5Si alloy induced by high current pulsed electron beam

This work investigates the nanostructure forming mechanism of hypereutectic Al-17.5Si alloy associated with the high current pulsed electron beam (HCPEB) treatment with increasing number of pulses by electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) and SEM. The surface layers were melted and resolidified rapidly. The treated surfaces show different structural characteristics in different compositions and distribution zones. The top melted-layer zone can be divided into three zones: Si-rich, Ai-rich, and intermediate zone. The Al-rich zone has a nano-cellular microstructure with a diameter of ∼100 nm. The microstructure in the Si-rich zone consists of fine, dispersive, and spherical nano-sized Si crystals surrounded by α(Al) cells. Some superfine eutectic structures form in the boundary of the two zones. With the increase of number of pulses, the proportion of Si-rich zone to the whole top surface increases, and more cellular substructures are transformed to fine equiaxed grain. In other words, with increasing number of pulses, more Si elements diffuse to the Al-rich zone and provide heterogeneous nucleation sites, and Al grains are refined dramatically. Moreover, the relationship between the substrate Si phase and crystalline phase is determined by EBSD; that is, (1 1 1)Al//(0 0 1)Si with a value of disregistry δ at approximately 5%. The HCPEB technique is a versatile technique for refining the surface microstructure of hypereutectic Al-Si alloys.