Microstructure based modeling of β phase influence on mechanical response of cast AM series Mg alloys

Understanding the impact of microstructural features on bulk response is key to improving the properties of AM series cast Mg alloys for more widespread use and for moving towards truly predicting modeling capabilities. This study focuses on modeling the volume fraction and morphology of β phase within the microstructure of cast AM series Mg alloys and quantifying its impact on bulk performance. Finite element results are validated against experimental tensile tests of AM40 and AM70. Digital microstructures with fully connected β phase morphologies are shown to increase hardening versus less connected, clumped morphologies.