Microstructural evolution in a spray-cast aluminum alloy during equal-channel angular pressing

A spray-cast Al-7034 alloy was processed by equal-channel angular pressing (ECAP) to a total of eight passes at 473 K and the pressed samples were examined using transmission electron microscopy, differential scanning calorimetry and electron back-scatter diffraction. It is shown that the grain size of the alloy is reduced to ∼0.3 μm by ECAP and the high pressures associated with ECAP lead to a fragmentation of the rod-like η-phase. The high temperature of ECAP also produces a precipitation of η-phase. There is an increase in the fraction of high-angle boundaries during the initial passes of ECAP but the fraction of low-angle boundaries remains high even after eight passes.