Influence of thermomechanical process and Fe addition on microstructural evolution and properties of Cu-26 wt%Ag composite

We investigated the microstructure and mechanical properties of deformed Cu-26 wt%Ag alloy and Cu-26 wt%Ag-0.1 wt%Fe alloy superimposed by thermomechanical process. The addition of 0.1 wt% Fe into Cu-26 wt% alloy refined the eutectic lamella spacing and the spacing between Ag precipitates. Magnetization measurements of containing-Fe composites indicated that the transformation from γ-Fe to α-Fe was induced during cold deformation and the volume fraction of α-Fe increased as the strain increased. Intermediate heat treatments caused the precipitation of γ-Fe precipitates out of Cu matrix. The solid solution as well as addition for the Cu-Ag alloy with high Ag content was beneficial to the strength rather than the electrical conductivity. Although intermediate heat treatments (IHTs) improved electrical conductivity effectively, the strength of IHT samples was lower than that of solid-solution-treated samples.