Microstructural characterization of a rapidly solidified Al–10 Sb alloy

In the present work, the microstructure of a melt-spun Al–10 Sb alloy has been characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The results show that rapid solidification has no influence on the phase constitution of the Al–10 Sb alloy. Moreover, the phase constitution does not change with increasing quenching rate (wheel speed). However, rapid solidification has a significant effect on the microstructure of the Al–10 Sb alloy. The microstructure of the melt-spun Al–10 Sb alloy dominantly comprises equiaxed primary AlSb dendrites and nanoscale α-Al/AlSb eutectic, different from that of the ingot-cast alloy consisting of coarse primary AlSb plates within the α-Al/AlSb eutectic matrix. Some epitaxial orientation relationships were found between AlSb particles and α-Al matrix in the melt-spun Al–10 Sb alloy as follows: α-Al [3 1 0] ||AlSb [1 1 0] and α-Al (0 0 2) ||AlSb (2 2¯ 0).