Creep behavior of ingot and powder metallurgy 6061Al

The creep behavior of 6061Al alloy obtained by ingot metallurgy and powder metallurgy, IM and PM, respectively, has been investigated in the context of published studies on this alloy. The behavior of the IM alloy in a given range of temperatures where the β, Mg2Si, precipitates are formed, is dominated by dislocation climb-controlled creep and aluminum self-diffusion as rate controlling process. A dependence of the β inter-particle distance, λ, with the applied stress, σ  , of the form λ≈1/σ is found when the creep data are analyzed in the context of the sub-structure invariant model. The superior creep resistance of the PM material can be explained if a threshold stress, σ0, is brought into the creep equation. This term is the difference between the applied stresses needed to reach a given strain rate in the PM and the IM alloys, and correlates well with a particle–dislocation interaction mechanism according to the Artz–Wilkinson model.