Microstructure, mechanical properties and pseudo-passivation behavior of a recycled quasicrystal-forming Al–Cu–Fe alloy in saline solution

When recycled material is used to produce quasicrystal-forming alloys, their price is reduced, which makes them even more attractive. Therefore, this study reports the development of the recycled quasicrystal-forming Al–Cu–Fe alloys with characteristics competitive with those of high purity alloys. A comprehensive understanding of the characterization by directly linking microstructure, mechanical properties and the relationship with electrochemical response was assessed. The microstructures of the alloys were composed of crystalline phases, such as λ-Al₃Fe and β-Al(Cu,Fe), as well as Ψ icosahedral quasicrystalline (i-QC) phase. The last one was formed via peritectic reaction by \(L+\beta \to \Psi\) $L+\beta \to \mathrm{\Psi }$ . The microstructures were composed of Ψ i-QC phase of two different morphologies (polyhedral-like structure close to a pentagonal dodecahedron and cauliflower-like structure). The alloys presented higher hardness values ( \(>\) $>$  650 GPa). The higher the quasicrystallinity, the higher (nobler) the corrosion potential. In addition, the alloys presented a tendency to pseudo-passivate in 3.5 mass% NaCl media.