Influence of Be Content and T4 Temper Heat Treatment on Hardness and Wear Behavior of Al-Alloy A319

The microstructure, hardness, and wear behavior of Al-6 Si-3.5 Cu alloy were modified by various routes including the addition of three different amounts of beryllium, T4 heat treatment, and a hybrid method of adding 0.06 wt.% Be plus T4 heat treatment. The results showed that the addition of 0.06 wt.% Be led to the absence of the β-phase, the formation of the less harmful α-phase with the best aspect ratio, and changed the coarse acicular Si to fibrous Si. The highest hardness, as well as lowest wear weight loss and wear rate, were observed in the sample modified by the hybrid method since the addition of Be caused the formation of the α-phase, prevented the formation of the β-phase, and led to the more uniform distribution of phases in the Al matrix. In addition, the modification methods resulted in a decrease in the contribution of the adhesive wear in the samples modified by 0.06 wt.% Be and the hybrid method, with the dominance of abrasive wear in the sample modified by the hybrid method as the sample with the highest wear resistance.