The Impact of Thermomechanical Treatment on Structure, Electrical Resistance and Hardness of Al–4% Cu–3% Mn Alloy Casted in an Electromagnetic Crystallizer

The impact of thermomechanical treatment on the structure, electrical resistance, and hardness of the Al–4% Cu–3% Mn alloy, which was obtained by casting in an electromagnetic crystallizer, has been investigated using computational and experimental methods. It has been shown that at the cooling rate of more than 1000 K/s, the whole amount of manganese and half of the copper content are dissolved in the aluminum solid solution. This enables the formation of a structure with the maximum possible number of Al₂₀Cu₂Mn₃ dispersoids after subsequent thermomechanical treatment, resulting in a significant improvement in the thermal resistance compared to the known alloys of Al–Cu–Mn system.