Effect of T4 and T6 Heat Treatments on the Reciprocating Dry Sliding Tribological Behavior of A356.2 Aluminum Alloy
摘要
This work studied the effect of the T4 and T6 heat treatment on the tribological properties of as-cast A356.2 aluminum alloy under dry sliding reciprocating conditions. Samples were fabricated through a gravity die-cast process, followed by solutionizing at 510 °C and aging at 210 °C. The heat-treatment duration for each sample was optimized using data from micro-hardness, electrical conductivity, and microstructural analyses. Wear volume loss, wear rate, and coefficient of friction (CoF) of the A356.2 aluminum alloy were evaluated under a normal load of 5 N to identify the dominant wear mechanisms. The wear track’s worn surface and cross-section microstructure were examined using optical profilometry, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS). The results indicated that the wear resistance of A356 alloy improved with T4 and subsequent T6 treatments. Delamination, adhesion, and oxidation were the predominant mechanisms during wear, followed by abrasive wear. The improvement in tribological properties is attributed to the increased ductility and hardness resulting from eutectic silicon phase refinement and the precipitation of Mg2Si.