The influence of Mn on the microstructure and mechanical properties of the Al–5Mg–Mn alloy solidified under near-rapid cooling

A research was carried out to investigate the microstructures and mechanical properties of high Mn containing Al–5Mg–Mn alloys cast under near-rapid cooling. The results indicated that the mechanical properties of the hot bands and cold rolled sheets were remarkably improved with Mn content increasing to 1.6 wt%. The near-rapid cooling process greatly refined the intermetallic constituents. The intermetallic Al6(Fe,Mn) particles found in the hot bands were rare and small when the content of Mn was hypoeutectic. In the samples with higher Fe and Si content, a large amount of Al6(Fe,Mn) and Mg2Si particles remained in the hot bands. But the hot bands still showed better mechanical properties due to the refinement of the intermetallic constituents by the near-rapid cooling process. The results were of commercial interest to the production of AA5083 alloy via continuous strip casting process.