Influence of heat treatment on the microstructure and wear behavior of end-chill cast Zn–27Al alloys with different copper content

The aim of this paper was to study the effect of heat treatment on the microstructure and wear behavior of Zn–27Al alloys with different copper content. In order to study the relationship between microstructure features and wear behavior, the alloys prepared by an end-chill cast apparatus and then heat treated. Heat treatment procedure involved solutionizing at temperature of 350 °C for 72 h followed by cooling within the furnace to room temperature. Microstructural characteristics of as-cast and heat-treated alloys at different distances from the chill were investigated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) and X-ray diffraction. Wear tests were performed using a pin-on-disk test machine. To determine the wear mechanisms, the worn surfaces of the samples were also examined by SEM and EDS. Results showed that heat treatment led to the complete dissolution of as-cast dendritic microstructure and formation of a fine lamellar structure with well-distributed microconstituents. Moreover, addition of copper up to 1 wt% had no significant change in the microstructure, while addition of 2 and 4 wt% copper resulted in formation of e (CuZn4) particle in the interdendritic regions. The influence of copper content on the wear behavior of the alloys was explained in terms of microstructural characteristics. Delamination was proposed as the dominant wear mechanism.