Cerium-Based, Intermetallic-Strengthened Aluminum Casting Alloy: High-Volume Co-product Development
- Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)
- Eck Industries, Manitowoc, WI (United States)
- Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States)
- Ames Lab., Ames, IA (United States)
Here, several rare earth elements are considered by-products to rare earth mining efforts. By using one of these by-product elements in a high-volume application such as aluminum casting alloys, the supply of more valuable rare earths can be globally stabilized. Stabilizing the global rare earth market will decrease the long-term criticality of other rare earth elements. The low demand for Ce, the most abundant rare earth, contributes to the instability of rare earth extraction. In this article, we discuss a series of intermetallic-strengthened Al alloys that exhibit the potential for new high-volume use of Ce. The castability, structure, and mechanical properties of binary, ternary, and quaternary Al-Ce based alloys are discussed. We have determined Al-Ce based alloys to be highly castable across a broad range of compositions. Nanoscale intermetallics dominate the microstructure and are the theorized source of the high ductility. In addition, room-temperature physical properties appear to be competitive with existing aluminum alloys with extended high-temperature stability of the nanostructured intermetallic.
- Research Organization:
- Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), Energy Efficiency Office. Advanced Manufacturing Office; USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES); USDOE Laboratory Directed Research and Development (LDRD) Program
- Contributing Organization:
- Eck Industries, Manitowoc, WI (United States); Ames Lab., Ames, IA (United States)
- Grant/Contract Number:
- AC05-00OR22725; AC52-07NA27344; AC02-05CH11231
- OSTI ID:
- 1346625
- Alternate ID(s):
- OSTI ID: 1257369; OSTI ID: 1281684
- Report Number(s):
- IS-J-8916; LLNL-JRNL-682237
- Journal Information:
- JOM. Journal of the Minerals, Metals & Materials Society, Vol. 68, Issue 7; ISSN 1047-4838
- Publisher:
- SpringerCopyright Statement
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Web of Science
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