Microstructure and properties of Cu-Fe alloys fabricated via powder metallurgy and rolling

ABSTRACT

In this work, copper ferroalloys (CFAs) with various Fe contents (5, 10 and 30 wt-%) were fabricated via the mechanical alloying and vacuum sintering method, followed by hot and cold rolling. Microstructure, mechanical, electrical and magnetic properties were investigated using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-Ray diffraction (XRD), tensile testing, four-point probe, vibration sample magnetometer and dc BH circuit tracer, respectively. The CFAs with homogenous and fine in-situ Fe particles prepared by powder metallurgy showed better performance compared with previously reported conventional casting. After annealing at 400°C, the cold-rolled CFA with 30 wt-% Fe had the tensile strength of 621 MPa, the electrical conductivity of 50.2% IACS, magnetic saturation strength (M_s) of 60.39 emu g⁻¹ and coercivity (H_c) of 98.2 Oe, achieving a good combination of mechanical and functional properties. Relations between the microstructure and mechanical and functional properties are discussed in detail.

KEYWORDS:

• Cu-Fe alloy
• mechanical properties
• conductivity
• magnetic properties
• powder metallurgy

Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the State Key Lab of Advanced Metals and Materials of China (2019-Z10), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (61905159), and the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (FRF-GF-19-012AZ).

Author contributions

Chenzeng Zhang Methodology, Validation, Investigation, Resources, Writing – original draft, Visualisation. Cunguang Chen: Conceptualisation, Methodology, Validation, Writing – review and editing, Supervision, Funding acquisition. Lina Huang, Tianxing Lu and Pei Li Resources, Formal analysis, Data curation. Wenwen Wang and Fang Yang Resources, Formal analysis. Alex A. Volinsky Data processing and paper corrections. Zhimeng Guo Methodology, Resources, Funding acquisition.

Data availability

The raw/processed data required to reproduce these findings cannot be shared at this time as the data also forms part of an ongoing study.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the State Key Lab of Advanced Metals and Materials of China [grant number 2019-Z10], University of Science and Technology Beijing; the National Natural Science Foundation of China: [grant number 61905159]; and the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities [grant number FRF-GF-19-012AZ], University of Science and Technology Beijing.