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Calcium (Ca), with abundant and cheap reserves, is a potential element to facilitate the further application of Mg-Al-Sn based alloys. Here, effects of Ca content on the microstructure and tensile properties of Mg-2.0Al-0.8Sn (wt.%) alloys were systematically studied. The experimental results illustrated that the strength, ductility and isotropy of the alloys improved simultaneously with the increase of Ca content. The better ductility and isotropy could be contributed to the weakened texture via particle stimulation nucleation mechanism. The higher strength benefited from the combination of finer grains, more precipitates and residual dislocation density. Eventually, the Mg-2.0Al-0.8Sn-0.5Ca (wt.%) alloy showed the best room-temperature balance of strength and ductility with a yield strength of ∼226.0 MPa, an ultimate tensile strength of ∼282.4 MPa and a fracture elongation of ∼20.2%, which has huge potential as an applicable low-cost high-performance magnesium alloy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As a member of two-dimensional (2D) materials, MXene is an ideal reinforcement phase for modified polymers due to its large number of polar functional groups on the surface. However, it is still relatively difficult to modify any functional groups on the surface of MXene at present, which limits its application in enhancing some polymers. Herein, one-dimensional (1D) attapulgite (ATP) nanomaterials were introduced onto the surface of MXene to form ATP–MXene hybrids, which successfully improved the mechanical properties of the epoxy composites. ATP with appropriate content can increase the surface roughness of the MXene lamellae to obtain better interface interaction. Therefore, remarkable enhancement on the mechanical property was achieved by adding M02A025 (0.2 wt % MXene and 0.25 wt % ATP), which is the optimum composition in the hybrids for composite mechanical properties. Compared to neat epoxy, the tensile strength, flexural strength and critical stress intensity factor (KIC) of M02A025/epoxy are increased by 88%, 57%, and 195%, respectively, showing a high application prospect. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]