Mechanical Properties of A356 Aluminum Cast Alloy Shaped by Permanent Mold Casting

A356 is a heat treatable cast alloy which has been widely applied in aviation and automobile industries. In this paper a Sb modified A356 alloy cast with permanent mold has been investigated in order to improve its mechanical properties by changing the needle morphology of the eutectic silicon. The results show that a small amount of Sb addition can contribute refined eutectic silicon morphology and enhance the mechanical properties, especially elongation of the A356 cast alloy poured in permanent molds. The optimal addition of Sb is 0.2 wt.%.