An investigation of the limits of grain refinement after processing by a combination of severe plastic deformation techniques: A comparison of Al and Mg alloys

An Al-7075 aluminum alloy and a ZK60 magnesium alloy were processed by a combination of equal-channel angular pressing (ECAP) for 4 passes and high-pressure torsion (HPT) through total numbers of up to 20 turns. Processing by ECAP and HPT were performed at 473 K and room temperature, respectively. Mechanical testing showed an increase in the hardness value of the Al-7075 alloy after a combination of ECAP and HPT whereas in the ZK60 alloy the hardness was reduced. Microstructural images of the Al-7075 alloy revealed very significant grain refinement after a combination of ECAP + HPT compared to the individual processing techniques. By contrast, and consistent with the hardness measurements, the average grain size of the ZK60 alloy was larger after processing by the two-step SPD technique. These results are examined and an explanation is presented based on the available microstructural evidence.