The Influence of Heat and Cryogenic Treatment on Microstructure Evolution and Mechanical Properties of Laser-Welded AZ31B

The pores and coarse lamellar Mg(17)Al(12) that inevitably occur in the weld zone are the major challenge for laser-welded magnesium (Mg) alloys including AZ31B. In order to improve microstructure uniformity and eliminate welding defects, a new process assisted with combination of heat and cryogenic treatment was applied in this study. The results showed that after solution treatment, the number and size of precipitates decreased and the uniformity of the microstructure improved. After cryogenic treatment, the lamellar Mg(17)Al(12) was cracked into particles, and the grain size was refined. After solution + cryogenic treatment, Al(8)Mn(5) substituted the lamellar Mg(17)Al(12). Through studying the changes in microhardness, precipitates, and microstructure under different treatments, it was found that the conversation of Mg(17)Al(12) from lamellar state into particle-like state as well as the appearance of dispersed Al(8)Mn(5) particles played a second-phase strengthening role in improving the mechanical properties of Mg alloy laser-welded joint, and the tensile strength (258.60 MPa) and elongation (10.90%) of the sample were 4.4% and 32.6% higher than those of the as-welded joint.