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Journal of Chinese Society for Corrosion and protection  2026, Vol. 46 Issue (4): 1177-1184    DOI: 10.11902/1005.4537.2025.318
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Mechanical Properties and Corrosion Behavior of a Trace-amount Er Containing Al-alloy Conducting Wire
XIA Xiaojian1,2, ZHANG Chenyu1,2, YAN Kanghua1,2, ZHANG Bo1,2, DENG Chenxi3, XIE Yupeng3, MIN Xingrui3, LI Mengyu3, ZHANG Ruifeng3()
1.State Grid Fujian Electric Power Research Institute, Fuzhou 350007, China
2.Putian Coastal Atmospheric Environment Material Corrosion and Electric Power Equipment Safety Observation and Research Station of Fujian Province, Putian 351100, China
3.School of Materials Science and Engineering, Central South University, Changsha 410083, China
Cite this article: 

XIA Xiaojian, ZHANG Chenyu, YAN Kanghua, ZHANG Bo, DENG Chenxi, XIE Yupeng, MIN Xingrui, LI Mengyu, ZHANG Ruifeng. Mechanical Properties and Corrosion Behavior of a Trace-amount Er Containing Al-alloy Conducting Wire. Journal of Chinese Society for Corrosion and protection, 2026, 46(4): 1177-1184.

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Abstract  

Herein the tensile properties in atmosphere and corrosion behavior in 3.5%NaCl solution of a trace Er-containing heat-resistant Al-alloy conducting wire (Al-0.08Si-0.05Er-0.05Fe, mass fraction) with a diameter of 10 mm at various temperatures were studied via Instron 3369 electronic universal testing machine, immersion test and electrochemical testing means etc. The results demonstrated that the transverse section of the wire exhibited a microstructure dominated by fine near-equiaxed grains, while the longitudinal section displayed elongated grains with high aspect ratios. In addition, significant intergranular disorientation and a low fraction of recrystallization were observed. Limited secondary phases were found neither in the cross-section nor in the longitudinal section, primarily composed of coarse Al-Fe particles and Al-Fe-Si particles, alongside finer Al-Fe-Si-Er particles. At ambient temperature, the wire demonstrated a yield strength of 113 MPa and an ultimate tensile strength of 133 MPa. Elevated tensile testing temperatures induced progressive degradation of mechanical properties. However, the yield strength loss rate remained notably lower than the theoretically predicted value at temperatures below 150 ℃, which indicates enhanced thermal stability under moderate heating conditions. Immersion tests at different temperatures revealed that pitting corrosion dominated the corrosion morphology. The corrosion behavior of the alloy changed from pitting corrosion to intergranular corrosion, and corrosion resistance declined with the increasing temperature, which may be attributed to the accelerated negative shift of the free corrosion potential of Al-matrix under thermal activation. Crucially, the incorporation of Er effectively refined both the grain structures and the dimensions of Al-Fe/Al-Fe-Si phases, thereby mitigating the localized corrosion susceptibility through microstructural homogenization.

Key words:  heat resistant      Al alloy wire      strength      corrosion resistance     
Received:  13 October 2025      32134.14.1005.4537.2025.318
ZTFLH:  TG174  
Corresponding Authors:  ZHANG Ruifeng, E-mail: rufengzhang@csu.edu.cn

URL: 

https://www.jcscp.org/EN/10.11902/1005.4537.2025.318     OR     https://www.jcscp.org/EN/Y2026/V46/I4/1177

Fig.1  Diagram of the sampling
Fig.2  Stress-strain curves and mechanical properties evolution curves of the ultra-heat-resistant Al alloy: (a) stress-strain curves, (b) mechanical properties change curves
Temperature / ℃YS / MPaLoss of YS / %UTS / MPaLoss of UTS / %Elongation / %
25113-133-23.58
501104.351265.2623.04
1001049.5711414.2922.99
1509418.269826.3235.78
1908526.098734.5925.90
Table 1  Mechanical tensile properties and strength loss values under varied test temperatures
Fig.3  Fracture morphologies of the tensile samples: (a) 25 ℃, (b) 50 ℃, (c) 100 ℃, (d) 150 ℃, (e) 190 ℃, (f) tensile samples
Fig.4  OM (a-c) and SEM (d-f) morphologies of the soak tested samples in 3.5%NaCl solution at 30 ℃ (a, d), 50 ℃ (b, e), 70 ℃ (c, f)
Fig.5  Potentiodynamic polarsation curves of the ultra-heat-resistant Al alloy at varying temperatures
Fig.6  Grain morphologies of the ultra-heat-resistant Al alloy: (a-c) cross-section morphology, (d-f) longitudinal section morphology, (a, d) OM images, (b, e) IPF maps, (c, f) GOS maps
Fig.7  Distribution of secondary phase particles in an ultra-heat-resistant Al alloy: (a-d) cross-section morphologies; (e-h) longitudinal section morphologies, (a, e) BSE figures; (b, c, f, g) EDS mappings; (d, h) line-scan data
Fig.8  Comparison diagram of calculated strength loss value and actual strength loss value
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