X-ray tomography analysis of intermetallics and voids in 6XXX alloys

Sustainable aluminum production for the automotive industry with a high content of recycled material offers considerable potential for CO 2 footprint reduction and cost savings. A three-dimensional characterization of cast AA6016 alloys with <50 wt% and >75 wt% of recycled aluminum was carried out to assess the volume fraction, total number and surface area of intermetallics and casting voids using high-resolution synchrotron X-ray tomography. A new data analysis method is presented to describe morphology of intermetallics based on a surface area/volume by volume plot, which allows for better classification of their different geometry clusters even for small modifications of Fe and Mn in the cast alloy.