Strengthening of Aluminum Alloys Using Severe Plastic Deformation

This paper presents an overview of research studies for achieving high-strength Al alloys. Severe plastic deformation (SPD) is a major process to strengthen the alloys, which is capable of making simultaneous use of all strengthening mechanisms such as grain refinement, particle dispersion (precipitation), solid solution and dislocation accumulation, regardless of alloy type and/or alloy state. High-strengths may also be achieved by syntheses through consolidation of powder mixtures using the SPD process under high pressures such as high-pressure torsion and high-pressure sliding. Future prospect is made to produce Al alloys with the strength more than 1 GPa with a reasonable ductility.