Lightweight materials are essential in reducing the overall weight and improving the efficiency and performance of ICE and electric vehicles. The use of aluminum alloys is critical in transitioning to a more energy sustainable and environmentally friendly future. The accessible combinations of high modulus to density and strength to weight ratios, as well as their excellent thermal conductivity, make them an ideal solution for overall weight reduction in vehicles, thereby improving fuel efficiency and reducing emissions.
Aluminum alloys with high strength and lifetime thermal stability have been industrialized for usage in brake rotor applications. Amongst the most used aluminum alloys with high thermal stability are 2618-T8 and 4032-T6 for use in aerospace and automotive industries, respectively. However, when it comes to prolonging the life of a product at temperatures that exceed 200°C, the properties of these alloys will quickly degrade within the first 300 hours of exposure. Therefore, a new generation of Al-Cu-Mg alloys was developed to further optimize properties and to provide the maximum strength at elevated temperatures with the highest thermal conductivity. Adequate testing exposing them to temperatures up to 300°C for an extended period of time showed that they do not demonstrate significant loss in mechanical strength. In addition, simulations to predict the aluminum strength loss during braking were generated and results are cross compared to cast iron, SS and 304L.