Mechanical Properties of High Performance Aluminum Castings

Squeeze casting and semi-solid metal forming produce aluminum castings with exceptional properties. This paper compares the mechanical properties and microstructures of a production component processed by a variety of casting processes and heat treatments. Note, in all cases, the current insert tool used for squeeze casting was adapted to be utilized in the various semi-solid metal forming processes.

The results showed that semi-solid metal forming produced consistently better mechanical properties compared to squeeze casting. Defects, primarily oxide films, were determined to be responsible for the lower and less consistent properties of the squeeze cast material.