@article{Wu2025, 
author = {Qianye Wu and Yujuan Wu and Qingchen Deng and Chenyang Ding and Yu Zhang and Nanxi Peng and Licheng Jia and Zhiyu Chang and Liming Peng},
title = {Effect of Gd content on microstructure and mechanical properties of Mg-xGd-Zr alloys via semicontinuous casting},
year = {2025},
journal = {Journal of Magnesium and Alloys},
volume = {13},
number = {11},
pages = {5500-5510},
keywords = {Mg-Gd alloys, Semicontinuous casting, Mechanical properties, Microstructure, Aging precipitates},
url = {https://www.sciopen.com/article/10.1016/j.jma.2024.10.013},
doi = {10.1016/j.jma.2024.10.013},
abstract = {Mg-Gd based alloys are an important class of high-performance Mg alloys. In this study, three Mg-Gd alloys with different gadolinium (Gd) contents: Mg-9.54Gd-0.40Zr (wt.%, G10 K), Mg-15.11Gd-0.35Zr (wt.%, G15 K) and Mg-19.67Gd-0.33Zr (wt.%, G20 K) were prepared by semicontinuous casting and subsequent solution and aging heat treatments. The role of Gd content on microstructures and mechanical properties of the Mg-Gd-Zr alloy is studied. All three as-cast alloys exhibit eutectic phases of Mg5Gd, with the amount increasing as the Gd content rises. Mg5Gd disappears after the solution heat treatment (the G10 K alloy solution-treated at 480 °C for 4 h, the G15 K alloy at 500 °C for 12 h and the G20 K alloy at 520 °C for 24 h, respectively). Aging heat treatment at 200 °C for 64 h after solution introduces numerous prismatic β′ precipitates, with a significant increase in their area number density corresponding to increased Gd content. Additionally, the morphology of the β′ precipitates exhibits distinct variations: the G10 K alloy is characterized by an enhanced aspect ratio. Consequently, the peak-aged G10 K alloy demonstrates superior strength-ductility synergy, with a yield strength (YS) of 216 ± 1 MPa, an ultimate tensile strength (UTS) of 363 ± 1 MPa, and an elongation (EL) of 8.7 ± 0.6%. This study suggests that plasticity diminishes and precipitation strengthening is limited when the gadolinium content exceeds 15 wt.%.}
}