Research Progress on Aging Strengthening of Al-Si Cast Alloys

Al-Si cast aluminum alloys are widely used in automobile industries because of its good castability.In order to further improve the strength and ductility of Al-Si cast alloys, the way of T6 (solution+aging) heat treatment is generally adopted, among which aging treatment is very important.Aging hardening process is very complex, alloys composition, aging parameters and the addition of trace elements affect the effect of aging strengthening. This paper mainly summarized the complex precipitation sequence of Al-Si-Cu, Al-Si-Mg and Al-Si-Cu-Mg alloys, and analyzed the influence of trace elements on aging precipitation behavior.Finally, the present challenges and future trends were pointed out.