Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
MATERIALS RESEARCH EXPRESS, cilt.12, sa.12, 2025 (SCI-Expanded, Scopus)
This work investigates silver (Ag) microalloying as an efficient route to enhance the mechanical response of AlSi10Mg consolidated by vacuum hot pressing. Pre-alloyed AlSi10Mg powders were modified with 0-8 wt% Ag and densified in a single step without post-heat treatment. Comprehensive characterization, including Vickers hardness testing, dry sliding wear evaluation, and three-point bending experiments, revealed a clear optimum at 6 wt% Ag. The alloy exhibited a peak hardness of 74 HV (approximately 63% higher than the base alloy), a similar to 42% reduction in wear rate (from 14.2 x 10(-3) to 8.3 x 10(-3) mm(3) m(-1)), and a flexural strength of 476 MPa with a deflection of 3.8 mm values comparable to those reported for SLM-built AlSi10Mg and nearly fourfold higher than the unmodified hot-pressed alloy. These improvements are attributed to Ag-induced grain refinement, the formation of hard intermetallic phases (confirmed by SEM/EDS), and enhanced densification facilitated by Ag during sintering. Beyond 6 wt%, Ag agglomeration caused a decline in properties, underscoring the need for compositional optimization. Unlike previous studies focused on casting or additive manufacturing, this powder metallurgy-based strategy provides a cost-effective alternative by eliminating complex processing steps while delivering competitive mechanical performance. This study establishes clear composition-process-property linkages and highlights strong potential for deploying these alloys in lightweight structural components.