Equal-channel angular extrusion of Al 5083 alloy with copper shielding

The microstructural homogeneity, hardness and tensile strength of aluminium alloy 5083, with and without copper shielding (CS), processed by equal-channel angular extrusion (ECAE) are investigated in this work. The two opposite longitudinal faces of the rectangular billets are shielded with copper sheets of various thicknesses (1·0, 1·5, 2·0 and 2·5 mm) and ECAE’d at room temperature in route A (no rotation of billet) up to four times. The required extrusion load is drastically reduced due to the smaller coefficient of friction between the CS and channels of the steel die. The shielded copper reduces the effect of the dead metal zone and microcracks and improves strain uniformity in the extruded alloy. The hardness and tensile strength of the extruded alloy with CS are increased extensively due to newly formed submicron-sized grains in the homogeneous structure. Also, the ductility of ECAE’d alloy with CS is higher compared to that of the alloy extruded without shielding. It is noticed that the increase in the thickness of CS does not have a noteworthy effect on the structural and mechanical behaviour of the extruded alloy.