Mechanical Properties and Melt Quality Relationship of Sr-modified Al-12Si Alloy

The formation of oxide film on the surface of aluminium melts, i.e. bifilms, are known to be detrimental when they are incorporated into the cast part. These defects causes premature fractures under stress, or aid porosity formation. In this work, Al-12 Si alloy was used to cast a step mould under two conditions: as-received and degassed. In addition, 10 ppi filters were used in the mould in order to prevent bifilm intrusion into the cast part. Reduced pressure test samples were collected for bifilm index measurements. Samples were machined into standard bars for tensile testing. It was found that there was a good agreement with the bifilm index and mechanical properties.