THE INFLUENCE OF THE EXTRUSION PROCESS AND HEAT TREATMENT ON THE PROPERTIES OF SOME AA6XXX EXTRUDED PROFILES

The effects of chemical compositions, the extrusion process and the heat-treatment variables on the properties of extruded profiles were investigated in three AA6xxx aluminium alloys. The tensile and corrosion properties of three heat-treatable AA6xxx aluminium alloys (AlMgSi1, AlMgSi0.7 and AlMgSi0.7Zr) in the T5 tempered condition were investigated. The influence of minor additions of Mn and Zr to an AlMgSi0.7 base alloy on the mechanical properties and corrosion behaviour in natural water was also investigated. The behaviour of the extruded profiles was compared to aluminium of commercial purity in terms of the corrosion properties in natural water.