Damping Properties of AZ91D Magnesium Alloy with Y Addition

The influence of Y on the microstructure and damping capacity of AZ91D based alloys was investigated by optical microscopy, X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy and dynamic mechanical analysis. The results show that, with increasing Y content, the grain size of α-Mg matrix decreases tremendously and the distribution of β-Mg17Al12 phase is transformed from discontinuous network to fine particles. Meanwhile, a needle-shaped Al4MgY phase mainly distributing at the grain boundaries is identified. The damping capacity of the studied alloys shows sustained enhancement with increasing temperature. As to the strain dependent damping capacity, with the increase of Y content, the damping value of AZ91D alloy decreases gradually before Y content reaches to 0.5wt.%, and fluctuates when Y addition is between 0.5wt.%~0.9wt.%. G-L dislocation model was employed to explain the effects of parameters on damping capacity of magnesium alloy.