Enhanced compressive strength of an extruded nanostructured Mg–10Al alloy

We report the microstructural characterization and compressive behavior of nanostructured Mg–10Al alloys processed via cryomilling, spark plasma sintering and extrusion. We demonstrate that warm extrusion leads to ~40% improvement in compressive strength of nanostructured Mg–10Al alloys. A yield strength of 550 MPa, and an ultimate strength of 580 MPa are measured. The improvement in strength is mainly attributed to the occurrence of precipitation hardening by γ-Al12Mg17 nanoprecipitates and basal-texture strengthening in addition to the grain size strengthening mechanism. Our results suggest a successful approach for the design of high strength nanostructured Mg–Al alloys.