Effect of a New High-Pressure Heat Treatment on Additively Manufactured AlSi10Mg Alloy

The application of an innovative high-pressure T6 treatment (HPT6) to additively manufactured AlSi10Mg alloy is reported in this paper. The aim of this treatment is to obtain the effective densification of the material together with the hardening effects typical of T6 heat treatment in one step. For comparison, a two-step treatment consisting of hot isostatic pressing followed by conventional T6 treatment was applied. Standard annealing and T6 treatment alone were also considered. The microstructural and mechanical properties of alloys treated under all the studied conditions were analyzed and their density was measured to quantify their densification. Although the application of high pressure hindered the diffusion mechanisms, and thus could limit the hardening effect of heat treatment, HPT6 treatment was found to ensure suitable mechanical properties and high densification. Furthermore, it required less time; therefore, it can be considered as a time-efficient process for high-performance applications.