Question

What is the chief difference between heat-treatable and non-heat-treatable alloys?

Answer 1

Heat-Treatable and Non-Heat-Treatable are the two basic types of aluminum alloys. They are both widely used in welding fabrication and have somewhat different characteristics associated with their chemical and metallurgical structure and their reactions during the arc welding process.Non-Heat-Treatable Aluminum Alloys - The strength of these alloys is initially produced by alloying the aluminum with additions of other elements. These alloys consist of the pure aluminum alloys (1xxx series), manganese alloys (3xxx series), silicon alloys (4xxx series) and magnesium alloys (5xxx series). A further increase in strength of these alloys is obtained through various degrees of cold working or strain hardening. Cold working or strain hardening is accomplished by rolling, drawing through dies, stretching or similar operations where area reduction is obtained.