Samara State Technical University, Samara, Russia:

K. V. Nikitin, Dean of the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Metallurgy and Transport, Doctor of Technical Sciences, Professor, e-mail: kvn-6411@mail.ru
V. I. Nikitin, Head of the Department of Casting and High-Efficiency Technology, Doctor of Technical Sciences, Professor, e-mail: tlp@samgtu.ru
I. Yu. Timoshkin, Department of Casting and High-Efficiency Technology, Сandidate of Technical Sciences, Associate Professor, e-mail: ivan-mns@mail.ru

Wuhan Textile University, Wuhan, China¹ ; National University of Science and Technology MISiS, Moscow, Russia²:
V. B. Deev, Professor at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering and Automation at the Wuhan Textile University, Lead Expert at the Department of Metal Forming^1,2, Doctor of Technical Sciences, Professor, e-mail: deev.vb@mail.ru

Due to growing production of aluminium alloys and development of resourcesaving production, great amounts of waste products are widely used in the production process. Use of recyclable iron-containing waste in cast and wrought aluminium alloy production diverts the common traditional understanding that iron can affect the cast structure. At the same time, for the low diffusion capacity of iron in aluminium, it would be interesting to consider Al – Fe alloys. This paper describes the results of a study that examined how the structure of AlFe5 master alloys influence the structure and properties of Al – Si – Cu (AK12M2) and Al – Cu – Mg (AK4) alloys. The test AlFe5 master alloys were prepared by chopping waste steel wire into 1 and 3 mm pieces. The alloy melts solidified in a crucible and a water-cooled roller mould. Before pouring, some of the alloy melts were exposed to electromagnetic acoustic fields for additional conditioning. The authors looked at how the size of the steel pieces and the way they were obtained changed the structure of the test master alloys. A relationship was established between the size of the material and the dimensions and quantity of FeAl₃ intermetallics. In all experiments, the bigger FeAl3 intermetallics were found in alloys produced with 3 mm steel pieces. Exposure to electromagnetic acoustic fields would result in 3–5 times smaller FeAl₃ intermetallics while their quantity would increase by 4–10 times. The chemical compositions of alloys obtained from fine-crystalline master alloys proved to be in compliance with applicable regulations. The principal phases in the resultant alloys had a fine-dispersed structure. The eutectic silicon in the АК12М2 alloy became 1.4 times smaller, while the dendritic aluminium in the АК4 alloy structure became 1.65 times smaller. The optimized structure led to improved physical and mechanical properties of as-cast alloys. Thus, their ultimate strength increased by 10–13%, while their specific elongation almost doubled. The results of the study indicate that recyclable scrap steel wire can be effectively used in the production of aluminium alloys.
This research study was funded by the Ministry of Education and Science of Russia as part of a governmental assignment; Project ID: 0718-2020-0030.

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