Equal Channel Angular Extrusion of AA 6063 Using Conventional Direct Extrusion Press

In the present work, an extrusion-equal channel angular extrusion (Ex-ECAE) process composed of two processes, extrusion and ECAE, is developed. The Ex-ECAE die contains three segments and is used directly in the conventional direct extrusion press to refine the microstructure, specifically the coarse grain layer (CGL) on the surface of the extrudate. The first segment in the die is designed to perform the normal extrusion process and the second and third segments to perform the process of ECAE. The study reveals that the CGL can be eliminated (refined) completely at the macroscale. At the microscale, the original grain is subdivided into subgrain, which contains many smaller cells. The results can be explained by the grain subdivision mechanism. The textures of the Ex-ECAE sample at various segments are measured using EBSD (Electron Backscatter Diffraction). The results reveal that the first segment of the Ex-ECAE sample has a perfect fiber texture which consists of a mixture of strong < 001 > and weak < 111 > fiber components. The texture of the second segment is a mixture of strong (1 1 0) [1 -2 1] and weak (0 1 1) [2 -1 0] fiber components. However, the main component of the second segment is a typical texture of the alloy or brass type. Finally, the texture of the extrudate (the third segment) is reversed to an incomplete fiber texture which consists of strong (0 0 1) [-1 -1 0] and weak (1 1 1) [1 -1 0].