Quench sensitivity and microstructure character of high strength AA7050

The effect of quenching rate on the electrical conductivity and microstructure of thick plates of incumbent AA7050 was investigated by employing Jominy end quench test. The electrical conductivity measurement and microstructural observation were conducted at different distances from the quenched end. The results indicate that the average cooling rates decrease with increasing the distance from the quenched end of the bar in the quench sensitive temperature range. However, the electrical conductivity increases with the increase of distance from the quenched end. The surface parts of the plate were fully recrystallized, while partial recrystallization took place at the quarter and center parts of the plate. The quench induced grain boundary precipitates became remarkably coarser and discontinuously distributed with increasing distance from the quenched end of the bar. Plenty of heterogeneous precipitates were observed to nucleate on Al3Zr dispersoids when the distance from the quenched end was greater than 38 mm.