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Virginia Tech

Post-fire Mechanical Properties of Aluminum Alloys and Aluminum Welds

Abstract

dc:description.abstract

The focus of this research was to quantify the post-fire mechanical properties of 5083-H116 and 6082-T6 aluminum alloys. Post-fire exposure is considered heating the material to a particular temperature then cooling the material back to room temperature. The research included evaluating parent materials as well as welded samples. Post-fire mechanical properties of parent materials were evaluated at temperatures ranging from ambient to 500oC with isothermal and transient heating. Changes in material properties were evaluated through static tensile tests and hardness testing on cooled samples. Using this data, an assessment was performed to investigate the relationship between hardness and mechanical properties. For the alloys evaluated, empirical relationships were found between Vickers hardness and post-fire strength. Testing was also performed on butt welded samples of 6082-T6 exposed isothermally to temperatures ranging from ambient to 500oC. Vickers hardness profiles were measured across a sample to quantify the hardness of the weld, heat affected zone, and parent material. This was performed at room temperature and following different heat exposures. Static tensile tests were used to evaluate the effect of reheating on the welded samples. Post-fire strength of welded samples was strongly affected by weld geometry. Parent material hardness varied with reheating while weld hardness remained constant. At select temperatures, this resulted in the weld having a higher Vickers hardness than the parent material. Despite this tensile failure always occurred within the weld.

Degree

thesis:*
Name thesis:degree_name
Master of Science
Level thesis:degree_level
masters
Discipline thesis:degree_discipline
Mechanical Engineering
Department dc:contributor.department
Mechanical Engineering
Grantor dc:publisher
Virginia Tech
Year dc:date.issued
2011

Author and committee

dc:creator, dc:contributor.*
Author dc:creator
  • Matulich, Ryan Douglas
Chair dc:contributor.committeechair
  • Lattimer, Brian Y.
Committee members dc:contributor.committeemember
  • Case, Scott W.
  • West, Robert L. Jr.

Subjects

dc:subject × 5

Rights

dc:rights
Statement dc:rights
  • In Copyright

Identifiers

dc:identifier.*
Dc Identifier Other
etd-05132011-124350
OAI identifier oai:identifier
oai:vtechworks.lib.vt.edu:10919/32727

Chain of custody

source
Harvested from
Virginia Tech
Base URL
vtechworks.lib.vt.edu/oai/request
Last updated
2026-07-22
Source record
OAI-PMH GetRecord
citation

Matulich, Ryan Douglas. Post-fire Mechanical Properties of Aluminum Alloys and Aluminum Welds. masters thesis, Virginia Tech, 2011. http://hdl.handle.net/10919/32727