Aluminum-lithium alloy is new aerospace material

Aluminum lithium alloy has been one of the most competitive materials in modern aerospace equipment design and has broad application prospects.

The research and development of aluminium lithium alloy generally goes through three stages

The first stage is the initial stage, the scientific research workers at that time did not realize the key role of lithium on aluminum alloy, so the first generation of aluminum lithium alloy heat resistance, plastic toughness is poor, notch sensitivity is high, not in the spacecraft application at that time.

The second stage is the rapid development stage, but there are still many problems in the second generation al-Li alloy, such as serious anisotropy, insufficient plasticity and toughness, and serious toughness loss after thermal exposure, which limit its large-scale application in spacecraft.

The third stage is the large-scale application stage. The third generation al-Li alloy has many advantages such as weak anisotropy, good weldability and strong corrosion resistance, and has been widely used in spacecraft manufacturing.

At present, the development of al-li alloy has entered the fourth stage of high-quality development. Researchers have developed many aluminum-lithium alloy materials with better performance, and applied in the new generation of spacecraft, to achieve engineering applications.

The preparation of Al-Li alloy

The preparation methods of Al-Li alloy mainly include ingot metallurgy and powder metallurgy. However, there are some problems in the preparation of these two methods. For this reason, some researchers have put forward the representative molten salt electrolysis method and simulated microgravity state method.

Aluminum Lithium application field

Nowadays, aluminum-lithium alloy has been used more and more in aerospace field. At present, advanced aircraft are using aluminum-lithium alloy, including plate, sheet, extruded profiles, fuselage skin, fuselage frame, long section, floor beam, seat slide, door, flap rib, vertical stabilizer, fairing, inlet lip, fuel tank and so on.

At present, the research of Al-Li alloy is mainly aimed at improving the existing preparation technology and putting forward new preparation technology. Further explore a more effective alloying approach; Continuously improve the existing welding process, put forward a better new process and so on.