| dc.description.abstract | The production of aluminum alloys through powder metallurgy processes is
capable of producing products that have good size accuracy and material
composition uniformity. Al-4.5Cu-Mg alloy belongs to the type 2xxx of aluminum
group, which has better mechanical properties than pure aluminum and can also be
heat treated. This study aims to determine the effect of the composition of Mg
(magnesium) on mechanical properties such as Vickers hardness number (VHN),
compressive strength, density, microstructure, and macrostructure. The materials
used for the aluminum alloy manufacturing process in this experiment consisted of
aluminum powder (Al), copper powder (Cu), and magnesium powder (Mg), with a
composition of 0.5% Mg each, 1%, and 1.5% (wt.). After weighing and mixing, the
powder is then put into the mold to be compacted with a pressure of 250 MPa, and
then the greenbody specimen is put into the electric muffle furnace to be sintered at
600 °C for 1 hour. Then the compressive strength, Vickers hardness, density, and
macrostructure were tested, and the microstructure was observed using an optical
microscope. The best density value was obtained at 0.5% Mg composition, namely
1.6103, while the lowest value was obtained at 1.5% Mg composition, namely
1.5210. The highest value in the hardness test was obtained at the 1.5% Mg
composition, with a value of 56.6 VHN, while the lowest value was obtained at the
0.5% Mg composition, with a value of 30.4 VHN. The results of the compressive
strength test obtained the lowest average compressive strength value of 77.67 MPa
at 0.5% Mg composition and the highest average compressive strength value of
84.05 MPa at 1.5% Mg composition. The microstructural test showed that the grain
size was getting smaller and denser evenly as the composition of Mg increased. | en_US |
