Cosmetic aluminum alloys made from recycled aluminum scrap

Abstract

The disclosure is directed to aluminum alloys made from recycled components. The alloys have copper (Cu) from 0.051 to 0.10 wt %, chromium (Cr) from 0.01 to 0.10 wt %, zinc (Zn) from 0.02 to 0.20 wt %, manganese (Mn) from 0.03 to 0.10 wt %, iron (Fe) in an amount of at least 0.10 wt %, silicon (Si) in an amount of at least 0.35 wt %, magnesium (Mg) in amount of at least 0.45 wt %, and the remaining wt % being Al and incidental impurities. In other aspects, the disclosure is directed to aluminum alloys having copper (Cu) from 0.010 to 0.050 wt %, chromium (Cr) from 0.01 to 0.10 wt %, zinc (Zn) from 0.01 to 0.20 wt %, manganese (Mn) from 0.03 to 0.10 wt %, iron (Fe) in an amount of at least 0.10 wt %, silicon (Si) in an amount of at least 0.35 wt %, magnesium (Mg) in amount of at least 0.45 wt %, and the remaining wt % being Al and incidental impurities. The b* color of the alloys ranges from −2 to 2, and the L* color ranges from 70 to 100.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . An aluminum alloy comprising:
 copper (Cu) from 0.051 to 0.10 wt %;   chromium (Cr) from 0.01 to 0.10 wt %;   zinc (Zn) from 0.02 to 0.20 wt %;   manganese (Mn) from 0.03 to 0.10 wt %;   iron (Fe) in an amount of at least 0.10 wt %;   silicon (Si) in an amount of at least 0.35 wt %;   magnesium (Mg) in an amount of at least 0.45 wt %; and   remaining wt % being Al and incidental impurities,   
       wherein b* ranges from −2 to 2, and L* ranges from 70 to 100. 
     
     
         2 . The aluminum alloy of one of  claim 1 , further comprising elements selected from:
 titanium (Ti) from 0 to 0.10 wt %;   gallium (Ga) from 0 to 0.20 wt %;   tin (Sn) from 0 to 0.20 wt %;   vanadium (V) from 0 to 0.20 wt %;   calcium (Ca) from 0 to 0.01 wt %;   sodium (Na) from 0 to 0.008 wt %;   boron (B) from 0 to 0.10 wt %;   zirconium (Zr) from 0 to 0.10 wt %;   lithium (Li) from 0 to 0.10 wt %;   cadmium (Cd) from 0 to 0.10 wt %;   lead (Pb) from 0 to 0.10 wt %;   nickel (Ni) from 0 to 0.10 wt %;   phosphorous (P) from 0 to 0.10 wt %; and   combinations thereof.   
     
     
         3 . The aluminum alloy of  claim 1 , wherein b* ranges from −1.5 to 1.5. 
     
     
         4 . The aluminum alloy of  claim 1 , wherein b* ranges from −1.0 to 1.0. 
     
     
         5 . The aluminum alloy of  claim 1 , wherein b* ranges from 0 to 1.0. 
     
     
         6 . The aluminum alloy of  claim 1 , wherein b* ranges from −1.0 to 0. 
     
     
         7 . The aluminum alloy of  claim 1 , wherein b* ranges from −0.7 to 0.7. 
     
     
         8 . The aluminum alloy of  claim 1 , wherein b* ranges from 0 to 0.7. 
     
     
         9 . The aluminum alloy of  claim 1 , wherein b* ranges from −0.7 to 0. 
     
     
         10 . The aluminum alloy of  claim 1 , wherein b* ranges from −0.5 to 0.5. 
     
     
         11 . The aluminum alloy of  claim 1 , wherein b* ranges from 0 to 0.5. 
     
     
         12 . The aluminum alloy of  claim 1 , wherein b* ranges from −0.5 to 0. 
     
     
         13 . The aluminum alloy of  claim 1 , wherein b* ranges from −1.5 to 0. 
     
     
         14 . The aluminum alloy of  claim 1 , wherein b* ranges from 0 to 1.5. 
     
     
         15 . The aluminum alloy of  claim 1 , wherein the aluminum alloy has an average grain ratio from 0.7 to 1.45. 
     
     
         16 . The aluminum alloy of  claim 1 , wherein the aluminum alloy has average grain ratio from 1.0 to 1.2. 
     
     
         17 . The aluminum alloy of  claim 1 , wherein the aluminum alloy is in the form of an extruded part and has a yield strength of at least 200 MPa and a tensile strength of at least 235 MPa. 
     
     
         18 . The aluminum alloy of  claim 1 , wherein the aluminum alloy is in the form of an extruded part and has a hardness of at least 75 Vickers. 
     
     
         19 . A process of making an aluminum alloy from an aluminum scrap, the process comprising:
 (a) obtaining an aluminum scrap from one or more sources;   (b) melting the aluminum scrap to form a melted aluminum alloy comprising:
 copper (Cu) from 0.051 to 0.10 wt %; 
 chromium (Cr) from 0.01 to 0.10 wt %; 
 zinc (Zn) from 0.02 to 0.20 wt %; 
 manganese (Mn) from 0.03 to 0.10 wt %; 
 iron (Fe) in an amount of at least 0.10 wt %; 
 silicon (Si) in an amount of at least 0.35 wt %; 
 magnesium (Mg) in an amount of at least 0.45 wt %; and 
 remaining wt % being Al and incidental impurities; 
   (c) casting the melted aluminum alloy to form a casted alloy;   (d) rolling the casted alloy to form a sheet, or extruding the casted alloy to form an extrusion; and   (e) fabricating the sheet or extrusion to produce an aluminum part.   
     
     
         20 . The process of  claim 19 , wherein the step of melting comprises removing oxides from the aluminum scrap.