LAUSR

Due to the low density and high fatigue strength, Al-Cu-Mg alloy has become an attractive material for aerospace and navigation applications. However, the relatively high residual stress and low micro-yield strength after the fabrication process restrict its further application in the field of inertial instruments. The objective of this work is to investigate the effect of Ni plating on the residual stress and micro-yield strength in an Al-Cu-Mg alloy under different diffusion treatments. Compared with properties of the alloy without diffusion treatment, the micro-yield strength of the alloy after diffusion treatment increases 9.5%, and the corresponding residual stress decreases > 70%. This can be attributed to the increase of diffusion layer thickness and release of elastic energy.