Recycling of AZ40 Magnesium Alloy Scraps by Hydriding-Dehydriding and Subsequent Consolidation Processing

The hydriding-dehydriding process was used to recycle AZ40 magnesium (Mg) alloy scraps, and the microstructure nanocrystallization was realized. X-ray diffraction analysis, scanning electron microscopy, and transmission electron microscopy were carried out to characterize the microstructure. After mechanically milling in hydrogen for 72 h, matrix Mg was completely turned into nanocrystalline MgH₂, with an average crystallite size of about 10 nm. And then, the MgH₂ phase was completely transformed into Mg again through vacuum dehydriding treatment at 300 °C for 192 min, with an average crystallite size of about 20 nm. In addition, the nanocrystalline alloy powders were hot-pressed and extruded into bars. The average grain size of the bars was about 500 nm, which had reached the size of ultrafine-grain. Meanwhile, the yield strength and ultimate tensile strength of the as-extruded bars reached about 312 and 497 MPa, respectively. The results indicate that hydriding-dehydriding process is a feasible method for recycling of Mg alloy scraps, and it is expected to have a good application prospect in preparing ultrafine-grain Mg alloys.