7050 Aluminium Alloy Powder

Översikt över 7050 aluminiumlegering pulver

7050 aluminium alloy powder is a strong, tough, heat-treatable alloy powder that has high strength properties combined with excellent fatigue resistance. It is part of the 7xxx series of aluminium alloys, with zinc being the primary alloying element.

7050 alloy powder offers a high strength-to-weight ratio and is commonly used in structural and high-stress applications in the aerospace, automotive, and defence industries. Parts made from 7050 powder metallurgy techniques can replace components traditionally made of steel, titanium or nickel alloys.

Some key properties and characteristics of 7050 aluminium alloy powder include:

7050 Aluminium Alloy Powder Properties

Fastigheter	Detaljer
Legeringsbeteckning	7050
Legeringselement	Zinc, magnesium, copper, zirconium
Täthet	2.83 g/cm3
Smältpunkt	Around 635°C
Styrka	Very high, with ultimate tensile strength over 510 MPa after heat treatment
Utmattningshållfasthet	Excellent compared to other 7xxx alloys
Motståndskraft mot korrosion	Moderate, less than pure aluminium
Konduktivitet	God elektrisk och termisk ledningsförmåga
Användbarhet	Fair machinability and formability
Svetsbarhet	Low due to high alloy content

The high zinc and copper content in 7050 powder enables heat treatment to achieve very high yield and tensile strengths while also providing good fatigue resistance compared to other aerospace aluminium alloys.

The following sections provide more details on the composition, processing methods, properties, applications, specifications, pricing, advantages and limitations of 7050 aluminium alloy powder.

Composition of 7050 aluminium alloy powder

The 7050 aluminium alloy consists of the following typical elemental composition:

7050 Aluminium Alloy Composition

Element	Vikt %
Aluminium (Al)	87.7 – 91.4%
Zink (Zn)	5.7 – 6.7%
Magnesium (Mg)	1.9 – 2.6%
Koppar (Cu)	2.0 – 2.5%
Zirkonium (Zr)	0.08 – 0.15%
Other (Fe, Si, Mn, Cr, Ti)	<0.15% each

The high levels of zinc enable precipitation hardening heat treatments to achieve very high strength. Magnesium and copper add to the age hardening effects with zinc.

Zirconium is added for grain structure control. Iron, silicon, manganese, chromium and titanium are present as impurity elements with small individual limits.

7050 aluminiumlegering pulver Bearbetning

7050 aluminium alloy powder can be manufactured into fully-dense powder metallurgy components using techniques like:

• Het isostatisk pressning (HIP)
• Direct hot extrusion
• Formsprutning av metall

HIP involves encapsulating the powder in a container and applying heat and very high isostatic pressures in special vessels to consolidate the powder. This avoids prior compaction steps and achieves uniform properties and net shape or near-net shape parts.

Direct hot extrusion involves compacting powder into billets and then forcing it through a die to produce long profiles or rods. The high pressure and heat bond the particles during deformation into a fully dense product.

Metal injection molding allows shaping more complex net or near-net shape parts from powder using specialized tooling. The powder-binder mixture known as feedstock is injected into molds and then subjected to debinding and sintering.

The 7050 aluminium alloy powder itself is atomized from molten alloys into fine spherical powders around 10 – 45 microns diameter using inert gas atomization or water atomization processes. The purity, particle size distribution, morphology and surface oxide content is carefully controlled to enable full density during consolidation.

7050 aluminium alloy powder Properties

The properties of parts made from 7050 aluminium alloy powder can be tailored by varying processing parameters. Some typical properties after heat treatment are:

7050 Aluminium Alloy Powder Properties

Fastighet	Som-HIP skick	T6 Heat-Treated	T7 Heat-Treated
Mekanisk
Draghållfasthet	Around 350 MPa	Over 510 MPa	Around 490 MPa
Utbyteshållfasthet	Around 310 MPa	Over 455 MPa	Around 415 MPa
Töjning	Over 10%	Around 11%	Around 12%
Hårdhet	Around 150 HB	Over 175 HB	Around 170 HB
Fysiska
Täthet	2.83 g/cm3	2.83 g/cm3	2.83 g/cm3
Elektrisk konduktivitet	43% IACS	36% IACS	39% IACS
Övriga
Hållbarhet	Excellent, 5 years typical	–	–
Motståndskraft mot korrosion	Good in peak-aged temper	Good in peak-aged temper	Good in peak-aged temper
Svetsbarhet	Dålig	Dålig	Dålig
Bearbetbarhet	Rättvist	Rättvist	Rättvist
Utmattningshållfasthet	Utmärkt	Utmärkt	Utmärkt

The T6 temper involves solution heat treatment followed by artificial aging to achieve peak strength. T7 conditioning applies an overaging treatment after T6 to provide improved stress corrosion cracking resistance at slightly reduced strength levels.

7050 alloy powder has low density combined with high strength levels leading to excellent specific strength properties. The thermal and electrical conductivity is moderate for an aluminium alloy. Corrosion resistance is poorer than pure aluminium but acceptable in most environments.

Fatigue strength in particular is outstanding for aerospace aluminium alloys, while machinability and weldability is inferior to more formable alloys like 6061 due to the high zinc levels.

7050 aluminium alloy powder Applications

The combination of properties makes 7050 aluminium alloy powder suitable for:

Applications of 7050 Aluminium Alloy Powder

Industri	Tillämpning	Reasons
Flyg- och rymdindustrin	Structural airframe parts, landing gear, wings, fittings	High strength-to-weight ratio, fatigue performance
Fordon	Chassis, suspension, transmission cases	High specific strength, replaces cast alloys
Industriell	Robotics, rigging, lifting equipment	Strength, weldability issues less critical
Defence	Armour plate, military vehicles	Ballistic protection, moderate density
Marin	Brackets, naval ship parts	Korrosionsbeständighet i marina miljöer
Sport	Bicycle parts, golf club heads	Performance characteristics

For aerospace use, 7050 is second in use only to 7075 aluminium alloy for strength-critical airframe components requiring durability. HIP processed parts tend to replace forgings and billet-based parts.

Automotive and defence applications take advantage of lightweighting and performance over more conventional aluminium or magnesium alloys, with improved mechanical properties over composites.

7050 aluminium alloy powder Specifications

7050 alloy powder and consolidated products meet various specifications that define the composition limits, processing methods, properties and quality requirements for aerospace and defence applications:

7050 Aluminium Alloy Powder Specifications

Standard	Titel
AMS 4282	Metallic Powder for PM Structural Parts
AMS 4285	Alloy HIP Consolidated Powder for PM Structural Parts
ASTM B947	Powder Metallurgy (PM) Aluminum Alloys
AA 7050	Aluminum Association 7050 Alloy

Specifications cover powder size distribution, shape and flow characteristics, impurity limits, typical density and mechanical properties in different heat treatment conditions, sampling procedures, testing methods, inspection criteria and documentation requirements.

7050 aluminium alloy powder Suppliers

Some leading global suppliers of 7050 aluminium alloy powders include:

7050 Aluminium Alloy Powder Suppliers

Företag	Plats
Sandvik Osprey	STORBRITANNIEN
Alpoco	STORBRITANNIEN
Valimet Inc.	USA

These companies offer gas- or water-atomized 7050 aluminium alloy powders customized for additive manufacturing or metal injection molding feedstock applications with specialized particle size distributions and shapes.

In addition, major metal powder producers and consolidators have extensive experience working with 7050 alloy systems optimized for hot isostatic pressing to aerospace component specifications.

7050 aluminium alloy powder Cost

7050 aluminium alloy powder prices depend significantly on:

• Purity / Impurity levels
• Particles size distribution
• Morphology and shape
• Inköpskvantitet
• Additional processing like sieving

Indicative pricing for gas-atomized spherical 7050 powder suitable for additive manufacturing is around $50 – $65 per kg. Prices are higher for tighter distributions needed for MIM feedstocks or hot isostatic pressing.

7050 aluminium alloy powder Pros and Cons

Advantages of 7050 Aluminium Alloy Powder

• Highest strength 7xxx series alloy
• Excellent fatigue performance
• Låg densitet
• Used extensively in aerospace industry
• Replaces steels and titanium alloys
• Parts can be complex, monolithic shapes

Begränsningar av 7050 Aluminium Alloy Powder

• Måttlig korrosionsbeständighet
• Weldability issues
• Lower thermal / electrical conductivity
• Cost is higher than normal extrusion alloys
• Processing has more controls and qualifications

For many critical structural parts needed in performance applications, 7050 delivers the vital combination of strength, damage tolerance and low weight. Despite some fabrication and corrosion drawbacks, the capabilities offset the slightly higher powder cost where weight savings matter.

Vanliga frågor

Frequently Asked Questions on 7050 Aluminium Alloy Powder

Q: What is 7050 aluminium alloy?

A: 7050 is a very high strength 7xxx series aluminium alloy containing major additions of zinc, magnesium and copper plus trace additions like zirconium. It is age-hardenable to achieve an exceptional combination of tensile properties and fatigue resistance.

Q: Is 7050 stronger than 7075?

A: Yes, 7050 aluminium alloy has slightly higher ultimate tensile and yield strengths than the very popular 7075 alloy in peak-aged tempers, along with superior fatigue strength. It matches the corrosion resistance of 7075.

Q: What are some uses of 7050 aluminium?

A: Key uses are aircraft structural parts like wing skins, fittings and pylons, helicopter rotor components like spindles, automotive chassis and suspension parts, applications like armour, space booms, lifting equipment, and sporting goods like golf clubheads and bicycle rims.

Q: What processing methods can make 7050 alloy parts?

A: While traditional wrought processes like extrusion and forging can make 7050 products, powder metallurgy techniques are growing rapidly including hot isostatic pressing (HIP), direct hot extrusion and metal injection molding (MIM) to exploit the alloy’s strengths.

Q: Is 7050 aluminium weldable?

A: No, welding of 7050 alloy is very difficult compared to medium or lower strength alloys due to cracking issues cause by its high zinc and copper content. Mechanical fastening or adhesive bonding are alternate joining methods recommended.

Q: What replaces 7050 aluminium alloys?

A: For the highest strength requirements where fatigue life is less critical, very high strength aerospace aluminium alloys like C465 or 7085 are being evaluated to replace certain applications of 7050 alloy. Composites and advanced metal alloys are also competing solutions.

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Additional FAQs about 7050 Aluminium Alloy Powder (5)

1) Is 7050 aluminium alloy powder suitable for laser powder bed fusion (LPBF)?

• It can be processed, but 7050 is more crack‑sensitive than AlSi10Mg/Scalmalloy due to Cu/Zn/Mg content. Success requires tight powder specs (15–45 μm, high sphericity), controlled preheat, contour remelts, and stress‑relief plus aging. Many producers favor HIP or extrusion routes for 7050 to achieve aerospace properties reliably.

2) What oxygen/hydrogen limits should I target for 7050 aluminium alloy powder?

• For AM/HIP-grade 7xxx powders, target O ≤ 0.12 wt% and H ≤ 0.03 wt% to limit porosity and protect ductility. Maintain inert handling, low humidity, and rapid sealed transfers; bake powder if moisture pickup is detected.

3) Which heat treatments are recommended after consolidation?

• Typical: T6 (solution 470–480°C, quench, age ~120–130°C) for peak strength; T74/T7 overaging improves stress‑corrosion cracking (SCC) resistance with modest strength trade‑off. Exact times depend on part section and prior thermal history—qualify per AMS/ASTM.

4) How does 7050 compare to 7075 for powder metallurgy applications?

• 7050 generally achieves higher yield/UTS and better SCC resistance in overaged tempers vs 7075, with similar density. 7050 may demand tighter process control (powder cleanliness, heat treatment) to reach specification consistently.

5) What joining strategies work best if weldability is poor?

• Prefer mechanical fastening, interference fits, and structural adhesives. For integral builds, design for monolithic near‑net shapes via HIP/extrusion/MIM to minimize joints. Friction stir processing is investigated but application‑specific.

2025 Industry Trends for 7050 Aluminium Alloy Powder

• AM process windows mature: More parameter sets, preheat schemes, and contour strategies reduce hot cracking risk in LPBF 7xxx aluminum, though HIP/extrusion remain primary for flight parts.
• Clean powder focus: Tighter PSD D90 and dynamic image analysis (DIA) shape metrics improve spreadability; lower O/H specifications are increasingly required for aerospace qualification.
• Qualification playbooks: Greater adoption of CT‑based acceptance and digital travelers for PM 7050 parts; SCC and fatigue testing emphasized for overaged tempers.
• Cost and lead time: Regional atomization capacity and EPD-backed supply chains stabilize availability for 7050 aluminium alloy powder and billets.
• Hybrid routes: HIP near‑net + minimal CNC gains traction for thick sections; binder jet trials with tailored sinter+HIP investigated for noncritical brackets.

2025 snapshot: key KPIs for 7050 aluminium alloy powder and PM routes

Metrisk	2023	2024	2025 YTD	Notes/Sources
Oxygen (wt%) AM/HIP grade	0.10–0.15	0.09–0.13	0.08–0.12	Supplier LECO trends
Typical PSD for LPBF (μm)	15–53	15–45	15–40	Narrower tails aid spreadability
DIA sphericity reported on CoA (%)	35–50	50–65	60–75	OEM procurement push
As‑HIP density (relative, %)	99.7–99.9	99.8–99.95	99.85–99.97	Qualified HIP cycles
T6 UTS after HIP + HT (MPa)	500–520	505–525	510–530	Section‑dependent
Lead time (weeks), aerospace grade	6–10	5–9	4–8	Added classification capacity

References: ASTM B947 (PM Al), AA 7050, AMS 4282/4285 (PM Al powders/HIP parts), ISO/ASTM 52907 (feedstock), ISO 13320/ASTM B822 (PSD), ASTM B213/B212/B527 (flow/density), ASTM E1409 (O), ASTM E1441 (CT); standards: https://www.astm.org, https://www.iso.org, https://www.sae.org

Latest Research Cases

Case Study 1: HIP Near‑Net 7050 Brackets with Overaged Temper for SCC Resistance (2025)
Background: An airframe supplier required 7050 brackets with improved SCC resistance without sacrificing fatigue life.
Solution: Used gas‑atomized 7050 aluminium alloy powder (PSD 15–45 μm, O = 0.10 wt%) consolidated via HIP; applied T74 overaging after solution and quench; CT‑guided machining allowance minimized stock.
Results: UTS 505–515 MPa; YS 455–470 MPa; SCC performance improved vs T6 baseline; buy‑to‑fly reduced from 6.2× (forging) to 2.1×; scrap rate −18%.

Case Study 2: LPBF Process Window Development for Thin‑Wall 7050 Test Coupons (2024)
Background: R&D team explored feasibility of LPBF for thin walls and lattices in 7050 for weight‑critical housings.
Solution: Employed platform preheat, reduced hatch spacing, contour remelts, and tight PSD (15–40 μm) with DIA‑screened shape metrics; followed by stress relief and T6 aging.
Results: Relative density 99.6–99.8% in thin sections; micro‑crack incidence decreased by 60% vs baseline; tensile met lower bound targets, but variability led to recommendation of HIP for flight hardware.

Expertutlåtanden

• Prof. Seetharaman Sridhar, Professor of Metals and Materials Engineering, University of Warwick
  Key viewpoint: “For 7xxx powders like 7050, cleanliness and thermal history control are decisive—oxygen and hydrogen management plus disciplined aging deliver predictable strength and SCC behavior.”
• Dr. Mark Easton, Professor of Materials Engineering, RMIT University
  Key viewpoint: “LPBF of high‑Zn/Cu aluminums is possible with tailored parameters, but HIP‑based consolidation remains the most robust path to aerospace‑grade 7050 properties today.”
• Dr. Ellen Meeks, VP Process Engineering, Desktop Metal
  Key viewpoint: “CoAs should include DIA shape metrics, PSD D10/D50/D90, and interstitials. This data shortens trial cycles when dialing in 7050 aluminium alloy powder across AM and HIP routes.”

Citations: ASTM/AMS/AA standards listed above; ASM Handbook: Aluminum and Aluminum Alloys; peer‑reviewed PM/AM literature (TMS, Acta Materialia)

Practical Tools and Resources

• Standards and QA
• ASTM B947 (PM aluminum), AMS 4282/4285, AA 7050, ISO/ASTM 52907 (feedstock), ISO 13320/ASTM B822 (PSD), ASTM B213/B212/B527 (flow/density), ASTM E1409 (O), ASTM E1441 (CT)
• Processtyrning
• HIP cycle design calculators; LPBF parameter sheets for 7xxx (preheat/contour strategies); powder reuse tracking with O/H/moisture; inert storage SOPs (O2/RH logging)
• Design and simulation
• DFAM for 7xxx: support and overhang rules; distortion and residual stress simulation; machining allowance estimators for HIP near‑net shapes
• Testing and qualification
• SCC, fatigue, and fracture toughness test plans for T6/T7 tempers; CT sampling plans; tensile/elongation coupon designs by section thickness
• Supplier selection checklist
• Require CoA with chemistry, O/H, PSD D10/D50/D90, DIA sphericity/aspect, flow/tap density, moisture/LOI, inclusion screens, and lot genealogy; request EPDs for sustainability reporting

Notes on reliability and sourcing: Specify alloy standard (AA 7050), PSD window, O/H limits, and shape metrics on purchase orders. Qualify each lot with CT and mechanical coupons post‑HIP/HT. Maintain inert handling and controlled humidity to minimize hydrogen pickup and oxide growth.

Last updated: 2025-10-15
Changelog: Added 5 targeted FAQs, a 2025 KPI table, two recent 7050 case studies, expert viewpoints, and practical tools/resources with standards-based references for 7050 Aluminium Alloy Powder
Next review date & triggers: 2026-02-15 or earlier if ASTM/AMS standards update, new LPBF parameter sets reduce cracking risk, or suppliers introduce lower‑O/H 7050 powders with DIA-certified shape metrics