Role of second phase particles on microstructure and texture evolution of ARB processed aluminium sheets

The accumulative roll bonding (ARB) process was carried out on a high purity alloy (AA1100) and a particle containing aluminium alloy (AA3003) for up to eight cycles. The electron backscattered diffraction (EBSD) method was utilised to investigate the microstructural and microtextural evolution in ARB processed sheets. The results indicate that the lack of second phase particles in pure aluminium hinders grain refinement and leads to the formation of unrefined bands, which results in the increase of the overall texture intensity and the development of a strong texture. A submicrometre grain structure in this alloy develops at the final stages of the process. It was also found that the presence of second phase particles in AA3003 alloy prevents the development of such unrefined bands and improves grain refinement during the ARB process, which results in a more homogenous microstructure of ultrafine grains.