Evaluation of the Athermal Effect of Electric Pulsing on the Recovery Behavior of Magnesium Alloy

It is still unclear whether the effects of the electric current on the mechanical behavior can be attributed exclusively to Joule heating. To evaluate athermal effect of electropulsing on recovery, we compared mechanical behavior, dislocation density, and hardness of a pre-tensioned magnesium alloy after treatment of electric pulses (EP) and annealing in an oil bath. The analysis reveals that the athermal effect of EP on the recovery is not clearly identified under a given set of conditions in this study, although EP treatment appears more efficient than conventional heat treatment. This is further supported by the in situ transmission electron microscopy results that little dislocation rearrangement was observed even during the high current density of 4000 A/mm(2) as long as temperature remains low.