Abstract: Developing high-ductility magnesium (Mg) alloys has become an imminent issue for their wide application. In this work, a new Mg-Sn-Zn-Zr alloy with ultra-high ductility (elongation, El. over 40 %) and high ultimate tensile strength (UTS, ∼309-354 MPa) was prepared by a novel differential thermal equal-channel angular pressing (DT-ECAP). Heterogeneous structures, including bimodal grain structures and inhomogeneous distribution of second phases composed of banded structure and particle free zone (PFZ), were induced by DT-ECAP process. Based on the results of electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), high-resolution TEM (HRTEM), and selected area electron diffraction (SAED), the bimodal grain structure originated from incomplete dynamic recrystallization (DRX) dominated by Zener pinning, strain-induced grain boundary migration (SIBM) and the limitation of polycrystallization due to lower dislocation density. Meanwhile, the bimodal distribution of second phases was highly associated with the defect density and initial structure. More importantly, the enhanced strength of DT-ECAPed alloys can be primarily attributed to hetero-deformation induced (HDI) strengthening, grain boundary strengthening, and precipitation strengthening. Moreover, HDI hardening, texture weakening or randomizing activation of non-basal slip, high density of dislocations in sub-structures, and twining induced superior work-hardening effect, which was highly responsible for the ultra-high ductility in sixth pass (6P) alloy. The current work provides a novel DT-ECAP process for inducing heterogeneous structure and offers beneficial insight into the development of ultra-high ductility and high strength for rare-earth-free Mg alloys via a combination of HDI strengthening and hardening and other vital mechanisms.

Key words: DT-ECAP process, Heterogeneous structures, HDI strengthening and hardening, Mechanical properties, Mg-Sn-Zn-Zr alloy