The today and future potential
of magnerium in the automotive industry
Gloudio Mus - Meridicn, Mognesium
Vio Gloir, 4l
Abstract
The row moteriol ond tronsformotion cost (the die caslíng process) together
its
wîth important corrosion issues convinced the oulomotive industries to reduce
dromolicolly the use of the mognesium olloys in the mid of the 70's.
The energy shortoges ot th end of the 70's focused ogoin cor designers on
"light metols" and the mognesium wos one of lhe most ottroctive.
The row moteriol supplíers developed high purity olloys (ow iron, nickel ond
copper content) to overcome lhe corrosion issues. Af the same time the die
coslers improved significontly the lronsformotion process oble Ío guorontee
cost co m pelitive com pone nts.
The market today is growing in excess of 1 ó7" per yeor: Íhis interesting dotum
is línked lo the high technologicol level reoched in the die cosfing process
copoble to produce slructurol components to substilute ohernotive moteriols
(i.e. steel ossemblies).
The weight soving ochievoble is around the 40% with the some componenl's
performonces. Due to these interesting features ond to the possibility to eosily
recycle ît, Mognesium will ploy on imporlont role in the outomotive industry in
the yeors 2000.
INTRODUCTION
When, in the mid of the 70's, the use of magnesium in the
automotive industry showed an importantfall (the engine and
the drive train of VolskWagen- Beatle were magnesium die-
castings in the previous productions years), most of the peo-
ple involved in the die-casting business easily realized that
magnesium was not the material for the future.
The main reasons for the automotive to reconsider others
materials, like aluminum, as the best choice in making foun-
dry components and switchbackfrommagnesium alloys were
basically the following:
. Raw material cost
. Transformation cost
. Corrosion issues
The high and unstable raw material cost was attributed to the
limitedproduction sources in the industrial world associated
with an unclear strategy of investment from the companies
leading the market. On the other hand those companies had
no clear messages from the automotive industries in the evo-
lution of the magnesium employ for future cars: research and
62
Products of ltoly
Verrés (AO)
Riossunlo
Tro le rogioni principoli che convinsero, ollo metò degli onni 20, le cose
outomobilisliche o ridurre notevolmente l'impiego delle leghe di mognesio vi
furono sicuromente il costo dello moterio primo, quello dello suo trosformozione
e le problemotiche di corrosione.
Lo successivo crisi petrolifero orientò nuovomente i progettisti ollo ricerco di
soluzioni olleggerite per componenli del veicolo: il mognesio, per le sue
corotteristiche mecconiche specifiche, roppresentovo uno interessonte
olternotivo. Stimolote do uno prospettivo di mercolo in forte crescito le induskie
fornitrici dello moterio primo svilupporono leghe iperpure (o bosso contenuto
di Ferro, Rome e Nickel) con corotterisliche di resislenzo ollq corrosione
nellomente migliorote. Porollelomente le industrie di lrosformozione,
tipicomente fonderie di pressocololo, misero o punto processi innovotivi di
produzione in grodo di fornire componenti competitivi nei cosli.
Lo vero svolto ollo crescito del mercolo di getti pressocoloti in lego di mognesio,
con uno domondo che oggi oumento del 16% oll'onno, è comunque legolo
ollo moderno lecnologio di trosformozione in grodo di permetlere lo
reolizzozione di componenti shutturoli o geometrio complesso in sostiluzione
di ossembloti in moterioli hodizionoli (es. lomiero in occioio).
ll rispormio in peso olienibile, o poritò di prestozioni, è dell'ordine del 40%:
un risultoto porticolormente inleressonte per il progeltisto degli onni 2000,
sempre di più ollo ricerco di olleggerimento componenli in ottico di riduzione
dei consumi e delle emissioni.
product development were not justified in a field in which no
transformation industries, die-casters, were available.
Nevertheless at the end of the 70's the energy shortages fo-
cused again the attention and investment of the automotive
industries on "light metal", and government sponsored pro-
grams on the need to reduce the car's weight for fuel con-
sumption improvement (figure 1).
The magnesium alloys showed very interesting specific me-
chanical properties (Young modulus, tensile and yield strength
ratio over the density) (figure 2), putting these materials on
the top of the list for future applications, with a weight sav-
ing around fhe 407o compared to steel and cast iron, and
20Vo when compared to aluminun for equal component per-
formances. Those material's features, associated with the po-
tential function integration at low cost linked to the die-cast-
ing process, increased again the understanding of magnesium
and the clear request to make effort in reducing the raw ma-
terial and transformation's cost, in improving the corrosion
properties.
Metallurgicol Scíence ond Technology
 The 80's saw important devel-
0.2
EPA CITY/HIGHWAY CYCLE opment driven by this new sta-
'1979
tus both in the transformation
cor model
Audi doto (Fisifo 90)
industries (die-caster) and raw
Long Term Ford lSoe 82) material suppliers:
. the production base for mag-
0.15
nesium alloys increased
vE . new high purity alloys were
z
o
.t ì00 Km .
developed
new transformation methods
F
o-
=
rn
were patented and installed
0.1 r0 o
rn (figure 3)
=
l
U) lt
z ^
3
The magnesium production in-
o
U
0O Km
r3 dustry showed potential to be-
J lal tó come reliable sources of supply
lJ.J
lu- for stable prices, the die-caster
0.05 20
put in place method to cast the
new high purity alloys at reason-
able cost and high volume.
* Fuel Consumption Reduction

0
500 I 000 r 500 2000

cAR WEIGHT [Ks]

Figure 1: Car's weight effect on fuel consumption

Slress. Slroin (urves

Die (osl Alloys

ÀE
=
o

Tensile Yield Stength (Q2% oflset) Elostk lllodulus, tension

Die cost Mg Bcsed olloy AZ9t
,O

ÀE
ct

Sepcrolely tasl test bors

o r"rof,9rure ("() I

Figure 2: Typicol mognesium olloys mechonicol properÍies

Vol.Is (2)(tee8) ó3

I
Thehighpurity alloys are today suppliedwithlow iron, nickel Based on these new steps achieved as the Corporate Ameri-
and copper content. For these alloys (AM60B, AZgID),the can Fuel Economy requirements were adopted by the USA
corrosion behaviour improves significantly (figure 4). government, many "light" components have been designed

l------------.'-----_

l \\\
F=ft-
l'l,_\

I(____, r-b

Grovimetric siphon
\zù
Ioh _..^.

Shot sleeve

U
METERING
Gos displocement pump
SYSTEMS

Tronsfer tube

Melting furnoce Holding furnoce Costing mochine

Figure 3: Metering systems opplied to die cost cell

Solr Sproy Corrosion of Die Cosr AZgl Solt Sproy Corrosion of Metols
Alloys wirh Different lron Contents IOO Hours-ASTM BllT
Averoge conosion rote [mm/yeor] Averoge rorrosion rote [nm/yeorl

r.50

t.00

0.5

0
te 140 ppm (AZ9IB) te 70 ppm (AZ9lB) te <50 ppm (AZ9lDf AIlló04 ZincAG40A Steel Aluminum
(Cold Rolled) A380

Figure 4: Corrosion behoviour of high purily mognesium olloys (AZ9l D, AMó08)

64 Metoll u rg icol Sci ence o nd Tech nology

 DEMAND FOR DIE CASTINGS
PHASED-IN GRO\VTH BY REGION

'000 ÍtlT
250
M OTHER
r IAPAN AND KOREA
200 ! EUROPE
! NORTH AfiIERICA
Source: lltl.ll ddo ond HMffl anolysis
t50

r00

50

t99t 1592 t993 1994 t995 r99ó 1997 1998 t999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005

YEAR

Figure 5: Demond for mognesium die costings

TODAY'S APPTICATION

rì
Mureq Cross Cor Beqm Alfo l5ó Cross Cor Beom Alfo 15ó Seof
Weight: 3.4 Kg Weight 3.3 Kg Weight: 2.2 Kg
Steel Version: ó.8 Kg Steel Version: N/A Steel 3.7 Ks

FUTURE APPTICATION

Door Frome
Weight: 5.9 Kg (Whole Assembly: 8.4 Kg)
Steel Version {Whole Assembly): 15.4 Kg

Figure ó: Exomples of todoy's ond fulure mognesium opplicolîons

and produced in magnesium (transmission housings, gear
boxes, wheels, steering columns components, pedal
brackets).The interest in magnesium continues today and the
market is growing in excess of I6Vo per year (figure 5).
Those incouraging data can be justified also by the fact that
magnesium die-castings are today employed as substitute of
Vol. 15 (2) 11998)
parts never produced as casting, enlarging the number of
magnesium components introduced on one car: instrument
panels, cross car beams, seat structures, sun-roof system,
grill-opening reinforcement are some examples already into
high volume production. Door and rear door frame are some
examples of future application (figure 6).
ó5
For such a kind of application the high material cost, com- On top of that, in the near future, the automotive industry
pared to steel, aluminum and plastic, doesn't lead necessary will be forced to reduce the car's weight and it is probably
to an higher component cost: the function integration (i.e. ready to pay extra money for weight reduction on each com-
reduced number of component and reduced assembly opera- ponent to reach this target: this will definitely help the mag-
tions), the process capability (i.e. typical cycle time around nesium boost in such a market.
60 seconds) and the investment in tooling required to guar- As outlined, there are a number of good reasons that justify
antytheproductionvolumes(i.e.averagetoollifeof250.000 the attention now focused on magnesium; this recyclable
shots) make competitive in cost the final magnesium compo- material seams to have interesting features to play an impor-
nent. tant role in the automotive industry for the years 2000.

REFERENCES
. "Magnesium potential in the automotive industry" D. Magers,
Norsk Hydro. Pressocolata e tecnologia Marzo 1997.
. "Die cast magnesium alloys data sheet" Hydro Magnesium 1995.
. "Corrosion resistant magnesium alloys" Hydro Magnesium 1994.
. "Demand for magnesium die castings" IMA 1997.

66 Metoll u rgicol Science o nd Tech nology