The Aluminium/Silicon alloy (Al96/Si4) powder is a lightweight, corrosion-resistant material prized for its excellent thermal conductivity and casting characteristics. As a hypoeutectic alloy with a modest silicon content, Al96/Si4 offers an optimal balance of strength, machinability, and dimensional stability, making it a preferred choice for additive manufacturing, powder metallurgy, and thermal management applications.
Material Overview
Al96/Si4 consists of approximately 96 wt% aluminium and 4 wt% silicon. The addition of silicon refines the alloy’s microstructure by reducing shrinkage porosity and improving melt fluidity during solidification. In its powder form, the alloy is typically produced through atomization or rapid solidification, resulting in fine spherical particles with a homogeneous microstructure. These microstructural features yield enhanced hardness and wear resistance while maintaining good ductility. Research by Cai et al. (2015) demonstrated that Al–Si alloys with 4–5 wt% silicon can achieve thermal conductivities of 145–180 W·m−1·K−1 and tensile strengths approaching 120 MPa. Additionally, the presence of uniformly distributed Si particles helps suppress grain coarsening, improving fatigue performance and thermal expansion stability. Powder-based processing methods such as hot extrusion or sintering further refine the grain size and enhance isotropic strength characteristics.
Applications and Advantages
Al96/Si4 powder is widely used in automotive and aerospace applications, particularly for components such as pistons, housings, and heat exchangers that require high thermal conductivity and low density. Its fine powder form also makes it suitable for additive manufacturing techniques including selective laser melting (SLM) and cold spraying. The alloy’s excellent castability and resistance to thermal fatigue allow it to perform reliably under cyclic thermal loading. Recent studies (Hu et al., 2021) have shown that Al–Si alloys processed through semi-solid casting demonstrate enhanced heat transfer and reduced microsegregation, leading to improved mechanical uniformity. In addition, the alloy’s high recyclability and environmental stability make it an attractive option for sustainable material systems and energy-efficient production technologies.
Goodfellow Availability
Goodfellow offers Aluminium/Silicon alloy (Al96/Si4) powder in high-purity, research-grade quality for advanced manufacturing and material science applications. Powder particle size distributions can be customized to meet specific sintering or additive manufacturing requirements. The material is available for research laboratories, universities, and industrial innovation projects requiring consistent thermal and mechanical properties.
Explore Aluminium/Silicon Al96/Si4 – Powder – Material Information and other advanced materials in Goodfellow’s online catalogue: Goodfellow product finder.
References
- Cai, Z., Zhang, C., Wang, R., Peng, C., Qiu, K., & Feng, Y. (2015). Preparation of Al–Si alloys by a rapid solidification and powder metallurgy route. Materials & Design, 88, 1072–1079. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.matdes.2015.08.106
- Ma, P., Jia, Y., Prashanth, K. G., Yu, Z., Li, C., Zhao, J., Yang, S., & Lixin, H. (2017). Effect of Si content on the microstructure and properties of Al–Si alloys fabricated using hot extrusion. Journal of Materials Research, 32(13), 2525–2533. https://doi.org/10.1557/JMR.2017.97
- Hu, Z., Wang, X., Chen, X., Huan, P. C., Li, W., & Nagaumi, H. (2021). Study on microstructure and thermal conductivity of semi-solid die casting aluminum alloy. E3S Web of Conferences, 268, 01076. https://doi.org/10.1051/e3sconf/202126801076