Manufacturing Technology 2026, 26(3):334-345 | DOI: 10.21062/mft.2026.031

Effect of Solution Heat Treatment Parameters on the Mechanical Properties of Re-aged EN AW-7022 Alloy

Mariana Kuffová ORCID...1, Michal Krbata ORCID...2, Marcel Kohutiar ORCID...2, Pavol Mikuı ORCID...2, Alena Breznická ORCID...2
1 Armed Forces Academy of General Milan Rastislav İtefánik, Demänová 393, 031 01 Liptovskŭ Mikuláı, Slovakia
2 Faculty of Special Technology, Alexander Dubcek University of Trenèín, Ku Kyselke 469, 911 06 Trenèín, Slovakia

The presented article deals with the influence of different solution annealing temperatures and times on the mechanical properties and microstructural changes of the EN AW-7022 aluminum alloy after two-stage re-aging. After the initial soft annealing, the samples were subjected to solution annealing at temperatures of 475 °C/20min, 500 °C/20min, 525 °C/30min and 575 °C/30min, followed by two-stage artificial aging at 120 °C/4h and 175 °C/6h. The mechanical properties were evaluated by static tensile testing and Vickers hardness measurements. The highest strength characteristics were recorded at 525 °C/30min. Metallographic and EDS analysis confirmed the uniform distribution of strengthening precipitates of the Al2CuMg and Mg(Zn,Cu,Al)2 type at higher temperatures, while fractographic analysis indicated the ductile nature of the failure. The results showed that despite the absence of plastic deformation, a favorable combination of strength, hardness and ductility was achieved by re-heat treatment, which is advantageous for applications where shape deformation and residual stresses are undesirable, such as in armaments and aerospace.

Keywords: Aluminium alloy, Heat treatment, Mechanical properties, Microstructure, Temperature
Grants and funding:

This work was supported by the Slovak Research and Development Agency under the Contract no. VV-MVP-24-0143

Received: July 2, 2025; Revised: May 7, 2026; Accepted: May 11, 2026; Prepublished online: May 27, 2026; Published: June 29, 2026  Show citation

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Kuffová M, Krbata M, Kohutiar M, Mikuı P, Breznická A. Effect of Solution Heat Treatment Parameters on the Mechanical Properties of Re-aged EN AW-7022 Alloy. Manufacturing Technology. 2026;26(3):334-345. doi: 10.21062/mft.2026.031.
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