Effects of rolling and annealing on microstructures and properties of Cu–Mg–Te–Y alloy

Microstructures and element distributions of the as-cast, hot-rolled and cold-rolled Cu–Mg–Te–Y alloys were studied. Effects of rolling process and annealing temperature on the properties of the Cu–Mg–Te–Y alloys were correspondingly investigated. The results indicate that the Mg element is homogeneously distributed in the matrix and the fragmentized Cu2Te phase is dispersed in the matrix after hot rolling. Then, the Cu2Te phase is further stretched to strip shape after the cold rolling process. The microstructures of the cold-rolled alloy keep unchanged for the sample annealed below 390 °C for 1 h. However, after annealing at 550 °C for 1 h, the copper alloy with fibrous microstructures formed during the cold rolling process recrystallizes, leading to an obvious drop of hardening effect and an increase of electrical conductivity. The Cu–Mg–Te–Y alloy with better comprehensive properties is obtained by annealing at 360–390 °C.