Why Is Aluminum Alloy Not Widely Popularized In The Automobile Industry?

Aluminum alloys are used more and more in automobiles, and the all-aluminum bodies of some models such as Audi, Jaguar, and Land Rover have begun to be industrialized. Compared with the steel material, the density of aluminum is lower, and the use of aluminum alloy to manufacture cars can reduce the weight of the car and reduce fuel consumption. But why is it not widely used? Because aluminum alloy has many shortcomings, it cannot be widely used in the automobile industry.

1.  Compared with ordinary carbon steel, aluminum alloy has a low melting point, strong oxidation, high thermal conductivity, and large linear expansion coefficient. When traditional spot welding is used, defects such as micro-cavities and cracks often appear. Therefore, automobile companies need to make process improvements, equipment improvements or direct replacement of equipment for aluminum alloy welding. At this stage, automobile companies generally use intermediate frequency welding, laser welding, CMT, PR riveting and other welding methods. Obviously, the control of these welding methods is more difficult, and the equipment cost is higher.

2.  Electrolytic aluminum will produce pollutants such as fluoride and sulfur dioxide, which is prone to deformation and serious rebound.This makes it in the raw material production equipment, molding processing, welding assembly, later use of the above have certain difficulties.

3.  Due to the defects of aluminum alloy, the repair cost and technical difficulty after a collision become higher, and many places are only replaced and not repaired.

4.  The melting point of aluminum alloy is relatively low, generally around 600 degrees Celsius. The ignition point of gasoline is 427 degrees Celsius, and the maximum combustion temperature is 1200 degrees Celsius. The ignition point of diesel is 220 degrees Celsius, and the maximum combustion temperature is 1800 degrees Celsius. If the car burns, it is very dangerous and may be melted away.

5. The production process of aluminum alloy parts is complicated. Due to the low hardness of the aluminum alloy surface, it is easy to cause scratches, the modulus of elasticity is small, the punching forming rebound is large, the deep drawing performance is poor, the elongation is small, and cracks are easy to form, making the processing control process more complicated.