Development of the next generation high strength Mg alloys for the automotive industry

几十年来，技术进步一直受到材料科学进步的推动。例如，在20世纪70年代和80年代期间，用较轻的铝部件替代汽车中的铁部件导致了立即的性能和燃料经济性的提高。最近，环境保护局和部门。美国《交通运输法》要求汽车制造商到2025年减少温室气体排放，并将燃油经济性提高50%以上，否则将面临经济处罚。人们普遍认为，这种急剧的改善是可以实现的，无论是通过车辆混合，或通过车辆重量减轻。这两种方法都面临挑战：1）混合动力成本高，增加了车辆的重量，2）现有的轻质合金制造工艺正在接近技术极限，进一步的进步成本高昂。

For decades, technological advancements have been driven by the progress in materials science. For example, the substitution of iron components in automobiles with lighter aluminum components during the 1970’s and 80’s resulted in an immediate performance and fuel economy enhancement. Recently, the Environmental Protection Agency and the Dept. of Transportation in USA mandated automakers to decrease greenhouse gas emissions and improve fuel economy by over 50% by 2025, otherwise face economic penalties. It is generally accepted that such a drastic improvement is achievable either by vehicle hybridization, or by vehicle weight reduction. Both approaches face challenges: 1) Hybridization is costly and adds weight to vehicles, and 2) Existing manufacturing processes for lightweight alloys are approaching technological limits and further advancements are costly.