ALUMINUM ALLOY WIRE

• US 20110140517A1
• Filed: 06/11/2009
• Published: 06/16/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 08/11/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Autonetworks Technologies, Ltd. (Sumitomo Corporation), Sumitomo Electric Industries Limited (Sumitomo Corporation), Sumitomo Electric Toyama Co., Ltd. (Sumitomo Corporation), Sumitomo Wiring Systems Limited (Sumitomo Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Autonetworks Technologies, Ltd. (Sumitomo Corporation), Sumitomo Electric Industries Limited (Sumitomo Corporation), Sumitomo Electric Toyama Co., Ltd. (Sumitomo Corporation), Sumitomo Wiring Systems Limited (Sumitomo Corporation)
• Inventors: Nakai, Yoshihiro, Nishikawa, Taichirou, Kusakari, Misato, Ootsuka, Yasuyuki, Takaki, Yoshiyuki
• Granted Patent: US 8,353,993 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 307/9.1
• CPC Class Codes: B21C 1/00 Manufacture of metal sheets, metal wire, metal rods, metal tubes by drawing
• CPC Class Codes: C22C 21/00 Alloys based on aluminium
• CPC Class Codes: C22F 1/00 Changing the physical structure of non-ferrous metals or alloys by heat treatment or by hot or cold working apparatus for mechanical working of metal B21, B23, B24
• CPC Class Codes: C22F 1/02 in inert or controlled atmosphere or vacuum adjusting the composition of the atmosphere C21D1/76
• CPC Class Codes: C22F 1/04 of aluminium or alloys based thereon
• CPC Class Codes: H01B 1/023 Alloys based on aluminium
• CPC Class Codes: H01B 7/02 Disposition of insulation

Abstract

An aluminum alloy, an aluminum alloy wire, an aluminum alloy stranded wire, a covered electric wire, and a wire harness that are of high toughness and high electrical conductivity, and a method of manufacturing an aluminum alloy wire are provided. The aluminum alloy wire contains not less than 0.005% and not more than 2.2% by mass of Fe, and a remainder including Al and an impurity. It may further contain not less than 0.005% and not more than 1.0% by mass in total of at least one additive element selected from Mg, Si, Cu, Zn, Ni, Mn, Ag, Cr, and Zr. The Al alloy wire has an electrical conductivity of not less than 58% IACS and an elongation of not less than 10%. The Al alloy wire is manufactured through the successive steps of casting, rolling, wiredrawing, and softening treatment. The softening treatment can be performed to provide an excellent toughness such as elongation and impact resistance and thereby reduce fracture of the electric wire in the vicinity of a terminal portion when the wire harness is installed.

Claims

1. An aluminum alloy wire used as a conductor, said aluminum alloy wire comprising not less than 0.005% and not more than 2.2% by mass of Fe and a remainder including Al and an impurity,

said aluminum alloy wire having an electrical conductivity of not less than 58% IACS, and

said aluminum alloy wire having an elongation of not less than 10%.

2. The aluminum alloy wire according to claim 1, further comprising not less than 0.005% and not more than 1.0% by mass in total of at least one additive element selected from the group consisting of Mg, Si, Cu, Zn, Ni, Mn, Ag, Cr, and Zr.

3. The aluminum alloy wire according to claim 2, wherein said aluminum alloy wire has any one of compositions (1) to (4):

(1) a composition comprising not less than 0.90% and not more than 1.20% by mass of Fe, not less than 0.10% and not more than 0.25% by mass of Mg, and a remainder including Al and an impurity;

(2) a composition comprising not less than 1.01% and not more than 2.2% by mass of Fe, not less than 0.05% and not more than 0.5% by mass of Mg, not less than 0.005% and not more than 0.2% by mass in total of at least one element selected from the group consisting of Mn, Ni, Zr, Zn, Cr, and Ag, and a remainder including Al and an impurity;

(3) a composition comprising not less than 1.01% and not more than 2.2% by mass of Fe, not less than 0.05% and not more than 0.5% by mass of Cu, and a remainder including Al and an impurity; and

(4) a composition comprising not less than 1.01% and not more than 2.2% by mass of Fe, not less than 0.05% and not more than 0.5% by mass of Cu, at least one of not less than 0.1% and not more than 0.5% by mass of Mg and not less than 0.05% and not more than 0.3% by mass of Si, and a remainder including Al and an impurity.

4. The aluminum alloy wire according to claim 1, further comprising at least one of Ti and B, wherein

a content by mass ratio of Ti is not less than 100 ppm and not more than 500 ppm, and a content by mass ratio of B is not less than 10 ppm and not more than 50 ppm.

5. The aluminum alloy wire according to claim 1, wherein

in an observation field of 2400 nm×

2600 nm taken from a cross section of said aluminum alloy wire, the number of precipitates present in the observation field and having a circle-equivalent diameter of not more than 100 nm is not more than 10.

6. The aluminum alloy wire according to claim 1, wherein

in an observation field of 2400 nm×

2600 nm taken from a cross section of said aluminum alloy wire, the number of precipitates present in the observation field and having a circle-equivalent diameter of not more than 100 nm is more than 10.

7. The aluminum alloy wire according to claim 1. wherein

said aluminum alloy wire has a 0.2% proof stress of not less than 40 MPa.

8. The aluminum alloy wire according to claim 1, wherein

said aluminum alloy wire has a tensile strength of not less than 110 MPa and not more than 200 MPa.

9. The aluminum alloy wire according to claim 1, wherein

said aluminum alloy wire has a wire diameter of not less than 0.2 mm and not more than 1.5 mm.

10. An aluminum alloy stranded wire formed by stranding together a plurality of aluminum alloy wires as recited in claim 1.

11. A covered electric wire comprising as a conductor one of an aluminum alloy wire as recited in claim 1, an aluminum alloy stranded wire formed by stranding together a plurality of said aluminum alloy wires, and a compressed wire formed by compressing said stranded wire, and comprising an insulating cover layer on an outer periphery of the conductor.

12. A wire harness comprising a covered electric wire as recited in claim 11 and a terminal portion attached to an end of the electric wire.

13. The wire harness according to claim 12, wherein said wire harness is used for a motor vehicle.

14. A method of manufacturing an aluminum alloy wire used as a conductor, comprising the steps of:

forming a cast material by casting a molten aluminum alloy containing not less than 0.005% and not more than 2.2% by mass of Fe and a remainder including Al;

forming a rolled material by performing rolling on said cast material;

forming a wiredrawn material by performing wiredrawing on said rolled material; and

forming a softened material by performing softening treatment on said wiredrawn material,

said softening treatment being performed on said wiredrawn material so that the wiredrawn material having undergone the softening treatment has an elongation of not less than 10%.

15. The method of manufacturing an aluminum alloy wire according to claim 14, wherein

said molten aluminum alloy further contains not less than 0.005% and not more than 1.0% by mass in total of at least one additive element selected from the group consisting of Mg Si, Cu, Zn, Ni, Mn, Ag, Cr, and Zr.

16. The method of manufacturing an aluminum alloy wire according to claim 14, wherein

said softening treatment is continuous softening treatment by means of energization or continuous softening treatment by high-frequency induction heating and is performed in an air atmosphere or a non-oxidizing atmosphere.

17. The method of manufacturing an aluminum alloy wire according to claim 16, wherein

in said continuous softening treatment, a rate of temperature decrease after heating is not less than 50°

C./sec.

18. The method of manufacturing an aluminum alloy wire according to claim 14, wherein

said softening treatment is a batch treatment using an atmosphere furnace and is performed in a non-oxidizing atmosphere and at an atmosphere temperature of not less than 250°

C.

19. The method of manufacturing an aluminum alloy wire according to claim 18, wherein

in said batch softening treatment, a rate of temperature decrease after heating is not more than 50°

C./sec.

20. The method of manufacturing an aluminum alloy wire according to claim 14, wherein

said steps of casting and rolling are performed continuously to form a continuously cast and rolled material.

21. The method of manufacturing an aluminum alloy wire according to claim 14, wherein

said casting is performed at a cooling rate of not less than 1°

C./sec, and the cast material obtained after the casting has a DAS of not more than 50 μ

m.

22. The method of manufacturing an aluminum alloy wire according to claim 14, comprising the steps of:

forming a stranded wire by stranding together a plurality of said wiredrawn materials or softened materials; and

forming a compressed wire of a predetermined wire diameter by compressing said stranded wire, wherein

said softening treatment is performed on said compressed wire.

23. An aluminum alloy comprising not less than 0.005% and not more than 2.2% by mass of Fe and a remainder including Al and an impurity,

said aluminum alloy having an electrical conductivity of not less than 58% IACS, and

said aluminum alloy having an elongation of not less than 10%.