Effect of tin addition on the melting temperatures and mechanical properties of Al-Si-Cu brazing filler metals

For the development of a low-melting point filler metal for brazing aluminum alloy, we analyzed change of melting point and wettability with addition of Sn into Al-20Cu-10Si filler metal. DSC results showed that the addition of 5 wt% Sn into the Al-20Cu-10Si filler metal caused its liquidus temperature to decrease by about 30 °C. In the wettability test, spread area of melted Al-Cu-Si-Sn alloy is increased through the addition of Sn from 1 to 5 wt%. For the measuring of the mechanical properties of the joint region, Al 3003 plate is brazed by Al-20Cu-10Si-5Sn filler metal and the mechanical property is measured by tensile test. The results showed that the tensile strength of the joint region is higher than the tensile strength of Al 3003. Thus, failure occurred in the Al 3003 plate.