Accumulative roll bonding (ARB) process was used to develop Mg–6% Zn/Al and Mg–6% Zn/anodized–Al multilayered composites. Microstructural characterization was done using scanning electron microscopy, energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, electron backscattered diffraction, and transmission electron microscopy. An average grain size measured in the roll-bonded layers of Al, anodized Al, and Mg–2% Zn was found to be 1.8 μm, 1.6 μm, and 0.6 μm, respectively. Phases Al17Mg12, AlMg4Zn11, and Al2O3 after 5-pass of ARB were confirmed by X-ray diffraction analysis. The Mg–6% Zn/Al and Mg–6% Zn/anodized Al composites exhibited tensile strengths ∼252 MPa and ∼256 MPa, respectively, after a 5-pass ARB process. Hardness of the individual layers of composite increased linearly with an increase in the number of ARB passes. Fractographs of the multilayered composite illustrated the ductile failure in Al and anodized Al layers and transgranular brittle fracture in Mg–6% Zn layers.

The microstructure evolution and mechanical properties of ultrafine-grained (UFG) Al sheets subjected to accumulative roll bonding (ARB) and subsequent cryorolling was studied. Cryorolling can suppress the dynamic softening of UFG Al sheets subjected to ARB at room temperature. After the third ARB pass, the grains are slightly refined as the number of ARB passes increases. However, the grains are significantly refined further during cryorolling. The grain size of 460 nm achieved after the third ARB pass is reduced to 290 nm after two cryorolling passes with total reduction ratio 80%. Sheets subjected to ARB + cryorolling show improved mechanical properties compared to only ARB-processed sheets due to a change in the fraction of high-angle boundaries and elongated grains. The deformation mechanism for ultrafine grains at room temperature is determined by grain boundary sliding or dislocation-based recovery, while it is governed by dislocation glide at cryogenic temperature.

Al6061 and AZ31 plates were processed using accumulative roll bonding (ARB) method up to two passes to produce laminated composites. The sandwich stacks of Al6061/AZ31/Al6061 were held at 450 °C for 10 min in a cubical furnace and rolled together with reduction of 50% in one pass. The microstructural investigations were done using optical and scanning electron microscopes. The structures of the interface, mechanical and drop impact properties of the laminated composites after the first and second passes were investigated and compared with Al6061 and AZ31 alloy plates. It was found that Al6061 improved the elongation to failure property of AZ31 after the first pass of ARB process and the drop impact properties of AZ31 after the first and second passes. However, elongation to failure magnitude with the uniaxial tensile loading decreased with increase in the number of passes due to the formation of brittle intermetallic between the Al6061/AZ31 nonuniform interfaces.