A number of years ago I tired doing this for a different alloy from the aluminums. It was a bronze alloy from about 2000 years ago. In my case the question was being asked of authenticity.
Both Peter Northover and Nihad Ben Salah have given you quite good answers. I used to work with a chemist that did the analysis for ferrous based alloys and he had a data base of all the trace elements from numerous sources and could pin-point where a particular ferrous alloy was produced, pretty much world wide. But that was due to having decades of data from known sources. Additionally, it only included modern sources. You are looking at aluminums, so those are not particularly old, but you would indeed need an extensive database that would take quite some time to build. The other problem with this alloy system, is that given the way the ores are shipped from mine to mill, you might not have such good luck in todays commercial environment.
Good luck to you and for sure let us know how you get on.
dj
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David Jones
Senior Principal Materials Engineer
Stryker Orthopeadics
Mahwah NJ
(914) 469-2958
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Original Message:
Sent: 03-05-2021 09:53
From: David Sapiro
Subject: Metal country of origin
Nihad,
I was thinking the same thing, and I am willing to tell my customer that it cannot be done. Thanks for your input!
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David Sapiro
Engineer
King George VA
dosapiro@gmail.com
Original Message:
Sent: 03-04-2021 18:11
From: Nihad Ben Salah
Subject: Metal country of origin
Hi David,These alloys are elaborated in order to have a chemistry that is conforming to industry standards. The designations (6XXX or 7XXXX) are linked to this.
Only trace elements could retrace to the ore but only if we have informations on the specifics of all ores in the world. I am not even sure if this information is available.
If you are looking for the alloy temper condition (T6, T73, etc...), hardness and electrical conductivity are indications. Microstructure could help but since the difference is in tiny phases, you need SEM and in some instance even TEM.
Macros could give you info on the thermo-mechanical processing (drawing, stretching, ...), and is achievable by optical microscopy.
Hope this help.
Best,
Nihad
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Nihad Ben Salah
President
NBS- M&P Consulting
Canada
https://www.nbsmpconsult.com/en/home
Original Message:
Sent: 03-04-2021 15:45
From: David Sapiro
Subject: Metal country of origin
I have some aluminum samples (various alloys e.g. 6061, 7075, etc.) and I am trying to determine the country of origin. Are there any ways to trace aluminum to specific ore deposits or identify it based on manufacturing processes?
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David Sapiro
Engineer
King George VA
dosapiro@gmail.com
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