A Comprehensive Review of Magnesium Alloy AZ61: Microstructure, Processing, Properties, and the Emergence of AI/ML-Assisted Optimization

1.      AZ61 is a balanced wrought Mg-Al-Zn alloy whose properties are dictated by the alpha-Mg matrix and the ß-Mg17Al12 intermetallic; controlling beta amount, morphology, and distribution is the central design problem. 2.      SPD (ECAP, FSP) and extrusion refine grains and modify texture, raising YS from ~95 MPa (as-cast) toward ~245 MPa with elongation beyond 20% in optimized ECAP states. 3.      Corrosion is the principal limitation, driven by micro-galvanic alpha/beta coupling and impurities; PEO/MAO and polymer coatings reduce corrosion rate by roughly an order of magnitude. 4.      AI/ML and optimization methods (ANN, RF, SVR, GA, Taguchi) now reliably predict flow stress, recrystallization, mechanical properties, and corrosion, accelerating optimization despite data and interpretability bottlenecks. 5.      Future work should prioritize physics-informed, explainable ML on standardized open datasets, controlled-degradation biomedical designs, durable self-healing coatings, and thermally stable microstructures.

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