The effects of final rolling temperature on the microstructures, texture and mechanical properties of AZ31 Mg alloy sheets prepared by equal channel angular rolling and continuous bending (ECAR-CB) were investigated. Extension twins {10–12} could be observed in the ECAR-CB deformed sheets. The increase in the number of {10–12} extension twins with increasing final rolling temperature might be attributed to the larger grain size and faster grain boundary migration. For all the ECAR-CB sheets at different final rolling temperatures, the deformation texture contains a basal texture component and a prismatic texture component, whereas the annealing recrystallization texture becomes a non-basal (pyramidal) texture with double peaks tilting away from normal direction (ND) to rolling direction (RD). With increasing final rolling temperature, the tilted angle of double peaks of annealing recrystallization non-basal texture increases. In addition, the plasticity and formability of ECAR-CB-A (ECAR-CB and then annealing) AZ31 Mg alloy sheets at room temperature can be improved by increasing the final rolling temperature.

Uniaxial tension and compression of AZ31 magnesium alloy were numerically investigated via the viscoplastic self-consistent (VPSC) model to shed a light on the effect of secondary deformation mechanisms (prismatic slip, pyramidal slip, and $\left\{10\overline{1}1\right\}$ contraction twinning) during plastic deformation. The method adopted in the present study used different combinations of deformation mechanisms in the VPSC modeling. In terms of the pyramidal slip, it served as the first candidate for sustaining the extra plastic strain during the plastic deformation. The improvement of activity in the pyramidal slip contributed to the increase in the mechanical response and the splitting of pole densities in $\left\{0002\right\}$ pole figure during uniaxial tension. As for the prismatic slip, its increasing activity was not only conducive to the improvement of flow stress in mechanical response, but also responsible for the splitting of pole densities in $\left\{0002\right\}$ pole figure during uniaxial compression. With respect to the $\left\{10\overline{1}1\right\}$ contraction twinning, it had a negligible influence on the plastic deformation of AZ31 magnesium alloy in terms of the mechanical response as well as the slip and the twinning activities. However, it is better to include the $\left\{10\overline{1}1\right\}$ contraction twinning in the VPSC modeling to more accurately predict the texture evolution.

Tensile-compression fatigue deformation tests were conducted on AZ31 magnesium alloy at room temperature. Electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) scanning electron microscopy was used to scan the microstructure near the fatigue fracture surface. It was found that lamellar {10-11}-{10-12} secondary twins (STs) appeared inside primary {10-11} contraction twins (CTs), with a morphology similar to the previously discovered {10-12}-{10-12} STs. However, through detailed misorientation calibration, it was determined that this type of secondary twin is {10-11}-{10-12} ST. Through calculation and analysis, it was found that the matrix was under compressive stress in the normal direction (ND) during fatigue deformation, which was beneficial for the activation of primary {10-11} CTs. The local strain accommodation was evaluated based on the geometric compatibility parameter (m’) combined with the Schmid factor (SF) of the slip system, leading us to propose and discuss the possible formation mechanism of this secondary twin. The analysis results indicate that when the local strain caused by basal slip at the twin boundaries cannot be well transmitted, {10-11}-{10-12} STs are activated to coordinate the strain, and different loading directions lead to different formation mechanisms. Moreover, from the microstructure characterization near the entire fracture surface, we surmise that the presence of such secondary twins is not common.