Work-hardening, annealing characteristic, tensile properties and corrosion resistance of Mg-Li binary alloys, containing 8, 12 and 20 wt% lithium, were investigated. The 8Li alloy, which has (α+β) eutectic structure, shows relatively high initial strength and high ability to work-hardening, while β single phase alloys of 12Li and 20Li have lower strength and limited ability to work-hardening. However, plastic formability of these β phase alloys is extremely superior to the alloy containing α phase. Hardened states of these alloys are stable at room temperature, but at elevated temperatures recovery and recrystallization occur quickly. The density of alloy decreases with increasing the lithium content and that of 20Li is only 1.19g/cm
3. The corrosion resistance of 8Li in 100% humidity is similar to other commercial magnesium alloys, but these of 12Li and 20Li are considerably inferior. The resistances in dry air are fairly good.
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