Magnesium alloys possess a combination of low density and rather high mechanical strength characteristics which ensures that they are mainly used as light structural materials. Main applications of magnesium alloys, based on their high mechanical strength, are in aircraft, where the possibility to reduce weight is particularly important. At the same time, there have recently been growing interest in magnesium alloys from producers of ground-based means of transport, especially from the automotive industry. The reduction of automobile's weight is also becoming very important, due to the necessity to reduce fuel consumption and improve dynamic characteristics.The effectiveness of magnesium alloys in structures is tied, to a large degree, to their maximum possible strength characteristics. This determines the desire of researchers specializing in magnesium alloys to achieve the maximum possible guaranteed strength without degradation of other characteristics, such as ductility, resistance to corrosion, workability, etc. One possibility to increase mechanical strength of magnesium alloys, which has become evident in recent years, is to alloy them with various rare-earth metals (using the latter as alloying additions).
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