The reactive wetting of amorphous silica substrates by molten Al-Mg alloys over a wide composition range was studied using a dispensed sessile drop method in a flowing Ar atmosphere. The effects of the nominal Mg concentration and temperature on the wetting and interfacial microstructures were discussed. The initial contact angle for pure Al on the SiO2 surface was 115 degrees while that for pure Mg was 35 degrees at 1073 K. For the Al-Mg alloy drop, it decreased with increasing nominal Mg concentration. The reaction zone was characterized by layered structures, whose formation was primarily controlled by the variation in the alloy concentration due to the evaporation of Mg and the interfacial reaction from the viewpoint of thermodynamics as well as by the penetration or diffusion of Mg, Al and Si from the viewpoint of kinetics. In addition, the effects of the reaction and the evaporation of Mg on the movement of the triple line were examined. The spreading of the Al-Mg alloy on the SiO2 surface was mainly attributed to the formation of Mg2Si at the interface and the recession of the triple line to the diminishing Mg concentration in the alloy. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.