Aluminium‐silicon alloy and its composites reinforces by silicon carbide particles

Abstract

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to investigate the effect of SiC addition up to 60 percent SiC on the mechanical properties and thermal expansion of Al‐7vol.% Si/SiC composites.Design/methodology/approachComposite specimens containing 7, 15, 30, 45 and 60 vol.% SiCp are fabricated by pressureless infiltration technique. The obtained metal‐matrix composites (MMCs) then are characterized for density, porosity, microhardness, ductility, and coefficients of thermal expansion (CTE).FindingsThe results show that the composite specimens have very low‐porosity volumes. Moreover, it is found that silicon carbide particles are distributed uniformly in the matrix. Both porosity and mean linear CTE of the composites decreases with silicon carbide volume fraction. However, higher amount of SiCp reinforcement content tends to increase density, microhardness and improve ductility.Originality/valueThe processing employed in this paper would enable realization of electronic packages made out of Al‐Si/SiCp MMCs.