Effect of (SiC+Gr) Addition on the Corrosion Behavior of Powder Metallurgy Copper MMC

Abstract

Copper metal matrix composites are seeing tremendous growth due to their properties, which are suitable for a wide range of applications. The potential for combining reinforcements uniformly in the matrix via powder metallurgy is stimulating new research. In the present study, copper powder is used as the matrix and SiC and graphite are used as reinforcements for the fabrication of a hybrid metal matrix composite using the powder metallurgy route. Silicon Carbide (SiC) and graphite are used as reinforcements in copper Metal Matrix Composite (MMC). SiC is a ceramic material that increases the hardness of the composite by adding it as reinforcement, and graphite is a material that helps increase corrosion resistance when used as reinforcement. In each sample, SiC and graphite mixture reinforcement is in equal proportion, varying this composition from 0 to 10% of the weight percentage. These samples are investigated for Vickers hardness, densities, and electrochemical corrosion properties after being prepared by powder metallurgy with dimensions of 16 mm x 16 mm x 25 mm. The sample with 8% reinforcement showed good corrosion resistance and poor corrosion resistance for the 4% reinforcement sample. These composition samples were subjected to X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) characterizations, which showed good correlation for the hardness and corrosion test values.