Effects of foam structure on the wear behavior of co-continuous SiC3D/Al composite materials

Abstract

Co-continuous composites show improved mechanical properties, thermal performance, and wear resistance owing to their special structural features, and thus they are considered potential wear-resistant materials. In this study, co-continuous SiC3D/Al composites were prepared via pressureless infiltration, and the effects of the foam structure on the friction and wear properties of the composites were investigated. The results revealed that the composites consisted of three phases: a matrix phase, a transition phase, and a strengthening phase. In addition, the transition phase resulted in a strong combination between the Al alloy matrix phase and the SiC strengthening phase. The SiC foam structure in the co-continuous SiC3D/Al composites exhibited an obvious influence on the wear behavior of the composites. The hardness of the composites, the inter-skeleton distance, and the skeleton distribution of the foam structure affected the dispersion and transmission of the load and friction heat during the wear process, which was closely related to the tribological behavior of the composites. Finally, the co-continuous SiC3D/Al composites with 20 pores per inch, which had proper hardness, shorter inter-skeleton distances and a more homogenous skeleton distribution, showed the best wear resistance (the volume wear rate was about 1.0 × 10−6 cm3·m−1·N−1) in this work.