Enhancing mechanical properties of aluminium 6063 with crab shell particle reinforcement

Abstract

The versatility and beneficial properties of aluminium 6063 make it an excellent material for various applications, but limited in engineering production where strength is a major material selection factor. The utilization of natural resources in material science has gained prominence due to the quest for sustainable and innovative materials. This work explores the development and characterization of an aluminium matrix composite reinforced with crab shell particles (CSPs). The CSPs are produced via the milling process for 72 h and the CSPs are incorporated in varying percentages (0–20 wt%) into the aluminium matrix using a stir casting technique, the mechanical properties (tensile strength, compressive strength, % elongation, and impact energy) of the composites are determined using an Instron universal testing machine (UTM) and a Charpy impact testing machine, respectively. A scanning electron microscope (SEM) is used to examine the microstructure of the composite fracture surfaces and Gywddion 2.65 software is used to view the SEM images of the fracture surfaces in three dimensions (3D). The results revealed that tensile strength, compressive strength, % elongation, and impact energy are enhanced by adding varying percentages of CSPs on the aluminium 6063 composites.