Experimental and finite element analysis of wear rate of Al7075 reinforced with B4C

Abstract

The order of today’s auto, aero and many industrial sector components are composites. Enormous research towards these metal matrices has paved way to various routes for addressing the required properties aspired in terms of wear, mechanical and other properties of these unique composites. Researchers have explored the base metals of Al7xxx series and variety of reinforcements with different percentages as on date available as secondary data. This paper addresses a section of research work carried out on one of the distinctive combinations of Al7075 with B4C in nano form applied to aircraft hinges, rotary blades in terms of tribological properties. One of the primary requirements of any new composite is the wear behavior of the alloy which need to be analyzed. The experimentation is based on the design of experiment (DOE) and the percentage addition of B4C is between 3 and 12 wt%. Application of ANSYS and comparison with the experimental data has yielded positive results for the combination of the said alloys. The castings were made as per ASTM standards applying stir casting process. The FEA ANSYS R18.1 is used for wear simulation for contact analysis on disk and pin. The test results are validated by comparing with simulation values. This FE analysis states that the wear coefficient and sliding distance and their product does not affect the estimation of wear but influences the depth of the wear.