Investigation of mechanical properties and the effects of deep cold rolling on surface alterations of Al-1.5 vol% SiCnps nanocomposite fabricated by P/M

Abstract

In this study, the surface roughness and hardness of Al-1.5 vol% SiC nano-particles (SiCnps) are investigated considering the effects of some important deep cold rolling (DCR) parameters such as rotational speed, feed rate, penetration depth and number of passes. Also, the effect of adding SiCnps on density, tensile properties, micro-hardness, and micro-structural behavior of specimens are investigated. Mechanical milling, cold pressing, and hot extrusion are used to fabricate the samples. The results show that mechanical milling decreases the size of Al matrix grains to less than 100 nm, and adding SiCnps increases tensile strength and micro-hardness, but decreases relative density and elongation. The results of DCR indicate that the surface hardness was increased and the surface roughness was decreased by reducing the feed rate and increasing the number of passes. Penetration depth also is an effective parameter that has a direct relation with hardness and different results with surface roughness.