Investigations on Characterization and Properties of Al-MoO3 Composites Synthesized Using Powder Metallurgy Technique

Abstract

In this work, Powder Metallurgy (PM) technique was used to synthesize Aluminium based metal matrix composites with various weight percentages (0, 5, 10 & 15) of Molybdenum trioxide (MoO3) as reinforcement. The green cylindrical compacts were produced using a hydraulic press, sintered at 600 ∘C for a period of 3 hours, furnace cooled and machined to obtain samples with aspect ratio of 0.5. Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) analysis was conducted to study the morphology of the sintered composites. X-Ray Diffraction (XRD) analysis was used to study the presence of MoO3 in Aluminium matrix. The cold upset tests were carried out in steps of 10 KN to study the strain hardening index and strength coefficient of the composites. The effect of MoO3 addition on the density, hardness, thermal conductivity and strength coefficient were analyzed and the results show that the increase in weight percentage of MoO3 content in the Al matrix increases the strength coefficient and hardness of the composite and decreases the strain hardening index and thermal conductivity.