Abstract
Stir casting and heat treatment was applied to manufacture wear-resistant aluminum 356 matrix composites with niobium pentoxide particle reinforcement. Regular scattering of matrix phase and uniform distribution of particles were achieved through stirring fully liquid aluminum melt and Nb2O5 mixture. A normal solidification rate and T6 heat treatment guarantied the fine microstructure, low porosity content, minimum particle-free zones, very small primary/secondary dendritic arm spacings, and needle-like Si2Fe2Al9 phase. Composite formation increased the macro/microhardness from 27 to 66.5 and 33 to 88.7 kgf/mm2 for macro- and microhardness, respectively. It also decreased the wear mass loss considerably and improved the fatigue limit and the forming capabilities due to the moderate tensile/bending strength and ductility.
Published Version
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