Microstructure, mechanical & wear properties of Aluminium7075-Al2O3-SiC composites

Abstract

Composite materials have received a huge deal of attention from industry manufacturers and researchers owing to their advancement in mechanical and wear properties for a very long time.The vast majority of composites and MMCs research has been converted into realistic engineering materials.In the existing study, the mechanical performance of aluminum oxide (Al2O3) and silicon carbide (SiC) particulates reinforced Aluminium7075 (AA7075) matrix composites was assessed experimentally. These final composites are produced through liquid metallurgy (stir casting) process as AA7075 as base material with different mass fractionsof 5% of Al2O3, 5% of SiC, and 5% of Al2O3 + 5% of SiC. As per ASTM standards, these composites were prepared into specimens. Later the mechanical properties were experimentally investigated that reproduce as nearly as possible the examined conditions. The result showed that 5 wt% of SiC has a greater influence on properties like hardness and tensile strength and its contribution is 27.08% and 16% respectively. The microstructure of the composite specimens and sharing of reinforcement particles were studied by optical microscopy. AA7075 in the presence of 10 wt% (5 wt% SiC and 5 wt% Al2O3) was the hardest one in contrast to other composites. Further, wear tests were conducted at a standard load of 20 N and 30 N with velocity of 1.88 m/s and a travelling distance of 1 km. An increase in wear resistance was observed with the adding of the weight percentage of reinforcement particles. Furthermore, the steadily reinforced Al2O3 and SiC particles favored the enhancement of mechanical and wear properties.