Preparation of Silicon Carbide Reinforced Aluminium Matrix Composites (SiC/Al) by Selective Laser Melting

Abstract

Silicon carbide reinforced aluminium matrix composites (AMCs) attracted a lot of attention owing to their low density, high specific strength and specific stiffness, and good wear resistance. Selective laser melting (SLM) technique has been widely used in the preparation of complex structural product with high precision, short production cycle and low cost. In this paper, silicon carbide (SiC) powders and aluminium (Al) powders were mixed together firstly with a weight ratio of 15:85 and then used to prepare AMCs by SLM technology. The effects of laser power on the microstructures, microhardness and flexural strength of formed AMCs were studied. The results show that the relative density, microhardness and flexural strength of the as-prepared samples can be improved with increasing the laser power. Meanwhile, the samples prepared at higher laser power exhibit lower friction coefficient.