Synthesis and Characterization of Al–Mg–SiO2 Particulate Composite Using Amorphous SiO2 from Rice Husk Ash

Abstract

This paper discusses the effect of the dispersion of amorphous nano size (35–55 nm) SiO2 particles in Al–Mg (5%) alloy. Amorphous SiO2 (>95% SiO2) extracted from rice husk was added to the Al–Mg (5%) alloy in the proportion of 5 wt% of the Al–Mg alloy. The work aims to study the evolution of different phases like MgAl2O4, Mg2Si, and MgO in Al–Mg–SiO2 composite using amorphous nano SiO2. Experimental results of the synthesized composite show presence of MgAl2O4 (Spinel structure) and other phases like MgO and Mg2Si which impart hardness of 126.82 HV10g to the composite. The Al–Mg (5%) SiO2 composite microstructure appeared as a typical lamellar structure. The XRD and energy dispersive spectroscopy analysis display the presence of Mg2Si formed along the grain boundary.