The Synthesis of Aluminum Matrix Composites Reinforced with Fe-Al Intermetallic Compounds by Ball Milling and Consolidation

Roberto Ademar Rodríguez Díaz,Jesús Porcayo Calderón,José Luis Reyes Barragán,Arturo Molina Ocampo,Víctor Ravelero Vázquez,Carlos Alberto González Rodríguez,Héctor Cruz Mejía,Sergio Rubén Gonzaga Segura,Jesús Israel Barraza Fierro

doi:10.3390/app11198877

Abstract

In this study, a nano-composite material of a nanostructured Al-based matrix reinforced with Fe40Al intermetallic particles was produced by ball milling. During the non-equilibria processing, the powder mixtures with the compositions of Al-XFe40Al (X = 5, 10, and 15 vol. %) were mechanically milled under a low energy regime. The processed Al-XFe40Al powder mixtures were subjected to uniaxial pressing at room temperature. Afterward, the specimens were subjected to a sintering process under an inert atmosphere. In this thermal treatment, the specimens were annealed at 500 °C for 2 h. The sintering process was performed under an argon atmosphere. The crystallite size of the Al decreased as the milling time advanced. This behavior was observed in the three specimens. During the ball milling stage, the powder mixtures composed of Al-XFe40Al did not experience a mechanochemical reaction that could lead to the generation of secondary phases. The crystallite size of the Al displayed a predominant tendency to decrease during the ball milling process. The microstructure of the consolidated specimens indicated a uniform dispersion of the intermetallic reinforcement phases in the Al matrix. Moreover, according to the Vickers microhardness tests, the hardness varied linearly with the increase in the concentration of the Fe40Al intermetallic phase present in the composite material. The presented graphs indicate that the hardness increased almost linearly with the increasing dislocation density and with the reduction in grain sizes (both occurring during the non-equilibria processing). The microstructural and mechanical properties reported in this paper provide the aluminum matrix composite materials with the ideal conditions to be considered candidates for applications in the automotive and aeronautical industries.

Highlights

Al-based alloys are widely used as parts and components in the automotive and aerospace industry sectors due to their high ductility, specific strength, formability, and stiffness [1]
It is well known that Al composites provide better wear resistance and improved bulk mechanical properties [2]
The mechanical behavior of the metal matrix composites (MMCs) is greatly influenced by the properties of the matrix and reinforcement, volume fraction, their distribution, and size of reinforcement, as well as the interfacial strength between the matrix and reinforcement [1]

Summary

Introduction

Al-based alloys are widely used as parts and components in the automotive and aerospace industry sectors due to their high ductility, specific strength, formability, and stiffness [1]. The mechanical resistance of MMCs is significantly influenced by the interfacial strength between the matrix and reinforcement, which depends on the wettability between the metal and reinforcing particles In this sense, it has been reported that intermetallics can be wetted by molten metal without difficulty. The purpose of this investigation was to take into account the advantages provided by the powder metallurgy route and the excellent properties that intermetallic compounds possess, in order to fabricate Al matrix composites reinforced with intermetallics of the Fe-Al system Another goal was to analyze and study the influence of the processing parameters on the microstructure and hardness of the composites in order to achieve desired properties for automotive or aeronautic applications

Materials and Methods

Microstructural Analysis by X-ray Diffraction

Findings

Microstructural Characterization by Microscopy of Consolidated Specimens