Aluminum Matrix Research Articles

FEA of Bajaj Discover 100 cc Connecting Rod for Aluminum Material

The connecting rod is a vital component of internal combustion engines, responsible for converting the piston's linear motion into rotational motion. Its design involves careful consideration of material selection, geometry, and load distribution to ensure it can withstand the dynamic forces and stresses encountered during engine operation. Finite element analysis plays a crucial role in evaluating the structural performance of the connecting rod, allowing engineers to optimize its design for maximum efficiency and reliability. By understanding the complexities of connecting rod design and the forces acting upon it, engineers can develop robust and high-performing engines that meet the demands of modern automotive applications. The paper describes a case study that was crucial to the engine development program's evaluation of the connecting rod's strength and fatigue analysis for Bajaj Discover 100 cc engine. The basic model was prepared using appropriate modeling software and then it was analyzed in Ansys for strength and fatigue analysis. The compressive and tensile loading was applied on the both ends of the connecting rod and the results were found. The location of the maximum stress was found.

Development of optimum performance model during spark-eroded processing of rheocasted Al6061/Cenosphere MMCs

ABSTRACT In the present study, an improved wettability casting route was used to prepare lightweight structural materials. Using the compo casting process, an Al6061 alloy was created with cenosphere particles at various weight percentages (2, 4, 6, and 8 wt%). The molten aluminium slurry incorporated hollow alumina silicate particulates. X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis of the aluminium matrix composites (AMCs) confirmed the presence of cenospheres without any intermetallic components. Further processing of the metal matrix composites (MMCs) was conducted using electric discharge machining (EDM) with a circular copper electrode. The EDM process parameters were controlled to measure response variables such as material removal rate (MRR), tool wear rate (TWR), and surface roughness (SR). The effects of different combinations of machining parameters – including pulse current, pulse-on time, reinforcement percentage, and flushing pressure – on these performance characteristics were observed. Experimental trials were designed using the face-centred central composite design (CCD) of the response surface methodology (RSM). Optimal process variable conditions led to significant improvements in surface finish. Additionally, an artificial neural network (ANN) model was used to determine the best conditions for EDM processing. The ANN model demonstrated a strong correlation coefficient of 0.99 between the predicted and experimental values of MRR, TWR, and SR.

Microstructural and tribological properties of cold sprayed high content SiCp/Al coating by SiCp mild-oxidation treatment

This paper presents the results of the influence of irregular SiC particles, treated by mild-oxidation at 1100 °C, on deposition behavior (deposit rate, surface finish roughness), and deposition body (microstructure, friction, and wear). Coatings are obtained using the cold-sprayed method, employing a powder mixture comprising 36 vol% irregular SiC powder treated by mild-oxidation and 64 vol% aluminum powder as feedstock. Results show that the silicon carbide particles are treated by mild-oxidation, the external surface of silicon carbide particles is predominantly composed of soft ceramic silica, and the particle edges are passivated. The results indicate that, under identical cold-sprayed process conditions, both the deposition amount of the coating and the retention amount of SiC particles increased. The particle fragmentation and particle distribution of SiC are obviously improved. The coating did not exhibit any harmful phases. Local weak metallurgical bonding is found at the interface of SiCp and Al matrix. Furthermore, the coating's porosity decreased, after SiCp mild-oxidation, the friction coefficient (0.5716) is decreased by 12.9 %, and the wear amount (0.159 mm3/N·m) is decreased by 64.7 %. A dense and uniformly distributed aluminum matrix composite coating with a high SiC particles content is achieved.

Critical review of metal-ceramic composites fabricated through additive manufacturing for extreme condition applications

Metal-Ceramic composites are a special class of materials, including elements as matrix and reinforcements. These composites, especially metal matrix composites, are of great significance in several high-end engineering applications due to their tunable conductivity, strength, and toughness. This review paper summarizes studies carried out to fabricate metal-ceramic composites by additive manufacturing. Various metal matrix composites such as titanium matrix composites, cobalt matrix composites, iron matrix composites, nickel matrix composites, and aluminum matrix composites are elaborated in detail. The paper provides an in-depth analysis of applications, trends, opportunities, and outlook for additive manufacturing of Metal-Ceramic composites.

Impact damage resistance and tolerance of alumina-based oxide/oxide ceramic matrix composite upon one sided thermal shock and hold

In this study, ceramic matrix composite specimens constituting Nextel™720 fibers and alumina matrix were subjected to one-sided thermal shock and subsequent 30-min hold at temperatures of 1200℃, 1350℃ and 1500℃. The plates were then subjected to low velocity impact at 5 J impact energy, followed by edgewise compression with digital image correlation. No noticeable change in mass, roughness and specimen dimensions were observed after the thermal shock and hold event at any of the temperatures for any of the specimens. External and internal damage resulting from the impact event also showed no dependence on the thermal shock temperature. The percentage compressive strength retention after low velocity impact ranged from 61 % to 68 % for all cases considered, again with no trends observed based on shock temperature. However, the compressive modulus for the impacted panels that were exposed to high temperature were higher than the pristine (non-thermal shocked) impacted panels.

Effect of AlN on the Mechanical and Electrochemical Properties of Aluminum Metal Matrix Composites.

In the present investigation, aluminum metal matrix composites (AMMs) reinforced with aluminum nitride (AlN) nanoparticulates at different volumetric ratios of (0, 0.5, 1, 1.5, and 2 vol.%) were manufactured via a microwave-assisted powder metallurgy technique. The morphological, physical, mechanical, and electrochemical properties of the produced billets were examined to reflect the impact of the successive addition of AlN into the aluminum (Al) matrix. The morphological analysis revealed the high crystalline patterns of the formation of the Al-AlN composites. The microstructural analysis confirmed the presence of the elemental constituents of Al and AlN particles in the fabricated composites, showing an enhanced degree of agglomeration in conjunction with the additional amount of AlN. Positive behavior exhibited by the micro- and nanohardness was noticeable in the Al-AlN composites, especially at the ultimate concentration of AlN in the Al matrix of a 2 vol.%, where it reached 669.4 ± 28.1 MPa and 659.1 ± 11 MPa compared to the pure Al metal at 441.2 ± 20 MPa and 437.5 ± 11 MPa, respectively. A declining trend in the compressive strength was recorded in the reinforced Al samples. The corrosion resistance of the AlN-reinforced Al metal matrix was estimated at 3.5 wt.% NaCl using electrochemical impedance spectroscopy and potentiodynamic polarization. The results reveal that the inclusion of 2.0 vol.%AlN led to the lowest corrosion rate.

Microstructure and performance of carbon fiber reinforced aluminum matrix composites with molybdenum carbide coating on carbon fibers

In this work, a molybdenum carbide coating on the surface of short carbon fibers prepared using molten salt method was proposed to ameliorate the interfacial bonding and improve the performance of carbon fiber/Al composites. The carbon fiber/Al composites were produced using vacuum hot pressing. The characteristics of molybdenum carbide coating were analyzed. Besides, the microstructures, bending strength and thermal properties of the carbon fiber/Al composites were explored. Furthermore, the interfacial thermal resistance of the composites was investigated in relation to theoretical evaluations derived from the combined Maxwell-Garnett effective medium approach and acoustic mismatch model schemes. The results indicated that a homogeneous Mo2C coating with a thickness of 0.5 μm was obtained by proper molar ratio of carbon fibers, MoO3 and chloride salts mixture and heated at 1000 °C for 60 min. The Mo2C coating greatly enhanced the bond between the aluminum matrix and carbon fiber, leading to improvements in the densification behavior and bending strength of the coated composites. The enhanced thermal properties including improved thermal conductivity and reduced coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) were also achieved by the Mo2C coating. The in-plane thermal conductivity of 60 vol.% Mo2C-coated carbon fiber/Al composite was 221 W·m−1·K−1 enhanced by 92% compared to that of uncoated composite and the CTE was 6.0 × 10–6 K−1 which was suitable for electronic packaging materials.

Startup characteristics of a water loop heat pipe with dual heat sources for battery thermal management system in electric vehicle

Abstract The usage of electric vehicles has significantly reduced emissions of greenhouse gases and other pollutants. However, the high heat release generated by the electric vehicle batteries poses a challenge. To solve this problem, scientists have created a passive cooling thermal management system specifically for electric vehicle based on heat pipes, particularly loop heat pipes. A battery pack often consists of several battery modules, which results in multiple heat sources being dispersed according to their power capacity. Startup behavior of loop heat pipe has been investigated extensively in the literature. However, most of the studies use only one heat source. This paper aims to fill the research gap, particularly when the system is implemented in dual heat sources managed by only one evaporator. To achieve the research objectives, a custom loop heat pipe was constructed. This cooling system’s design is briefly described. The evaporator is made of copper, deionized water was selected as the working fluid because of its high merit number, which indicates strong performance as a heat pipe working fluid and the stainless-steel wire mesh serves as the porous wick. Battery simulator was built using aluminum material and a cartridge heater to mimic the heat produced by the battery. Two case studies were done. First, only one battery simulator was used. Second, two battery simulators were placed on both sides of the evaporator. A type-K thermocouple attached to the NI DAQ 9214 module was used to measure the temperature while the electric heat load varied between 10 W and 50 W. The study investigated the interaction between the heat load distribution and the startup behavior of the loop heat pipe. Startup behavior is crucial for the performance of the loop heat pipe. Based on the experimental results, the loop heat pipe demonstrates outstanding startup performance. It can effectively initiate operation even at a minimal heat load as low as 30 W for the first and second case study. The findings of the study indicate that the dual heat source arrangement effectively mitigates overshoot temperatures and enhances heat transfer performance by increasing the contact area.

MODERN APPROACHES TO THE USE OF COMPOSITE MATERIALS IN CONSTRUCTION

A review of the literature on scientific approaches in the development of composite materials and building structures made of composites is carried out. When creating and manufacturing traditional and new composite materials, for example, by additive manufacturing, and when creating structures and structures in engineering calculations, new techniques, finite element computational software systems, and neural network technologies are used, which are used in the creation of modern metal and composite materials, analysis of mechanical characteristics of materials, forecasting loads on the structure, optimization of structures and calculation of their construction characteristics. The distinctive features of modern composite materials are shown. The main types of composite materials are considered: talc, diatomite, calcium carbonate, gibbsite, barium sulfate, feldspar, nepheline, aragonite, calcium carbonate, wool, silk, cotton, linen, jute, wood pulp, asbestos, fiberglass, metal fibers, quartz fibers, basalt fibers, polyamide fibers, polyester fibers, polyvinyl alcohol fibers, carbon fibers, viscose fibers. The physical and mechanical characteristics of composite materials (based on epoxy, aluminum, carbon, magnesium, and nickel matrices) and traditional (steel, aluminum, brick, concrete) building materials are presented. The disadvantages of such composite materials as carbon fiber, fiberglass, organoplastics, textolite, carbon concrete, and polystyrene concrete are presented. Deformation diagrams of some types of fibers for composite materials are considered: high-modulus carbon fibers, high-strength carbon fibers, aramid fibers, glass fibers, and basalt fibers. The advantages of the system of external reinforcement of building structures with composite materials are described. Examples of reinforcement of building structures are considered: reinforced concrete reinforcement; reinforcement of floor slabs; reinforcement of columns; and reinforcement of brick walls.

Sn/Graphite/Cu reinforced aluminum: An experimental study on fabrication of hybrid surface composite as journal bearing material by friction stir processing

Friction stir processing (FSP) is an energy-efficient and environmentally friendly technique that provides tailored manufacturing possibilities for surface composites in solid-state conditions. This study focuses on manufacturing solid lubricant-reinforced aluminum matrix surface composite (AMSC) through FSP, which can be used as a journal-bearing material. Composite fabrications are performed utilizing Sn, Cu, and graphite particles (hybrid powder) with four passes of FSP. The cross-sectional macro and microstructures of obtained surface composites are investigated via optical microscopy (OM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The stir zone (SZ) chemistry is analyzed with energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The microhardness measurements show the effects of hybrid powder as reinforcement and FSP parameters on the mechanical features of the composite cross-sections. Wettability and tribological tests are also conducted to determine the surface properties of the fabricated composites. According to the findings, the wear rate is decreased by 8 % with the reduction of average CoF to 0.75, while a hardness increment is achieved over ∼35 % in manufactured surface composites compared to the base material. It is observed that the content and amount of the hybrid powder and FSP parameters employed can ensure the fabrication of desired characteristics compatible with the aim in surface composites.

The fabrication of brass reinforced aluminum matrix composites by FSW

Brass sheet is added into the joining location in friction stir welding (FSW). Brass reinforced Al matrix composite is then formed in the FSW nugget zone with brass. A new microstructure based mechanical property model is proposed to predict both the microstructural evolutions and mechanical property changes in FSW with brass. The discrepancy between the numerical and experimental data is 0.77% for temperature, 2.2% for average grain size, and 6.4% for hardness. The change of temperature is very small in comparison of FSW and FSW with brass. However, compared to FSW, the hardness is obviously increased and the average grain size is decreased by 34.8% in FSW with brass in the nugget zone due to the pinning effect from the broken brass particles. The process parameters can be numerically tested to find the optimal design for experiment.

Developing a technology for obtaining an aluminum matrix composite reinforced with multi-walled carbon nanotubes

Developing a technology for obtaining an aluminum matrix composite reinforced with multi-walled carbon nanotubes

Enhancing high-speed EDM performance of hybrid aluminium matrix composite by genetic algorithm integrated neural network optimization

Hybrid aluminium matrix composites (HAMCs) are highly valued in manufacturing sectors but are difficult to machine conventionally due to reinforcements' inherent hardness and abrasiveness. This research finds high-speed wire electric discharge machining (WEDM) to be a potent solution for machining stir-squeeze-casted HAMC (AA2024 with ceramic nanoparticles: Al2O3, SiC, Si3N4, BN) and creating complex profiles with superior erosion characteristics. The erosion performance has been assessed in terms of material removal rate (MRR) for different profiles (plane, angular, and curve), and wire wear ratio (WWR) by employing machining variables, i.e., pulse voltage (PV), pulse current (PI), wire feed rate (WFR), pulse (P), and drum speed (DS). Results revealed that MRR_curve has highest MRR (37.84 mm3/min), followed by MRR_angular (36.07 mm3/min) and MRR_plane (34.40 mm3/min). The lowest WWR (0.0094%) was achieved at lower magnitudes of machining variables. The microscopic observations unveil shallow craters, minute-sized melt redeposits, and micro-pores on machined surface under the conditions of PV = 90 V, PI = 2 A, WFR = 13 m/min, P = 20 mu, and DS = 40 Hz. Optimization using non-dominated-sorting-genetic algorithm (NSGA-II) resulted in significant enhancements of 75.37, 73.90, and 76.01% in MRR_plane, MRR_angular, and MRR_curve, respectively, and a depreciation of 16.50% in WWR.

Influence of SiC particles on the microstructure and mechanical behaviors of AlMgScZr alloy processed by laser powder bed fusion

Laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) of AlMgScZr alloy has garnered significant attention as a high-strength aluminum alloy. However, its low modulus, Portevin-Le Chatelier (PLC) behavior, and weak strain hardening capability restrict its application in the aerospace sector. In this study, SiC/AlMgScZr composites with different SiC content have been successfully fabricated using LPBF. The inherent bimodal grain structure of AlMgScZr alloy was not completely altered by the addition of SiC particles. However, with increasing SiC content, heat accumulation increased, and the solidification cooling rate decreased. This led to an increase in the size of α-Al grains in the 5 wt% SiC/AlMgScZr composites. Meanwhile, movable dislocations can be efficiently preserved inside the grains, where they effectively accumulate and become entangled. Consequently, the strain hardening capability of the 5 wt% SiC/AlMgScZr composites improved by approximately 58 % compared to AlMgScZr alloy, with a strain hardening index (n) reaching 0.29. Additionally, the addition of SiC particles led to an increase in the elastic modulus (81.0 GPa). Furthermore, the reaction between Mg atoms and SiC particles resulted in the formation of Mg2Si, which altered the distribution of Mg elements and initiated the reactive precipitation of a Mg-rich phase. There is no competition between the diffusive migration of solute atoms and the motion of movable dislocations within the composites. The additional SiC particles effectively eliminated the PLC effect in the LPBF of AlMgScZr alloy. This work provides essential guidance for developing high-strength and high-stiffness aluminum matrix composites with excellent processing properties in LPBF technology.

Numerical simulation study on hot pressing of ceramic/metal powders

This study utilizes the multi-particle finite element method (MPFEM) to establish 2D and 3D hot pressing models for particle-reinforced aluminum matrix composites. The hot pressing of 6061Al powder and 10 % volume fraction SiCp/6061Al composite powder are simulated under a temperature range of 430–510 °C and pressures ranging from 15 to 30 MPa. The densification mechanism of the composites is elucidated by analyzing the evolution of density and microscopic particle behavior. The analysis reveals that elevating both the pressing temperature and pressure effectively increases the relative density of the powders, with the maximum growth rate occurring at 25 MPa. Notably, the barrier effect created by SiC particles in the 6061Al matrix restricts the plastic deformation and flow of matrix particles, leading to a lower final relative density for the composite powder compared to pure 6061Al powder. Microscopic observations indicate that particle rearrangement dominates in the initial pressing stage, while plastic deformation and particle flow become crucial factors for enhancing relative density in the later stage. Further stress-strain analysis demonstrates that 6061Al particles effectively fill pores through plastic deformation, resulting in stress concentration primarily on the harder SiC particles.

Comparative study on microstructure evolution, mechanical properties, and wear behavior of TiC and B4C single-reinforced and hybrid-reinforced Al–Mg–Si alloys by vacuum hot-press sintering

To explore the variances between single-reinforced and hybrid-reinforced Al–Mg–Si alloys with TiC and B4C, 10 wt.%-(TiC + B4C)/6061Al, 10 wt.%-B4C/6061Al, 10 wt.%-TiC/6061Al and 6061Al were prepared via wet mixing for 8 h followed by vacuum hot-press sintering at 580 °C and 30 MPa for 2 h. Microstructure evolution, mechanical properties, and wear behavior were investigated in this study. The results show that unlike single reinforcement of TiC, single reinforcement of B4C and hybrid reinforcement of TiC and B4C altered the distribution of Si and facilitated the in-situ formation of SiC. Both single reinforcement and hybrid reinforcement resulted in mixed fracture characteristics of ductile fracture and cleavage fracture, while hybrid reinforcement of TiC and B4C demonstrated superior strength and plasticity matching. At equivalent particle mass fractions, single reinforcement of TiC was more conducive to inducing recrystallization during sintering, followed by single reinforcement of B4C, and hybrid reinforcement of TiC and B4C had the least effect. At equivalent particle mass fractions, single reinforcement of B4C had the most significant effect on improving the wear resistance, followed by hybrid reinforcement of TiC and B4C, and single reinforcement of TiC had the least effect. All particle addition methods demonstrated a mixed wear mechanism involving abrasive wear, adhesive wear, and spalling wear. This study provides valuable insights into the development of aluminum matrix composites.

Enhanced photoacoustic signal processing using empirical mode decomposition and machine learning

ABSTRACT In this study, we propose a robust photoacoustic (PA) signal processing framework for a material independent defect detection using empirical mode decomposition (EMD) and machine learning algorithms. First, a database of the PA signals with 960 samples has been obtained from aluminium, iron, plastic and wood materials using a laser, microphone and data acquisition board-based PA apparatus. Second, the EMD based time and time-frequency domain techniques are proposed to extract robust cross-material feature space focusing on laser induced acoustic signal, and the decomposed intrinsic mode (IMF) with 14 extracted features are performed on totally 960 samples PA signals to evaluate k-nearest neighbour (k-NN), decision tree (DT) and support vector machine (SVM) classifiers. Inter- material and cross-material evaluations are performed, and the accuracy rates up to 100% for SVM and 97.77% for k-NN are yielded.

Гаряче деформування поруватих спеків системи Al-TiC

The article presents the results of the study of the effect of hot deformation on the structure and phase composition of the synthesized aluminum matrix composite of the Al-TiC system. The nature of the distribution of deformations and relative density over the volume of the porous workpiece during its hot deformation in a semi-closed die was established based on the results of computer simulation. Based on the obtained data, the impact of the stamping scheme on the phase and structure formation during the production of axisymmetric forgings from the dispersion-strengthened alumino-matrix composite was established. Modeling of the hot stamping process was carried out using the finite element method using the DEFORM 2D/3D software complex. The analysis of the obtained modeling results showed that at the final stage of the process, the intensity of deformations is almost uniform throughout the volume of the forging, while characteristic zones of difficult deformations are formed in the upper and lower parts of the section. A detailed analysis of the component deformations showed that the formation of stagnant zones is directly influenced by the radial component of the deformations. In turn, the analysis of the results of experimental studies showed that, despite the presence of stagnant zones, the given hot deformation scheme provides a uniform structure and phase composition of alumino-matric composites of the Al–TiC system, and the in-situ process of titanium carbide formation allows it to be evenly distributed throughout the volume of the composite . The uniformity of the structure and phase composition ensures low anisotropy of properties over the stamping volume, and therefore the proposed stamping scheme can be used to obtain semi-finished products with specified physical and mechanical properties. Keywords: hot forging, deformation, modeling, alumomatrix composites.

Experimental study on gamma heating rate measurement based on differential calorimeter

This study focuses on the analysis of coupled heat transfer in a differential calorimeter, based on in-pile test data. The theoretical calculation method is developed by considering heat conduction, convection, and radiation. Additionally, a three-dimensional numerical simulation is conducted to compare and analyze the results. It has been observed that as the reactor power increases, the gamma heating of stainless steel and aluminum materials also increases in an approximately linear manner. When comparing the calculation methods, it can be deduced that there exists a significant thermal resistance at the cold end of the measuring cell. Based on the aforementioned analysis, the temperature calculated after modifying the numerical calculation model demonstrates a high level of agreement with the experimental data, with a maximum deviation of less than 2.46 °C. As the reactor power increases, the proportions of radiation and convection heat in both the calibration cell and the measuring cell also increase. Specifically, the proportion of heat dissipation in the measurement section of the calibration cell ranges from 0.72% to 1.51%, while in the measurement section of the measuring cell, it ranges from 3.69% to 9.41%. These values are relatively low, which is advantageous in minimizing the calculation deviation of gamma heating in materials.

Technologia reaktywnego rozpylania magnetronowego do otrzymywania azotków III

In the present work is studied synthesis of galium nitride (GaN) and aluminum nitride (AlN) by DC Reactive Magnetron Sputtering technology. As a sputtering target was used high purity (99.9999%) Gallium and Aluminum materials and as a reagent gas was used high purity (99.9999%) Nitrogen. Magnetron sputtering system with strong magnets (1450 mT) allows to make plasma at a low preasure 3 × 10-2 Pa and deposition process was carried out at high vacuum conditions. Deposited layers of GaN and AlN on the sappire substrate was analysed by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and revealed the crystalline nature highly oriented with the (0002) for both nitrides. For chemical composition was measured X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS) and it was found out the ratios of Ga:N and Al:N to be 1.07 and 1.04 respectively. For surface analysis was made Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM). Optic transmission spectra showed band gaps to be 3.43 eV and 6.13 eV for GaN and AlN respectively.