The relationships between wear behavior and thermal conductivity of CuSn/M7C3–M23C6 composites at ambient and elevated temperatures

The effect of FeCr (M₇C₃–M₂₃C₆) particles on the wear resistance of a CuSn alloy was investigated under 125 N load, and 300–475 K temperature interval. Sliding tests were performed to investigate the wear behavior of FeCr_p-reinforced CuSn metal–matrix composites (MMCs) against DIN 5401 in a block-on-ring apparatus. The CuSn/FeCr_p MMCs, which were prepared by addition of 5, 10, 15 and 20 vol.% of FeCr_p, were produced by powder metallurgy and the size of the particles was taken as 16 μm. The powders were uniaxially cold compacted by increasing pressure up to 250 Mpa. The dry sliding wear tests were carried out in an incremental manner, i.e. 300 m per increment and 3500 m total sliding length. The wear-test results were used for investigation of the relationship between weight loss, microstructure, surface hardness, friction coefficient, particle content and thermal conductivity. Finally, it was observed that FeCr_p reinforcement is beneficial in increasing the wear resistance of CuSn MMCs. FeCr particles in MMCs also tend to reduce the extent of plastic deformation in the subsurface region of the matrix, thereby delaying the nucleation and propagation of subsurface microcracks     

Wear behaviour of ZnAl27/TiCp metal matrix composites under sliding conditions

Abstract

The effect of TiC content on the wear resistance of a Zn–Al alloy was investigated under 300–900 N loads. Sliding tests were carried out to study the wear behaviour of TiC_p reinforced ZnAl27 metal matrix composites (MMCs) against AISI type 1050 steel in a block on ring apparatus. The ZnAl27/TiC_p MMCs, which were prepared by the addition of 5, 10, and 15 vol.-% TiC_p, were produced by powder metallurgy, and the size of particulates was varied at 80, 20, and 5 νm. The powders were uniaxially cold compacted by increasing the pressure up to 250 MPa. Wear tests were carried out in an incremental manner, i.e. 300 m per increment and 1800 m in total. The results of these tests were used to investigate the relationship between weight loss, microstructure, surface hardness, friction coefficient, particle size, and particulate percentage. It was observed that TiC_p particulate reinforcement is beneficial in increasing the wear resistance of ZnAl27 alloy, and TiC particulates in MMCs tend to reduce the extent of plastic deformation in the subsurface region of the matrix, thereby delaying the nucleation and propagation of subsurface microcracks.     

Laser processing of an aluminium AA6061 alloy involving injection of SiC particulate

In the present laser processing work, the powder injection technique was investigated as a method for producing a surface metal matrix composite (MMC) containing large SiC particulates (SiC_p) (105–150 m). This size is known to enhance the wear resistance of bulk aluminium-based composites. The effects of the laser-processing conditions, the powder feeding rate and the surface situations necessary to produce a well incorporated MMC on the surface were studied, and the microstructure examined. In previous work, laser processing involving the preplacement of SiC_p was developed to create an AI-SiC_p (45 m) MMC layer on aluminium alloy surfaces. Some of these ideas were used in conjunction with the injection process in the present work to enhance the surface-wear resistance. The wear resistance of an MMC obtained by a single laser track with the injection technique was determined and compared with the base alloy and the MMC layer produced by the preplacement technique.     

Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of Rapidly Solidified Hypereutectic Al–Si and Al–Si–Fe Alloys

The microstructure and mechanical properties of rapidly solidified Al–18 wt% Si and Al–18 wt% Si–5 wt% Fe alloys were investigated by a combination of optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, x-ray diffraction, tensile testing, and wear testing. The centrifugally atomized binary alloy powder consisted of the -Al (slightly supersaturated with Si) and Si phases and the ternary alloy powder consisted of the -Al (slightly supersaturated with Si), silicon, and needle-like metastable Al–Fe–Si intermetallic phases. During extrusion the metastable -Al₄FeSi₂ phase in the as-solidified ternary alloy transformed to the equilibrium -Al₅FeSi phase. The tensile strength of both the binary and the ternary alloys decreased with a high-temperature exposure, but a significant fraction of the strength was retained up to 573 K. The specific wear gradually increased with increasing sliding speed but decreased with the addition of 5 wt% Fe to the Al–18 wt% Si alloy. The wear resistance improved with annealing due to coarsening of the silicon particles.     

Material characterisation and mechanical properties of Al2O3-Al metal matrix composites

The mechanical properties of metal matrix composites (MMCs) are critical to their potential application as structural materials. A systematic examination of the effect of particulate volume fraction on the mechanical properties of an Al₂O₃-Al MMC has been undertaken. The material used was a powder metallurgy processed AA 6061 matrix alloy reinforced with MICRAL-20, a polycrystalline microsphere reinforcement consisting of a mixture of alumina and mullite. The volume fraction of the reinforcement was varied systematically from 5 to 30% in 5% intervals. The powder metallurgy composites were extruded then heat treated to the T6 condition. Extruded liquid metallurgy processed AA 6061 was used to establish the properties of the unreinforced material.     

Relationship between thermal and sliding wear behavior of Al6061/Al<Subscript>2</Subscript>O<Subscript>3</Subscript> metal matrix composites

Al6061 alloy and Al6061/Al₂O₃ metal matrix composites (MMCs) were fabricated by stir casting. The MMCs were prepared by addition of 5, 10 and 15 wt% Al₂O₃ particulates and the size of particulates was taken as 16 μm. The effect of Al₂O₃ particulate content, thermal properties and stir casting parameters on the dry sliding wear resistance of MMCs were investigated under 50–350 N loads. The dry sliding wear tests were performed to investigate the wear behavior of MMCs against a steel counterface (DIN 5401) in a block-on-ring apparatus. The wear tests were carried out in an incremental manner, i.e., 300 m per increment and 3,000 m in total. It was observed that, the increase in Al₂O₃ vol% decreased both thermal conductivity and friction coefficient and hence increased the transition load and transition temperature for mild to severe wear during dry sliding wear test.     

Abrasive wear of Al‐SiC composites

The two‐ and three‐body abrasion of aluminium matrix composites, reinforced with silicon carbide particles, have been investigated. The metal matrix composites were fabricated by a powder metallurgy route involving a final hot extrusion step. Air atomised aluminium powder Al 1100 was used as matrix and α‐SiC_p as reinforcement with mean sizes of 10, 27 and 43 μm; in the proportions of 5, 10 and 20 vol.%. Using a pin‐on‐disc apparatus and a wet monolayer tester, two‐ and three‐body abrasion tests were carried out respectively against silicon carbide and alumina abrasives with four different grit sizes. The microstructural characterizations were performed using light microscopy. The dominant wear mechanisms were identified using scanning electron microscopy. The influence of type of the abrasive particles on wear resistance and dominating wear mechanisms was reported. Relationships between size and volume fraction of the SiC_p reinforcement and wear resistance were discussed. It was shown that SiC_p particles reinforcement increases the abrasion resistance against all the abrasives used. This increase was generally higher against alumina than against silicon carbide abrasives.     

Abrasive wear of FeCr (M7C3–M23C6) reinforced iron based metal matrix composites

Abstract

The effects of volume fraction, particle size, and sintered porosity of FeCr (M₇C₃–M₂₃C₆) particulates on the abrasive wear resistance of powder metallurgy (PM) Fe alloy metal matrix composites have been studied under different abrasive conditions. It was seen that the abrasive wear rate of the composites increased with an increase in the FeCr volume fraction in tests performed with 80 grade SiC abrasive paper, but it decreased for tests conducted with 220 grade SiC abrasive paper. Furthermore, the wear rates decreased with an increase in FeCr size for composites containing the same amount of FeCr. Hence it is deduced that Fe alloy composites reinforced with larger size FeCr particles are more effective against abrasive wear than those reinforced with smaller ones. At the same time the results show that the beneficial effects of hard FeCr particulates on wear resistance far outweighed the detrimental effects of sintered porosity in the PM metal matrix composites. In addition, the fabrication of composites containing soft particles such as graphite or copper favours a reduction in the coefficient of friction, and increases the matrix hardness of the composite. For this reason graphite and copper were used in the matrix in different amounts to test their effect on the wear resistance. Increase in graphite and copper volume fraction allowed the formation of additional phases, which had high hardness and wear resistance. It was also found that the wear rate of the composites decreased considerably with graphite and copper addition.     

飞灰颗粒增强铝基复合材料的摩擦与磨损特性

对挤压铸造制成的飞灰颗粒增强ZL109复合材料在不同条件下的摩擦磨损特性进行了研究。研究结果表明:在较低载荷和较低滑动速度下,该复合材料的耐磨性明显优越于基体铝合金,摩擦系数也稳定地低于基体铝合金,并且随飞灰含量的增加复合材料的耐磨性有所提高;在较高载荷和较高滑动速度下,同基体铝合金相比复合材料耐磨性的改善程度有所降低,但复合材料的摩擦系数仍可以保持较低的水平。这是由于随着载荷和滑动速度的变化,复合材料的磨损机制发生了转化。本文对该过程中的磨损机制的转化进行了初步分析。     

Microstructure and wear characteristics of spray formed and hot extruded Al–Si alloys

Abstract

The microstructural and wear properties of spray formed Al–6.5Si, Al–18Si and Al–18Si–5Fe–1.5Cu (wt-%) alloys have been investigated. The microstructure of the Al–6.5Si alloy exhibits the equiaxed grain morphology of the primary α-Al phase with eutectic Si at the grain boundaries. The size of the primary Si particulates in the Al–18Si alloy varied from 3 to 8 μm embedded in the eutectic matrix. Complex intermetallic phases such as β-Al₅ SiFe and δAl₄ Si₂ Fe are observed to co-exist with primary Si in the spray formed Al–18Si–5Fe–1.5Cu alloy system. The periphery of the preforms invariably showed pre-solidified particles with a large amount of interstitial pores. An extrusion ratio of 6 : 1 for these alloys led to drastic porosity reduction and extensive breaking of second phase particles. These microstructural features showed distinct variation in the wear behaviour and the coefficient of friction of the alloys. The Al–18Si–5Fe–1.5Cu alloy shows better wear resistance compared with the other two alloys, particularly at higher loads. The coefficient of friction shows a dependence upon the applied load. However, this becomes steady at higher loads. The wear behaviour of these alloys is discussed in light of the morphology of debris particles as well as that of the worn surfaces.     

Dry sliding wear behaviour at ambient and elevated temperatures of plasma transferred arc deposited aluminium composite coatings

Abstract

Plasma transferred arc (PTA) surfacing is a surface engineering process in which a coating is deposited on the substrate by the injection of metal powders and/or ceramic particles into the weld pool created by the formation of a plasma plume. The present work involved the tribological evaluation of metal matrix composite (MMC) coatings deposited onto an aluminium alloy using the PTA technique. Coatings were fabricated by the deposition of an Al–Ni powder containing either Al₂O₃ or SiC particles. Dry sliding wear behaviour of the coatings was evaluated at ambient and elevated temperatures. Under sliding conditions of low applied stress and ambient temperature, reinforcement properties such as interfacial structure and fracture toughness have a significant influence on wear resistance. The SiC particles, which exhibit high interfacial bonding and toughness, support the matrix by acting as load bearing elements, thereby delaying the transition in wear mechanism as applied stress increases. As applied stresses exceed the fracture strength of the SiC and Al₂O₃ particles, these particles suffer fragmentation and/or debonding and no longer support the matrix. At higher stresses and elevated temperature, matrix properties such as flow stress and the tribolayer formation play more important roles in determining wear resistance.     

Laser Surface Modification of Ti-6Al-4V Alloy with Silicon Carbide

We show that surface laser modification through a coating containing SiC powder is an efficient method for enhancing the wear resistance of Ti-6Al-4V titanium alloy. The laser melting of SiC particles enriches the pool of substrate melt with silicon and carbon. In the course of crystallization, primary dendrites, which are identified as TiC, are formed at first. After fast cooling to room temperature, a multiphase structure consisting of Ti₅Si₃ and TiSi₂ silicides and ductile -martensite is formed in the interdendritic space. Such a composite structure of the surface layer has a microhardness of 5–6 GPa and guarantees a sharp enhancement of the wear resistance under conditions of dry sliding friction as compared with the hardened-and-aged structure of this alloy.     

Wear behaviour of an Al–12% Si alloy reinforced with a low volume fraction of SiC particles

Aluminium–silicon alloys reinforced with low volume fractions of SiC particles were prepared by the compocasting process. The wear behaviour of the unreinforced Al–12Si alloy and metal-matrix composites (MMCs) was investigated by using a block-on-ring test at room temperature under dry conditions. The results showed that the addition of a low volume fraction of SiC particles (2–8 vol%) is a very effective way of increasing the wear resistance of the matrix alloy. Metallographic examinations revealed that the wear zone of the Al–12Si alloy consists of both hardened and deformation layers. The depth of the hardened layer depended on the applied load and was in the vicinity of 10–50 μm. The formation of the hardened layer was related to the alignment and redistribution of fragmented eutectic phase to the surface region during sliding wear. Furthermore, the delamination of debris from the hardened layer was responsible for a higher wear loss observed in the Al–12Si alloy. The thickness of the hardened layer formed on the MMC specimens was reduced considerably by the incorporation of fragmented SiC particles. This layer exhibited higher hardness and wear resistance than that developed in the unreinforced alloy.     

Fabrication of TiB2 particulate reinforced magnesium matrix composites by powder metallurgy

Magnesium metal matrix composites (MMCs) reinforced with 10, 20 and 30 vol.% TiB₂ particulates, respectively, were fabricated by powder metallurgy. The microstructure, porosity, hardness and abrasive wear behavior of the composites were evaluated. Microstructural characterization of Mg MMCs showed generally uniform reinforcement distribution. As compared with pure Mg, the hardness (HB) values of Mg MMCs reinforced with 10, 20 and 30 vol.% TiB₂ particulates were increased by 41%, 106% and 181%, respectively. The abrasive wear tests showed that the wear resistance of Mg MMCs is increased with the increasing of the reinforcement volume fraction. This was due to the strong particulate-matrix bonding and high hardness of the TiB₂ particulate.     

A cost-effective P/M titanium matrix composite for automobile use

The aim of the present study is to obtain a new high-performance titanium matrix composite appropriate for automobile parts using a new low-cost powder metallurgy process. The results can be summarized as follows:

1. A production process was developed for a sintered titanium alloy from cheap, low-purity titanium powder (sponge fines) which in its as-sintered form (without expensive hot isostatic pressing or heat treatment) achieves superior fatigue properties to hot-isostatic-pressed titanium alloy made from expensive high purity hydride-dehydride titanium powder.
2. TiB was found to be a superior reinforcing compound for blended elemental titanium matrix composites than SiC, B₄C, TiAl, TiB₂, TiN and TiC tested previously and it was used in the above low-cost production process to make the new disperse-particle titanium matrix composites.
3. The developed titanium matrix composite allows considerably cheaper production of parts from titanium alloy than by conventional ingot forging methods and was confirmed to be far superior to conventional titatium alloys in tensile strength, fatigue properties, rigidity, heat resistance, and wear resistance.

     

Tribological behaviour of hot extruded Al–Cu–Mg–Ag alloy reinforced by TiB2 particles

In the present investigation, tribological behaviour of the hot extruded Al–Cu–Mg–Ag (matrix) alloy and the effect of Ti and TiB₂ addition in matrix alloy have been studied. Hot extrusion was introduced to eliminate cast defects like porosity, voids and micro cracks. Addition of Ti and TiB₂ particles increased the hardness of the matrix by grain refinement and dispersion hardening, respectively. It has been observed that the increase in hardness had significantly improved the wear resistance of the material. Detail study of the wear surfaces and debris were carried out to understand the wear mechanism of the samples. It revealed a complex mechanism of micro-cutting, plastic deformation, abrasion and delamination of the wear samples.     

Enhancement of wear and corrosion resistance of metal-matrix composites by laser coatings

A novel technique based on laser-induced chemical reduction of metal salts has been developed to produce surface coatings on metal-matrix composites (MMCs). The substrate is predeposited with a paste, containing concentrated salts of the elements to be coated along with a thickening agent, and then subjected to high power laser radiation. The rise in surface temperature during laser irradiation led to the decomposition of salts to their native metals. The combination of metal and metalloid elements in the reaction zone forms an amorphous layer due to the specific chemical ratio and rapid cooling rate. The thickness of the coatings obtained were of the order of 50–100 m. The coatings exhibited amorphous and microcrystalline structures, possessed hardness in the range of 300–1700 H_v (substrate hardness 80–90 H_v), had superior sliding wear resistance and excellent corrosion resistance. The advantages of this process include the formation of complex coatings on MMCs by a simple, versatile technique which does not require any vacuum or inert atmosphere.     

Production of superconducting Cu-Nb-Sn alloy by hot extrusion of rapidly solidified powder

A Cu_92.5Nb₅Sn_2.5 alloy has been rapidly quenched into a powder by ultrasonic gas atomization. The structure of the powder consists of finely dispersed Nb particles in a Cu-Sn matrix. The powder has been consolidated by hot extrusion at 650°C. The extrusion does not change the phases present in the material appreciably but annealing for 100 h at 650°C causes a transformation of the Nb particles to Nb₃Sn. The extruded material shows superconductivity. The critical temperatureT _c, of the asquenched alloys is 8.0 K but increases to 15.6 K after annealing for 100 h at 923 K. The upper critical magnetic field, \(H_{C_2 } \) , and critical current density,J _c, were 3.4 kOe at 4.2 K and 7.4×10⁵ Am^?2 at zero applied field and 4.2 K, respectively. The appearance of superconductivity is attributed to the proximity effect of the Nb₃Sn phase particles which are sufficiently well distributed to satisfy the leak distance and the critical particle size.     

The sliding wear behavior of TiCp/AZ91 magnesium matrix composites

The AZ91 metal matrix composites (MMCs) reinforced with 5, 10 and 15 wt.% TiC particulates are fabricated by TiC_p–Al master alloy process combined with mechanical stirring. The effects of TiC particulate content, applied load and wearing time on the sliding wear behaviors of the composites were investigated using MM-200 wear testing apparatus. The results show that the wear resistance and friction coefficient of the composites increased and decreased with increase of the TiC particulate content, respectively. The wear volume loss and friction coefficient of the reinforced composites as well as the unreinforced AZ91 matrix alloy increased with increase of applied load or wearing time, but the increase rates of the reinforced composites in two performance is lower than those of the unreinforced AZ91 matrix alloy. Furthermore, the sliding wear behavior of the composites and the unreinforced AZ91 matrix alloy is characterized by ploughing, adhesion and oxidation abrasion.