Modelling fracture in an Al2O3 particle reinforced AA 6061 alloy using Weibull statistics

Fracture in an AA 6061 based metal matrix composite (MMC) containing 20 vol % Al₂O₃ particles is modelled using an axisymmetrical finite element model and a statistical approach for calculating the strength of reinforcing ceramic particles via the Weibull model. Within this model, variables such as the volume fraction, particle size and matrix alloy properties can be varied. When modelling the fracture behaviour of one particle, it is assumed that the survival probability of the ceramic particle is governed by a Weibull distribution. Fracture statistics of the MMC is examined by plotting the survival probability of an Al₂O₃ particle vs. the macroscopic axial stress applied on the whole MMC. Based on initial calculations it can be concluded that the relation between the macroscopic applied stress on the MMC and the survival probability of the ceramic particle can be described by the Weibull modulus m, as long as the stress distribution in the matrix surrounding the particle is proportional to the applied load and that triaxial loading of the MMC results in a lower survival probability compared to uniaxial loading. Fracture behaviour of MMCs can well be described and a 'mastercurve' can be made for various characteristic stresses and matrix yield stresses at a specific hardening exponent for the matrix material.     

Influence of in situ formed ZrB2 particles on microstructure and mechanical properties of AA6061 metal matrix composites

Particulate reinforced metal matrix composites (PMMCs) have gained considerable amount of research emphasis and attention in the present era. Research is being carried out across the globe to produce new combination of PMMCs. PMMCs are prepared by adding a variety of ceramic particles with monolithic alloys using several techniques. An attempt has been made to produce aluminium metal matrix composites reinforced with zirconium boride (ZrB₂) particles by the in situ reaction of K₂ZrF₆ and KBF₄ salts with molten aluminium. The influence of in situ formed ZrB₂ particles on the microstructure and mechanical properties of AA6061 alloy was studied in this work. The in situ formed ZrB₂ particles significantly refined the microstructure and enhanced the mechanical properties of AA6061 alloy. The weight percentage of ZrB₂ was varied from 0 to 10 in steps of 2.5. Improvement of hardness, ultimate tensile strength and wear resistance of AA6061 alloy was observed with the increase in ZrB₂ content.     

Fabrication of AA6061/Al2O3 nano ceramic particle reinforced composite coating by using friction stir processing

Nano ceramic particle reinforced composite coatings were created by incorporating Al₂O₃ ceramic particles into the surface of AA6061-T6 alloy plate with multiple pass friction stir processing (FSP). Optical microscopy and Micro-Vickers hardness tests were employed to investigate the influence of axial force and the number of FSP pass on the distribution of the ceramic particles and the hardness of the generated nano ceramic particle reinforced composite coating. Results show that the composite coating is as deep as the length of the pin probe. No distinct interface was developed between the coating and the base metal. The composite region becomes greater as the axial force and the number of FSP pass increased. At the same time, the distribution of the ceramic particles became more homogeneous. Nano particles in the coating have no significant effect on the macro-hardness of AA6061-T6 aluminum alloy even in the composite zone due to the softening of matrix material resulted from overaging. Spindle torque of the tool increased with increasing axial force, while it became less variable and smaller in subsequent pass compared to that in the first pass.     

Effect of heat treatment on strength and abrasive wear behaviour of Al6061-SiC<Subscript>p</Subscript> composites

In recent years, aluminum alloy based metal matrix composites (MMC) are gaining importance in several aerospace and automobile applications. Aluminum 6061 has been used as matrix material owing to its excellent mechanical properties coupled with good formability and its wide applications in industrial sector. Addition of SiC_p as reinforcement in Al6061 alloy system improves its hardness, tensile strength and wear resistance. In the present investigation Al6061-SiC_p composites was fabricated by liquid metallurgy route with percentages of SiC_p varying from 4 wt% to 10 wt% in steps of 2 wt%. The cast matrix alloy and its composites have been subjected to solutionizing treatment at a temperature of 530°C for 1 h followed by quenching in different media such as air, water and ice. The quenched samples are then subjected to both natural and artificial ageing. Microstructural studies have been carried out to understand the nature of structure. Mechanical properties such as microhardness, tensile strength, and abrasive wear tests have been conducted both on matrix Al6061 and Al6061-SiC_p composites before and after heat treatment. However, under identical heat treatment conditions, adopted Al6061-SiC_p composites exhibited better microhardness and tensile strength reduced wear loss when compared with Al matrix alloy.     

Microstructure,tensile and fatigue properties of AA6061/20 vol.%Al2O3p friction stir welded joints

Metal matrix composites reinforced with Al₂O₃ particles combine the matrix properties with those of the ceramic reinforcement, leading to higher stiffness and superior thermal stability with respect to the corresponding unreinforced alloys. However, their wide application as structural materials needs proper development of a suitable joining processes. The present work describes the results obtained from microstructural (optical and scanning electron microscopy) and mechanical evaluation (hardness, tensile and low-cycle fatigue tests) of an aluminium alloy (AA6061) matrix composite reinforced with 20 vol.% fraction of Al₂O₃ particles (W6A20A), welded using the friction stir welding process. The mechanical response of the FSW composite was compared with that of the base material and the results were discussed in the light of microstructural modifications induced by the FSW process on the aluminium alloy matrix and on the ceramic reinforcement. The FSW reduced the size of both particles reinforcement and aluminium grains and also led to overaging of the matrix alloys due to the frictional heating during welding. The FSW specimens, tested without any post-weld heat treatment or surface modification showed lower tensile strength and higher elongation to failure respect to the base material. The low-cycle fatigue life of the FSW composite was always lower than that of the base material, mainly at the lower strain-amplitude value. The cyclic stress response curves of the FSW composite showed evidence of progressive hardening to failure, at all cyclic strain-amplitudes, while the base material showed a progressive softening.     

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.     

On the role of matrix grain size and particulate reinforcement on the hardness of powder metallurgy Al–Mg–Si/MoSi2 composites

Six Al–Mg–Si composites reinforced with 15 vol.% of MoSi₂ intermetallic particles, together with three unreinforced monolith Al–Mg–Si (AA6061) alloys have been processed by powder metallurgy to quantify the roles of alloy matrix grain size and reinforcement particle on their solutionized hardness and ageing response. In the range studied, hardness of solutionized composites follows a Hall–Petch mechanism. Moreover, it can be rationalised as the sum of the hardness of the alloy matrix with the same matrix grain size (d) and a term H_R, that accounts for 17–27% of total hardness, is roughly constant and independent of reinforcing size and distribution. Matrix grain size is responsible for 50–65% of hardness, whereas the contributions of solid solution and Orowan strengthenings account for 17–26%. Upon heat treatment at 170 °C, hardening ability decreases linearly with d^?1/2, fitting all data points to a single equation independently of whether they correspond to the composites or to the monolith alloys.     

Processing of heat-treated silicon carbide-reinforced aluminum alloy composites

The present study investigates the processing of heat-treated silicon carbide (SiC) particle-reinforced 6061 aluminum alloy (AA) composites. As-received SiC powders were heat treated at 1300ºC, 1400ºC, and 1500ºC in nitrogen atmosphere for 2 h, and the 6061 AA–SiC composites were developed by spark plasma sintering at 560ºC and 60 MPa for 5 min in argon atmosphere. The amorphous silicon nitride is found to form in SiC particles as a result of heating at 1400ºC. The microstructure of the composites exhibited uniform distribution of SiC or SiC/Si₃N₄ particles in 6061 AA matrix. Further, the heat-treated SiC-reinforced 6061AA composites exhibited improved mechanical properties. A typical combination of UTS of 240 MPa and elongation of 21% is obtained for the 6061 AA composites prepared using SiC powders heated at 1400ºC.     

Creep behaviour of AA 6061 metal matrix composite alloy and AA 6061

Abstract

The tensile creep properties of a pure AA 6061 matrix and an AA 6061 matrix reinforced with 22% of irregularly shaped Al₂O₃ particles (metal matrix composite) are presented for a temperature of 573 K and initial stresses between 15 and 70 MPa (where 70 MPa is about one-half of the yield stress). The metal matrix composite (MMC) was fabricated by a stir casting process and both materials were extruded. All the specimens were overaged before testing. The MMC exhibits a higher secondary creep rate for the whole range of loads. A stress exponent of n ≈ 1 for stresses from 15 to 25 MPa for the unreinforced material indicates the dominating diffusional creep mechanism. A stress exponent of n ≈ 3 is found from 25 to 50 MPa concluding dominating dislocation creep for the unreinforced material. This mechanism is found to be dominating for the MMC from as low as 15 MPa to 50 MPa (n ≈ 3). Although the secondary creep rate of the reinforced samples is higher than that of the unreinforced, the exposure time is longer for the MMC at stress levels below 20 MPa. The transition between the secondary and the tertiary creep stage occurs earlier in the unreinforced material. Thus, the 1% creep limit of the unreinforced alloy is reached only in the tertiary creep stage, whereas it can be applied as a conservative design criterion for the composite in the whole stress range. Furthermore, the MMC promises at low stress levels higher creep lifetime than the unreinforced alloy. Creep damage in the tertiary stage of the MMC was found to be as a result of void nucleation resulting in particle decohesion from the matrix. Relatively high tertiary creep strains are produced by necking of the unreinforced samples.     

The mechanical properties of friction welded aluminium-based metal–matrix composite materials

The optimum joining parameters for the friction joining of aluminium-based metal–matrix composite (MMC) materials are examined. The properties of MMC/MMC, MMC/alloy 6061 and alloy 6061/alloy 6061 joints are derived following detailed factorial experimentation. The mechanical properties of the joints are evaluated using a combination of notch tensile testing and also conventional tensile and fatigue testing. The frictional pressure has a statistically-significant effect on the notch tensile strength of joints produced in all base material combinations. The upset pressure has only a statistically-significant influence on the notch tensile strength properties of alloy 6061/alloy 6061 joints. The notch tensile strengths of MMC/alloy 6061 joints are significantly lower than MMC/MMC and alloy 6061/alloy 6061 joints for all joining parameter settings. The fatigue strength of MMC/MMC joints and alloy 6061/6061 joints are also poorer than the as-received base materials. This revised version was published online in November 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Effect of fibre-matrix-binder interactions on the matrix composition and age-hardening behaviour of 6061-based MMCs

Reactions between magnesium, alumina fibre and silica binder, during the manufacture of 6061 metal matrix composite (MMC) by the pressure infiltration technique, have been investigated for their effect on the structure, composition and age-hardening response of the MMC with increasing infiltration distance. The structure and composition were examined using optical and scanning electron microscopy, and electron probe microanalysis. The age-hardening behaviour, of both the MMC and unreinforced alloy, was determined using hardness measurements. There was a progressive depletion of magnesium in the MMC with increasing infiltration distance, which was particularly marked when the silica binder content exceeded 1 wt % (in a 20% V _f preform). This has been explained in terms of a reaction which results in the formation of an oxide at the fibre/matrix interface and a release of silicon into the matrix. The depletion of magnesium was associated with a reduction in the age-hardening response of the MMC, consistent with predicted behaviour based on the Al-Mg₂Si pseudo-binary phase diagram. In spite of these effects, the overall ageing behaviour of the MMC was enhanced compared with the unreinforced alloy, showing both higher peak-aged hardnesses and enhanced ageing kinetics, particularly at lower ageing temperatures.     

Particle effects on friction and wear of aluminium matrix composites

Particle effects on friction and wear of 6061 aluminium (6061 Al) reinforced with silicon carbide (SiC) and alumina (Al₂O₃) particles were investigated by means of Vickers microhardness measurements and scratch tests. Unreinforced 6061 Al matrix alloy was also studied for comparison. To explore the effect of heat treatment, materials subjected to three different heat treatment conditions, i.e. under-aged, over-aged and T6, were used. Multiplescratch tests using a diamond and a steel indentor were also carried out to simulate real abrasive wear processes. Vickers microhardness measurements indicated that T6 heattreated composites had the highest hardness. Single-scratch tests showed that the variation of friction coefficient was similar to that of Vickers hardness and the peak-aged composites exhibited the best wear resistance. The wear rate of fine particle-reinforced composites was mainly affected by hardness. However, the wear rate of large particle-reinforced composites was influenced by both the hardness and fracture of the particles.     

Strategical parametric investigation on manufacturing of Al–Mg–Zn–Cu alloy surface composites using FSP

Friction stir processing (FSP) is a unique approach being presently researched for composite fabrication. In the present investigation, Al-B₄C surface composite was fabricated through FSP by incorporating B₄C powder particles into Al–Mg–Zn–Cu alloy (AA 7075) matrix. The influence of varying powder particle reinforcement strategies on the microstructure, powder distribution, microhardness, and wear resistance of the surface composite is reported. In addition, AA 6061/B₄C composites were prepared using the same parameter set and the powder distribution in the composite was compared to that in the AA 7075/B₄C composite. More homogeneous dispersion of B₄C powder was observed in AA 6061 as compared to AA 7075 substrate. Among the prepared AA 7075/B₄C composites, the best B₄C powder distribution was detected in samples processed using fine powder and incorporating the change in stirring direction between passes. The hardness and wear resistance of the prepared composites were almost doubled attributing to several strengthening mechanisms and B₄C powder distribution in the AA 7075 matrix.     

Different reinforcement strategies of hybrid surface composite AA6061/(B4C+MoS2) produced by friction stir processing

Aluminum surface composites have gained huge importance in material processing due to their noble tribological characteristics. The reinforcement of solid lubricant particles with hard ceramics further enriches the tribological characteristics of surface composites. In the current study, friction stir processing was chosen to synthesize hybrid surface composites of aluminum containing B₄C and MoS₂ particles with anticipated improved tribological behavior. B₄C and MoS₂ powder particles in 87.5: 12.5 ratio were reinforced into the AA6061 by hole and groove method. Microstructural observations indicated that reinforcement particles are well distributed in the matrix. The hardness and wear resistance of hybrid surface composites improved as compared to the base material, due to well distributed abrasive B₄C and solid lubricant MoS₂ particles in AA6061. The hybrid surface composites achieved ∼32 % increased average hardness as compared to the base material. Hole method revealed ∼13 % better wear resistance compared to the groove method for friction stir processed hybrid surface composite, attributing to an improved homogeneity of particle distribution shown by zigzag hole pattern. Moreover, friction stir processed AA6061 without reinforcement particles exhibited reduced hardness and wear resistance due to loss of strengthening precipitates during multi-pass friction stir processing.     

Fatigue properties of friction stir welded particulate reinforced aluminium matrix composites

Few papers have discussed the friction stir welding (FSW) of particulate reinforced aluminium matrix composites and most of them focused on the set-up of the welding process parameters and their effect on microstructure, hardness and tensile behaviour. The aim of this study was to investigate the fatigue resistance of FSW joints on an as-cast particulate reinforced aluminium based composite (AA6061/22 vol.%/Al₂O_3p). The welding process was performed using different process parameters, also investigating their effect on joint microstructure. The mechanical properties of the FSW composites were compared with those of the base material and the results were correlated to the microstructural modifications induced by the FSW process on the aluminium alloy matrix and the ceramic reinforcement. FSW reduced the size of both particle reinforcement and aluminium grains, and also led to a significant increase in interparticle matrix microhardness, for all process parameters. The FSW specimens belonging to a different set of parameters, tested without any post-weld heat treatment, exhibited a very high joint efficiency (ranging from 90% to 99%) with respect to the ultimate tensile strength of the base material. The stress controlled fatigue test showed a high spread both for the base and FSW composites. Statistical analysis disclosed that all FSW specimens belonging to different process parameters showed apparently slightly worse fatigue behaviour than that of the base composite. Statistical processing applied to the different welding parameters revealed that all the welded specimens belonged to the same population. Therefore it can be concluded that the parameters used produced joints with similar microstructure and comparable fatigue behaviour. The slight difference in the fatigue behaviour of the FSW specimens whose process parameters differed form those of the unwelded composite was explained by the different microstructural homogeneity in the transition from the base to the FSW zone.     

Particle reinforced AA 6061 and A359 aluminium alloys under cyclic thermal loading conditions

Abstract

The thermal cycling creep characteristics of aluminium matrix composites AA 6061+22 vol.-%Al₂O₃particles and A359+20 vol.-%SiC particles were analysed with respect to the dependence of the behaviour on the applied external stress and on different heat treatment conditions. The specimens were thermally cycled using a triangular waveform between 50 and 300°C with dwell times of 3 s at the minimum and maximum temperatures. An enhanced lifetime was found for reinforced aluminium alloy 6061 compared with A359+20 vol.-%SiC and it was found that overaging of the matrix prior to the thermal cycling experiments increases the creep rates significantly in both composites. The determination of the true, thermally compensated strain revealed a much higher in cycle strain evolution in A359+20 vol.-%SiC. Reverse creep during the cooling sequence was observed in both composites where it depends on the applied stress.     

Effects of particulate reinforcement and heat treatment on the hardness and wear properties of AA 2024-MoSi2 nanocomposites

In this study, nanocomposites of AA 2024 aluminum alloy matrix reinforced with different volume fractions of nanometric MoSi₂ intermetallic particles ranging from 0 to 5%, were produced using mechanical alloying technique. For comparison, samples without reinforcing particles and mechanical alloying and a sample with micrometric MoSi₂ particles were also synthesized. The prepared composite powders were consolidated by cold and hot pressing and then heat treated to solution and aged condition (T6). The effects of MoSi₂ particle size, volume fraction and also heat treatment on the hardness and wear properties of the composites were investigated using Brinell hardness and pin-on-disc wear tests. The results indicated that although T6 heat treatment increases the hardness of all samples compared to as hot-pressed (HP) condition, the age-hardenability (aging induced hardness improvement) decreases after mechanical alloying and with increasing MoSi₂ volume fraction due to the high dislocation density produced during mechanical alloying. With increasing the volume fraction of nano-sized MoSi₂ particles up to 3–4%, the hardness of the composites continuously increases and then declines most probably due to the particle agglomeration. The wear sliding test disclosed that the wear resistance of all specimens in T6 condition is higher than that of HP condition and increases with increasing MoSi₂ content. Scanning electron microscopic observation of the worn surfaces was conducted and the dominant wear mechanism was recognized as abrasive wear accompanied by some adhesive wear mechanism.     

An Experimental Investigation on the Fabrication and Testing of Mechanical Properties of Aluminum-Silica Gel Metal Matrix Composite

A metal matrix composite (MMC) was fabricated using Al as the base metal which was reinforced by a ceramic material silica gel. This article shows detail fabrication stages in the production of MMC. The properties were considered with regard to the saturation point of the reinforcement of silica gel into the metal matrix of Al-Si alloy which was found out experimentally. Here the improvement of the mechanical properties of Al-silica gel MMC composite were studied with respect to that of pure Al-Si alloy. Different tests were conducted to show the results. Conventional ingot metallurgy with infiltration technique using vortex method had been employed in the fabrication process. The test results show that there are improvements by 17.14%, 13.46%, 11.48%, and 18.18% on compressive strength, impact strength, Brinell hardness value, and Rockwell hardness no respectively of Al-silica gel MMC over the pure Al-Si alloy.     

Comparative experimental study on the modification of microstructural and mechanical properties of friction stir welded and gas metal arc welded EN AW‐6061 O aluminum alloys by post‐weld heat treatment

In this paper, the effects of post‐weld heat treatment on modification of microstructures and mechanical properties of friction stir welded and gas metal arc welded AA6061‐O plates were compared with each other. Gas metal arc welding and friction stir welding were used as the applicable welding processes for AA6061‐O alloys. The applied post‐weld heat treatment consisted of solution heat treatment, followed by water quenching and finally artificial aging. The samples were classified as post‐weld heat treated and as‐welded joints. The microstructural evolution, tensile properties, hardness features and fracture surfaces of both as‐welded and post‐weld heat treated samples were reported. The results clearly showed that friction stir welding process demonstrated better and more consistent mechanical properties by comparison with the gas metal arc welding process. The weld region of as‐welded samples exhibited a higher hardness value of 80 HV0.1 compared to the base material. In addition, the feasibility of post‐weld heat treatment in order to enhance the mechanical properties and to obtain more homogeneous microstructure of 6061‐O aluminum alloys was evaluated.     

Exemplary encapsulate feeding in stir casting for quality composites

The focus of this paper aims at addressing the contemporary issues, i.e., agglomeration and nonuniform dispersion of reinforcement particles prevailing with stir casting method of fabricating metal matrix composites. Although it has been dealt with different approaches, viable optimal technique has not evolved so far. A novel encapsulate feeding technique aimed to accomplish uniform dispersion of ceramic reinforcement particles. In this research, we have chosen Aluminum Alloy 6061 (AA 6061) as a matrix material and cubic boron nitride (c-BN) as a reinforcement companion to form a unique combination of advanced aluminum composites to prove this innovative feeding technique. Two percent of Mg added in every casting as a wetting agent to improve binding nature between metals and ceramics. The Aluminum Boron Nitride (Al/BN) composites are fabricated through bottom type of pouring stir casting machine. Metallographic characterization ensures uniform particle dispersion. The composites are tested using pin-fin apparatus and Xe-flash laser setup and found enhanced (12%) thermal properties than pure AA 6061.