Thermal residual stresses in functionally graded and layered 6061 Al/SiC materials

The thermal residual stresses that develop in spray atomized and codeposited functionally graded and layered 6061 Al/SiC metal-matrix composites (MMCs) during cooling from the codeposition temperature to ambient temperature were studied using thermo-elastoplastic finite element analysis. In an effort to investigate the effect of layered and graded structures on the residual stress distribution, the composites with homogeneous distribution of SiC particulates were also analyzed. The effect of SiC volume fraction in the SiC-rich layers and the effect of SiC-rich layer thickness on the residual stresses were investigated. Based on the present study, it was found that the residual stress distribution is very distinct for the aluminum and the SiC-rich layers in the layered materials. As the volume fraction of SiC increases in the SiC-rich layer, the magnitude of residual stresses also increases. The radial stress was found to be tensile in the aluminum layers and compressive in the SiC-rich layers. It was also found that, as the thickness of the SiC-rich layer increases, the magnitude of radial stress in the aluminum layers increases, and that in the SiC-rich layers decreases. In the graded material, the lower region of each layer exhibits tensile radial stress, and the upper region of each layer shows compressive radial stress in order to maintain continuity between layers during cooldown. In general, the layered and the graded materials have greater residual stresses and more complicated stress distribution, as compared with those in the composite materials with homogeneous distribution of SiC particulates.