Mixed rare earth metal conversion coatings on 2024 alloy and Al6061/SiC_p metal matrix composites

The processes of mixed rare earth metal (REM) conversion coatings on 2024 alloy and Al6061/SiC p metal matrix composites (MMC) were introduced. The coatings were examined to be honeycomb like feature by scanning electron microscope. X ray diffraction analysis revealed that the coatings are amorphous structure. The results of X ray photoelectron spectroscopy indicated that the mixed REM conversion coatings consist predominantly of Ce and O, the contents of other rare earth elements (such as La, Pr) are relatively low, the coatings are about 2～4 μm thickness with excellent adhesion and wearability. The results of mass loss test showed that the mixed REM conversion coatings produce corrosion resistant surface of 2024 alloy and Al6061/SiC p. [

CVD Coating of Oxide Particles for the Production of Novel Particle-Reinforced Iron-Based Metal Matrix Composites

This paper focuses on surface metallization of oxide particles by means of titanium nitride (TiN) thin films for the production of highly wear-resistant metal matrix composites (MMC) on Fe-base for wear protection applications. These powder-metallurgically produced materials consist of a metallic matrix with embedded oxide hard-particles such as alumina or zirconia. The poor wettability of these oxides by iron-base melts and the resulting weak bonding between the components lead to porous materials and weak tribomechanical properties, thus limiting the material’s application range. To counteract such problems, this paper describes a processing route in which the oxide particles are pre-metallized by application of a thin TiN coating by means of chemical vapor deposition (CVD). This surface metallization should increase the wettability and bonding behavior between the ionically bonded particles and the iron-base alloy, which should improve the mechanical and tribological properties. Therefore, a CVD device for coating ceramic particles was constructed and is described in this paper. Furthermore, coatings deposited on the ceramic sub-strates were investigated by means of RBS, SEM and XRD. In addition, the feasibility of producing metal matrix composites (MMC) by admixing the TiN-coated oxide particles with a Fe-base alloy and their further densification by supersolidus liquid-phase sintering is demonstrated.

Improved wettability and mechanical properties of metal coated carbon fiber-reinforced aluminum matrix composites by squeeze melt infiltration technique

In order to improve the wettability and bonding performance of the interface between carbon fiber and aluminum matrix,nickel-and copper-coated carbon fiber-reinforced aluminum matrix composites were fabricated by the squeeze melt infiltration technique.The interface wettability,microstructure and mechanical properties of the composites were compared and investigated.Compared with the uncoated fiber-reinforced aluminum matrix composite,the microstructure analysis indicated that the coatings significantly improved the wettability and effectively inhibited the interface reaction between carbon fiber and aluminum matrix during the process.Under the same processing condition,aluminum melt was easy to infiltrate into the copper-coated fiber bundles.Furthermore,the inhibited interface reaction was more conducive to maintain the original strength of fiber and improve the fiber−matrix interface bonding performance.The mechanical properties were evaluated by uniaxial tensile test.The yield strength,ultimate tensile strength and elastic modulus of the copper-coated carbon fiber-reinforced aluminum matrix composite were about 124 MPa,140 MPa and 82 GPa,respectively.In the case of nickel-coated carbon fiber-reinforced aluminum matrix composite,the yield strength,ultimate tensile strength and elastic modulus were about 60 MPa,70 MPa and 79 GPa,respectively.The excellent mechanical properties for copper-coated fiber-reinforced composites are attributed to better compactness of the matrix and better fiber−matrix interface bonding,which favor the load transfer ability from aluminam matrix to carbon fiber under the loading state,giving full play to the bearing role of carbon fiber.

Ultrafine and fine particle emission in turning titanium metal matrix composite(Ti-MMC)

Titanium metal matrix composite(Ti-MMC)has excellent features and capabilities which can be considered a potential candidate to replace commercial titanium and superalloys within an extensive range of products and industrial sectors.Regardless of the superior features in Ti-MMC,however,referring to several factors including high unit cost and existence of rigid and abrasive ceramic particles in the generated matrices of the work part,the Ti-MMC is grouped as extremely difficult to cut with a poor level of machinability.Furthermore,adequate process parameters for machining Ti-MMCs under several lubrication methods are rarely studied.Therefore,adequate knowledge of this regard is strongly demanded.Among machinability attributes,ultrafine particles(UFPs)and fine particles(FPs)have been selected as the main machinability attributes and the factors leading to minimized emission have been studied.According to experimental observations,despite the type of coating used,the use of higher levels of flow rate led to less UFPs,while no significant effects were observed on UFPs.Under similar cutting conditions,higher levels of FPs were recorded under the use of uncoated inserts.Moreover,cutting speed had no significant influence on UFPs;nevertheless,it significantly affects the FPs despite the type of insert used.

Microstructure and thermal properties of copper matrix composites reinforced with titanium-coated graphite fibers

Milled form of mesophase pitch-based graphite fibers were coated with a titanium layer using chemical vapor deposition technique and Ti-coated graphite fiber/Cu composites were fabricated by hot-pressing sintering. The composites were characterized with X-ray diffraction, scanning/transmission electron microscopies, and by mea- suring thermal properties, including thermal conductivity and coefficient of thermal expansion （CTE）. The results show that the milled fibers are preferentially oriented in a plane perpendicular to the pressing direction, leading to anisotropic thermal properties of the composites. The Ti coating reacted with graphite fiber and formed a continuous and uniform TiC layer. This carbide layer establishes a good metallurgical interracial bonding in the composites, which can improve the thermal properties effectively. When the fiber content ranges from 35 vol% to 50 vol%, the in-plane thermal conductivities of the composites increase from 383 to 407 W.（m.K）-~, and the in-plane CTEs decrease from 9.5 x 10-6 to 6.3 10-6 K-1.

Predicted interfacial thermal conductance and thermal conductivity of diamond/Al composites with various interfacial coatings

The interfacial thermal conductance （ITC） and thermal conductivity （TC） of diamond/Al composites with various coatings were theoretically studied and discussed. A series of predictions and numerical analyses were performed to investigate the effect of thickness, sound velocity, and other parameters of coating layers on the ITC and TC. It is found that both the ITC and TC decline with increasing coating thickness, especially for the coatings with relatively low thermal conductivity. Nevertheless, if the coating thickness is close to zero, or quite a small value, the ITC and TC are mainly determined by the constants of the coating material. Under this condition, coatings such as Ni, TiC, Mo 2 C, SiC, and Si can significantly improve the ITC and TC of diamond/Al composites. By contrast, coatings like Ag will exert the negative effect. Taking the optimization of interfacial bonding into account, conductive carbides such as TiC or Mo 2 C with low thickness can be the most suitable coatings for diamond/Al composites.

Fabrication and thermal conductivity of copper matrix composites reinforced by tungsten-coated carbon nanotubes

Carbon nanotubes （CNTs） were coated by tungsten using metal organic chemical vapor deposition. Magnetic stirring was employed to disperse the W-coated CNTs （W-CNTs） in a Cu matrix, and then, the mixed powders were consolidated by spark plasma sintering. The W-CNTs obtained a uniform dispersion within the Cu matrix when the W-CNT content was less than 5.0vo1%, but high content of W-CNTs （10vol%） resulted in the presence of clusters. The W-CNT/Cu composites containing low content of W-CNTs （〈5.0vol%） exhibited a higher thermal conductivity than the sintered pure Cu, while the CNT/Cu composites exhibited no increase in thermal conductivity after the incorporation of uncoated CNTs. The W-CNT content was found to play a crucial role in determining the thermal conductivity of the W-CNT/Cu composites. The thermal conductivity of the W-CNT/Cu composites increased first and then decreased with the W-CNT content increasing. When the W-CNT content was 2.5vo1%, the W-CNT/Cu composite obtained the maximum value of thermal conductivity. The thermal resistance of the （W-CNT）-Cu interface was predicted in terms of Maxwell-Gamett effective medium approximation, and its calculated value was about 3.0× 10-9 m2.K.W-l.

Effects of TiB_2+TiC content on microstructure and wear resistance of Ni55-based composite coatings produced by plasma cladding

TiB2-TiC reinforced Ni55 matrix composite coatings were in-situ fabricated via plasma cladding on steels using Ti, B4C, and Ni55 as precursor materials at different proportions. Effects of TiB2+TiC content of ceramics phase on the microstructure and wear resistance were studied. The results showed that ceramic phases TiB2 and TiC were in-situ synthesized by plasma cladding, and the ceramic phase content significantly affected tribological performance and the wear mechanism of coatings under different loads. The composite ceramics protected coatings from further delamination wear by crack-resistance under a load of 30 N. Severe abrasive wear and adhesive wear were prevented when the load increased to 60 N because of the high hardness and strength of ceramic phases. Moreover, a compacted layer appeared on the wear surface of coatings with high content of ceramic phases, which effectively decreased the friction coefficient and wear rate. The TiB2-TiC composite ceramics significantly improved the wear performance of metal matrix composite coatings by different mechanisms under loads of 30 and 60 N.

Constrained sintering and wear properties of Cu-WC composite coatings

Coatings of metal matrix composites(Cu?WC)were fabricated by solid-state sintering.WC reinforcing particles indifferent quantities from5%up to30%(volume fraction)were mixed with Cu particles.After mixing,the powders were poured ontothe surface of copper substrates.Sintering was carried out at1000°C under a reducing atmosphere in a vertical dilatometer.Sinteringkinetics was affected by both rigid substrates and WC particles which retarded the radial and axial densification of powders.However,the coatings were strongly attached to the substrate,and WC particles were randomly distributed within the matrix.The addition ofthe reinforcing particles enhanced the microhardness and reduced the volume loss in wear tests to1/17compared to the unreinforcedsample.The predominant wear mechanism was identified as abrasion at a load of5N.20%WC(volume fraction)reinforcingparticles led to the maximum values of properties for the composite coating.

Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of as Cast Aluminium Alloy 7075/Basalt Dispersed Metal Matrix Composites

This paper aims to study the effects of short basalt fiber reinforcement on the mechanical properties of cast aluminium alloy 7075 composites containing short basalt fiber of content ranging from 2.5 to 10 percent by weight in steps of 2.5 percent and fabricated using compo-casting technique. The objective is to investigate the process feasibility and resulting material properties such as young’s modulus, ductility, hardness & compression strength. The properties obtained are compared with those of as-cast that were manufactured under the same fabrication conditions. The results of this study revealed that, as the short basalt fiber content was increased, there were significant increases in the ultimate tensile strength, hardness, compressive strength and Young’s modulus, accompanied by a reduction in its ductility. Furthermore, the microstructure & facture studies were carried out using Optical Microscopy (OM) and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) in order to establish relationships between the quality of the fiber/aluminium interface bond and hence to link with mechanical properties of the composites.

Prediction of the Elastic Properties of Short Basalt Fiber Reinforced Al Alloy Metal Matrix Composites

In this paper, a micro-mechanical model is implemented in software for the prediction of local mechanical properties of discontinuous short fiber reinforced composites. The model, based on the Mori and Tanaka method, shear-lag, computational model, Nielsen-Chen model and Miwa’s model is used to predict the elastic behaviour of basalt short fiber reinforced with Al alloy composites. The Al/basalt Metal Matrix Composites (MMCs) contain basalt short fiber from 2.5% to 10% in steps of 2.5 wt.% and are fabricated using squeeze infiltration technique. The effects of fiber length and orientation on elastic properties of Al/basalt MMCs are investigated. A comparison between the experimental data and the theoretical data based on physical models is made, and the significance of the findings is discussed. The results show that as short basalt fiber content was increased from 2.5% to 10% by wt.%, an improvement in Young’s modulus of 13.26% has been observed. Optical microscopy was used to examine the general microstructure and fiber distribution in the composite produced. Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) was performed on the fractured surface to understand the failure mechanisms.

Influence of Machining Parameter on Tool Life While Machining Hybrid Metal Matrix Composites

A metal matrix composite constitutes a continuous metallic matrix and a discontinuous phase known as reinforcement. The hybrid metal matrix composites (Hmmcs) have been used to manufacture drive shafts, disc brake rotors, brake drums, connecting rods pistons, engine block cylinder liners for automotive and rail vehicle applications. The Hmmcs castings of diameter 120 mm and length 300 mm were prepared through sand mould technique following stir casting methodology. The cast components further subjected to evaluation of physical properties and machining tests using two grades of coated inserts and PCD inserts. The experiments were carried out following ISO 3685 standards. The coating thickness of the TiN coated and TiAlN coated inserts were measured using Kalo testing method; the results of the test show that the interface of the substrate and coating was free from the porosity, and the coating thickness of TiN coating was 4.84 microns and TiAlN coating was measured 4.6 microns. The results of the experiments show that performance of the PCD insert was better than coated inserts at 0.1 mm/rev feed; however at 0.2 mm/revolution feed PCD insert failed by micro chipping of cutting edge while machining Hmmcs. When TiAlN coated inserts were used to machine Hmmcs the coated inserts failed by gradual wear and BUE formation.

On the homogenization of metal matrix composites using strain gradient plasticity

The homogenized response of metal matrix composites（MMC） is studied using strain gradient plasticity.The material model employed is a rate independent formulation of energetic strain gradient plasticity at the micro scale and conventional rate independent plasticity at the macro scale. Free energy inside the micro structure is included due to the elastic strains and plastic strain gradients. A unit cell containing a circular elastic fiber is analyzed under macroscopic simple shear in addition to transverse and longitudinal loading. The analyses are carried out under generalized plane strain condition. Micro-macro homogenization is performed observing the Hill-Mandel energy condition,and overall loading is considered such that the homogenized higher order terms vanish. The results highlight the intrinsic size-effects as well as the effect of fiber volume fraction on the overall response curves, plastic strain distributions and homogenized yield surfaces under different loading conditions. It is concluded that composites with smaller reinforcement size have larger initial yield surfaces and furthermore,they exhibit more kinematic hardening.

INFLUENCE OF FIBER COATING ON TENSILE BEHAVIOR OF UNIDIRECTIONAL C/Mg COMPOSITES

The mechanical properties and deformation mechanisms of unidirectional carbon fiber reinforced magnesium composites under tensile loading are studied. Two different materials are used as fiber coatings: a single silica and a gradient C/SiC/SiO[sb 2]. The results show that, under the same preparation conditions, composite with the former coating is broken in a non-cumulative mode and its failure stress is rather low. Conversely, the latter coating demonstrates much better efficiency and the corresponding composite is broken in a cumulative mode.

Relationship between dispersibility of ZrO2 nanoparticles in Ni-ZrO2 electroplated nanocomposite coatings and mechanical properties of nanocomposite coatings

Ni-ZrO2 nanocomposite coatings with monodispersed ZrO2 nanoparticles were prepared from the composite plating bath containing dispersant under DC electrodeposition condition. It is found that the morphology, orientation and hardness of the composite coating with monodispersed ZrO2 nanoparticles have lots of difference from the composite coating with agglomerated ZrO2 nanoparticles and pure nickel coating. Especially, the result of hardness shows that only a very low volume fraction (less than 1%) of monodispered ZrO2 nanoparticles in Ni-ZrO2 composite coatings will result in higher hardness of the coating. The hardness of Ni-ZrO2 nanocomposite coatings with monodispersed and agglomerated ZrO2 nanoparticles are HV 529 and HV 393, respectively. The hardness value of the former composite coatings is over 1.3 times higher than that of the later. All these composite coatings are 2 - 3 times higher than that of pure nickel plating (HV 207) prepared under the same conditions.

Steam as coolant and lubricant in turning of metal matrix composites

Green cutting has become focus of attention in ecological and environmental protection. Steam is cheap, poilution-free and eco-friendly, and then is a good and economical coolant and lubricant. Steam generator and steam feeding system were developed to generate and feed steam. Comparative experiments were carried out in cutting AA6061-15 vol.% SiC （25 p.m particle size）, with cubic boron nitride （CBN） insert KB-90 grade under the conditions of compressed air, oil water emulsion, steam as coolant and lubricant, and dry cutting, respectively. The experimental results show that, with steam as coolant and lubricant, gradual reduction in the cutting force, friction coefficient, surface roughness and cutting temperature values were observed. Further, there was reduction in built up edge formation. It is proved that use of water steam as coolant and lubricant is environmentally friendly.

Optimization of Tribological Performance of Al-6061T6-15% SiCp-15% Al₂O₃Hybrid Metal Matrix Composites Using Taguchi Method &Grey Relational Analysis

In this investigation, optimization of tribological performance parameters of Al-6061T6 alloy reinforced with SiC (15% by weight) and Al2O3 (15% by weight) particulates having particle size of 37 μm each has been presented. The wear and frictional properties of the hybrid metal matrix composites have been studied by performing dry sliding wear test using pin-on-disc wear tester. A L27 orthogonal array is selected for the analysis of the data. From the test results it is observed that sliding distance has the significant contribution in controlling the friction and wear behaviour of hybrid composites. A confirmation test is also carried out to verify the accuracy of the results obtained through the optimization. In addition an optical micrograph test is also performed on the wear tracks to study the wear mechanism.

Development and Characterization of Aluminium-Based Metal Matrix Composites

Aluminum based metal matrix composites were fabricated using stir casting where silicon carbide and alumina were the reinforcements. Different types of properties (physical-density, mechanical-tensile, hardness, chemical-corrosion etc.) were measured and compared with base metals/alloys. The properties were significantly varied. The highest density was obtained for pure aluminium with 5% Al2O3 whereas the lowest was obtained for AA-4032 alloy. The highest hardness was obtained for AA-4032 with 5% Al2O3 whereas the lowest was obtained for pure Al with 5% Al2O3. The highest strength was obtained for AA-6061 with 5% coarse SiC whereas the lowest was obtained for pure Al. The highest impact strength was obtained for AA-4032 with 5% Al2O3 whereas the lowest was obtained for AA-6061. The corrosion resistance of all composites was lower than that of the base materials.

Characterization of gradient Ni-Fe/SiC composite coating on mild steel by thermal spraying in combination with laser cladding

Metal matrix composite coating Ni-Fe/SiC was prepared on an iron-based substrate bythermal spraying combined with laser cladding,using SiC particulates as the reinforcing agent.The micro-structures of the coatings formed at different thermal spraying and laser cladding conditions were character-ized by means of X-ray diffraction and electron probe microanalysis.The thermal oxidation properties of themixed powders composed of different content of SiC particulates and relevant Ni-based alloy as the balancewere examined using differential scanning calorimetry.The hardness profile of the thermal sprayed and lasercladding coatings was investigated as well.It was found that SiO2particulates were generated and dissolvedand dispersed during the melting and solidification of the laser cladding process,which was ascribed to theoxidation of the dispersed SiC particulates.The micro-hardness depth profile of the target laser claddingcomposite coating was characterized by gradient distribution,which could be related to the gradient distribu-tion of the hard SiC and SiO2particulates in the dendrites and interdendrites of the cladding layer.Both SiCand SiO2particulates contributed to greatly increasing the microhardness and mechanical properties of the ti-tled laser cladding composite coatings.

Simulation of local effect of reinforcement on temperature field during solidification of aluminum metal matrix composite

The effect of reinforcement on the solidification of pure metal matrix composites (MMCs) was simulated using a two-dimensional solidification temperature field model by the finite element method. The concept of the character length was proposed to describe the size of reinforcement local heat influential zone in MMCs solidification according to the change of the morphologies of solid-liquid interface. The relationship between the character length and the geometrical conditions, the boundary condition and physical properties of the reinforcement were studied, respectively. The results show that the width of the unit and the cold boundary temperature have no effect on the character lengths but have effect on the distance between cold boundary and reinforcement (l) and the thermal parameters of the reinforcement. An experimental rule to predict the value of the character length was derived and applied.