Effect of Heat Treatment on Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of Si Cp/2024 Aluminum Matrix Composite

SiCp/2024 aluminum alloy matrix composite was prepared by powder metallurgy method. Effects of heat treatment on the microstructure and mechanical properties of composite were investigated by SEM, EDS, XRD, HREM, tensile and hardness tests. The experimental results showed that SiC particles distributed uniformly in the matrix and were in good combination with matrix. The tensile strength and hardness were improved significantly after heat treatment. With the increase of solid solution temperature, the alloy phases dissolved in the matrix gradually. When the solid solution temperature arrived at 505 ℃, the alloy phases dissolved thoroughly, and the composite exhibited the highest tensile strength and hardness（σb=360 MPa, HBS=104）. The main strengthening phase was Al2Cu, which was granular and distributed dispersively in the matrix. Effect of T6 was better than that of T4 at the same solid solution temperature.

Effects of metal binder on the microstructure and mechanical properties of Al2O3-based micro-nanocomposite ceramic tool material

The Al_2O_3-（W,Ti）C composites with Ni and Mo additions varying from 0vol% to 12vol% were prepared via hot pressing sintering under 30 MPa. The microstructure was investigated via X-ray diffraction（XRD） and scanning electron microscopy（SEM） equipped with energy dispersive spectrometry（EDS）. Mechanical properties such as flexural strength, fracture toughness, and Vickers hardness were also measured. Results show that the main phases A12O3 and（W,Ti）C were detected by XRD. Compound Mo Ni also existed in sintered nanocomposites. The fracture modes of the nanocomposites were both intergranular and transgranular fractures. The plastic deformation of metal particles and crack bridging were the main toughening mechanisms. The maximum flexural strength and fracture toughness were obtained for 9vol% and 12vol% additions of Ni and Mo, respectively. The hardness of the composites reduced gradually with increasing content of metals Ni and Mo.

Material microstructures analyzed by using gray level Co-occurrence matrices

The mechanical properties of materials greatly depend on the microstructure morphology. The quantitative characterization of material microstructures is essential for the performance prediction and hence the material design. At present,the quantitative characterization methods mainly rely on the microstructure characterization of shape, size, distribution,and volume fraction, which related to the mechanical properties. These traditional methods have been applied for several decades and the subjectivity of human factors induces unavoidable errors. In this paper, we try to bypass the traditional operations and identify the relationship between the microstructures and the material properties by the texture of image itself directly. The statistical approach is based on gray level Co-occurrence matrix（GLCM）, allowing an objective and repeatable study on material microstructures. We first present how to identify GLCM with the optimal parameters, and then apply the method on three systems with different microstructures. The results show that GLCM can reveal the interface information and microstructures complexity with less human impact. Naturally, there is a good correlation between GLCM and the mechanical properties.

Microstructure and tensile behavior of 2D-C_f/AZ91D composites fabricated by liquid–solid extrusion and vacuum pressure infiltration

2D carbon fiber reinforced AZ91 D matrix composites（2D-C_f/AZ91 D composites） were fabricated by liquid–solid extrusion and vacuum pressure infiltration technique（LSEVI）. In order to modify the interface between fibers and matrix and protect the fiber, pyrolytic carbon（Py C） coating was deposited on the surface of T700 carbon fiber by chemical vapor deposition（CVD）. Microstructure observation of the composites revealed that the composites were well fabricated by LSEVI. The segregation of aluminum at fiber surface led to the formation of Mg_（17）Al_（12） precipitates at the interface. The aluminum improved the infiltration of the alloy and Py C coating protected the fibers effectively. The ultimate tensile strength of 2D-C_f/AZ91 D composites was about 400 MPa. The fracture process of 2D-C_f/AZ91 D composites was transverse fiber interface cracking–matrix transferring load–longitudinal fibers bearing load–longitudinal fibers breaking.

Dynamic Recrystallization Behavior of Bimodal Size SiCpReinforced Mg Matrix Composite during Hot Deformation

The（submicron＋micron） bimodal size Si Cp-reinforced Mg matrix composite was compressed at the temperature of 270–420 °C and strain rate of 0.001–1 s^-1. Then, dynamic recrystallization（DRX） behavior of the composite was investigated by thermodynamic method and verified by microstructure analysis. Results illustrated that the composite possess the lower critical strain and higher DRX ratio as compared to monolithic Mg alloys during hot deformation process. The predicted DRX ratio increased with the proceeding of compression, which was well consistent with the experimental value. Results from thermodynamic calculation suggested that the occurrence of DRX could be promoted by Si Cp, which would be further proved by microstructure analysis. Formation of particle deformation zone around micron Si Cp played a significant role in promoting DRX nucleation. Nevertheless, the distribution of submicron Si Cp was increasingly uniform with the proceeding of compression, which could fully restrain grain growth. Therefore, the corporate effects of micron and submicron Si Cp on DRX contributed to the improvement of DRXed ratio and the refinement of grain size for the composite during compression process.

Thermal Properties of Mg–Al/AlN Composites Fabricated by Powder Metallurgy

Magnesium matrix composites reinforced with AlN particles were fabricated by the powder metallurgy technique.Different mixing methods were used in this study to control the distribution of Al N particles.The microstructure,thermal diffusivity and thermal expansion of the Mg–Al/Al N composites using different mixing methods were investigated.The results showed that the intergranular and intragranular distributions of Al N particles were obtained,respectively,by controlling the mixing methods.The composite with intragranular particles exhibited lower thermal diffusivity because of the existences of more interfaces,defects and grain boundaries,which acted as scattering centers and reduced the mean free path of electrons and phonons.The existence of Al N particles lowered the coefficient of thermal expansion（CTE）and enhanced the dimensional stability of the composites.And the use of the improved mixing method further reduced the CTE of Mg–Al/Al N composites.

Mechanical Properties and Fracture Behavior of Mg-Al/AlN Composites with Different Particle Contents

In this study, magnesium matrix composites reinforced with different loading of AlN particles were fabricated by the powder metallurgy technique. The microstructure, bending strength and fracture behavior of the resulting Mg-Al/Al N composites were investigated. It showed that the 5 wt% AlN reinforcements led to the highest densification and bending strength. The total strengthening effect of AlN particles was predicted by considering the contributions of CTE mismatch between the matrix and the particles,load bearing and Hall-Petch mechanism. The results revealed that the increase of dislocation density,the change of Mg17Al12 phase morphology, and the effective load transfer were the major strengthening contributors to the composites. The fracture of the composites altered from plastic to brittle mode with increasing reinforcement content. The regions of clustered particles in the composites were easy to be damaged under external load, and the fracture occurred mainly along grain boundaries.

Microstructural Characterization and Mechanical Properties of VB_2/A390 Composite Alloy

In this work, we make the best use of the vanadium element; a series of A1-V-B alloys and VB2/A390 composite alloys were fabricated. For Ak-10V-6B alloy, the grain size of VB2 can be controlled within about 1 μm and is distributed uniformly in the AI matrix. Further, it can be found that VB2 promises to be a useful reinforcement particle for piston alloy. The addition of VB2 can improve the mechanical properties of the A390 composite alloys significantly. The results show that with 1 % VB2 addition, A390 composite alloy exhibits the best performance. Compared with the A390 alloy, the coefficient of thermal expansion is 13.2 × 10^-6 K-1, which decreased by 12.6%; the average Brinell hardness can reach 156.5 HB, wear weight loss decreased by 28.9% and ultimate tensile strength at 25℃ （UTS25 ℃） can reach 355 MPa, which increased by 36.5%.

Heterogeneous particle structure formation during post-crystallization of spray-dried powder

The formation of heterogeneous particle structure in skim milk powder has been investigated in a post- crystallization facility using experimental and a mathematical model. Various processing conditions were used to produce these heterogeneous structures. The experimental process parameters were used as initial and boundary conditions for the model. The modelled data agreed well with the experimental data. The experimental and modelling results show that the powder processed at high water activity （aw = 0.7） with low initial moisture content （X0 = 0.01 kg/kg） developed a crystalline surface layer while the core of the particle remained amorphous. This structure is referred to as an egg-shell structure. The powder that was processed at low water activity （αw = 0.1） with high initial moisture content （X0 = 0.2 kg/kg） developed a crystalline core while the surface of the particle remained amorphous. This structure is referred to as an egg-yolk structure. Understanding the dependency of particle microstructures on the processing conditions could be useful when developing procedures to control the drying equipment because the particle microstructure affects the physicochemical properties of the powder and potential applications and behaviour of the powder.