Research progress in friction stir processing of magnesium alloys and their metal matrix surface composites: Evolution in the 21^(st )century

Rising concerns about climate change drive the demand for lightweight components.Magnesium(Mg)alloys are highly valued for their low weight,making them increasingly important in various industries.Researchers focusing on enhancing the characteristics of Mg alloys and developing their Metal Matrix Composites(MMCs)have gained significant attention worldwide over the past decade,driven by the global shift towards lightweight materials.Friction Stir Processing(FSP)has emerged as a promising technique to enhance the properties of Mg alloys and produce Mg-MMCs.Initially,FSP adapted to refine grain size from the micro to the nano level and accelerated the development of MMCs due to its solid-state nature and the synergistic effects of microstructure refinement and reinforcement,improving strength,hardness,ductility,wear resistance,corrosion resistance,and fatigue strength.However,producing defect-free and sound FSPed Mg and Mg-MMCs requires addressing several variables and their interdependencies,which opens up a broad range of practical applications.Despite existing reviews on individual FSP of Mg,its alloys,and MMCs,an attempt has been made to analyze the latest research on these three aspects collectively to enhance the understanding,application,and effectiveness of FSP for Mg and its derivatives.This review article discusses the literature,classifies the importance of Mg alloys,provides a historical background,and explores developments and potential applications of FSPed Mg alloys.It focuses on novel fabrication methods,reinforcement strategies,machine and tool design parameters,material characterization,and integration with other methods for enhanced properties.The influence of process parameters and the emergence of defects are examined,along with specific applications in mono and hybrid composites and their microstructure evolution.The study identifies promising reinforcement materials and highlights research gaps in FSP for Mg alloys and MMCs production.It concludes with significant recommendations for further exploration,reflecting ongoing advancements in this field.

Micro-macro Unified Analysis of Flow Behavior of Particle-reinforced Metal Matrix Composites

This article presents a micro-macro unified model for predicting the deformation of metal matrix composites （MMCs）. A macro-scale model is developed to obtain the proper boundary conditions for the micro-scale model, which is used to assess the microstructural deformation of materials. The usage of the submodel technique in the analysis makes it possible to shed light on the stress and strain field at the microlevel. This is helpful to investigate the linkage between the microscopic and the macroscopic flow behavior of the composites. An iterative procedure is also proposed to find out the optimum parameters. The results show that the convergence can be attained after three iterations in computation. In order to demonstrate the reliability of mi- cro-macro unified model, results based on the continuum composite model are also investigated using the stress-strain relation of composite obtained from the iterations. By comparing the proposed unified model to the continuum composite model, it is clear that the former exhibits large plastic deformation in the case of little macroscopic deformation, and the stresses and strains obtained from the submodel are higher than those from the macroscopic deformation.

Manufacture of Nano-Sized Particle-Reinforced Metal Matrix Composites:A Review

Compared to the micro-sized particle-reinforced metal matrix composites, the nano-sized particle-reinforced metal matrix composites possess superior strength, ductility, and wear resistance, and they also exhibit good elevated temperature properties. Therefore, the nano-sized particle-reinforced metal matrix composites are the new potential material which could be applied in many industry fields. At present, the nano-sized particle-reinforced metal matrix composites could be manufactured by many methods. Different kinds of metals, predominantly A1, Mg, and Cu, have been employed for the production of composites reinforced by nano-sized ceramic particles such as carbides, nitrides, and oxides. The main drawbacks of these synthesis methods are the agglomeration of the nano-sized particles and the poor interface between the particles and the metal matrix. This work is aimed at reviewing the ex situ and in situ manufacturing techniques. Moreover, the distinction between the two methods is discussed in some detail. It was agreed that the in situ manufacturing technique is a promising method to fabricate the nano-sized particle-reinforced metal matrix composites.

PARTICULATE SIZE EFFECTS IN THE PARTICLE-REINFORCED METAL-MATRIX COMPOSITES

The influences of I,article size on the mechanical properties of the particulate metal matrix composite;are obviously displayed in the experimental observations. However, the phenomenon can not be predicted directly using the conventional elastic-plastic theory. It is because that no length scale parameters are involved in the conventional theory. In the present research, using the strain gradient plasticity theory, a systematic research of the particle size effect in the particulate metal matrix composite is carried out. The roles of many composite factors, such as: the particle size, the Young's modulus of the particle, the particle aspect ratio and volume fraction, as well as the plastic strain hardening exponent of the matrix material, are studied in detail. In order to obtain a general understanding for the composite behavior, two kinds of particle shapes, ellipsoid and cylinder, are considered to check the strength dependence of the smooth or non-smooth particle surface. Finally, the prediction results will be applied to the several experiments about the ceramic particle-reinforced metal-matrix composites. The material length scale parameter is predicted.

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.

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.

Hot deformation behaviors of 35% SiC_p/2024Al metal matrix composites

The hot deformation behaviors of 35%SiCp/2024 aluminum alloy composites were studied by hot compression tests using Gleeble-1500D thermo-mechanical simulator at temperatures ranging from 350 to 500 °C under strain rates of 0.01-10 s-1. The true stress-true strain curves were obtained in the tests. Constitutive equation and processing map were established. The results show that the flow stress decreases with the increase of deformation temperature at a constant strain rate, and increases with the increase of strain rate at constant temperature, indicating that composite is a positive strain rate sensitive material. The flow stress behavior of composite during hot compression deformation can be represented by a Zener-Hollomon parameter in the hyperbolic sine form. Its activation energy for hot deformation Q is 225.4 kJ/mol. To demonstrate the potential workability, the stable zones and the instability zones in the processing map were identified and verified through micrographs. Considering processing map and microstructure, the hot deformation should be carried out at the temperature of 500 °C and the strain rate of 0.1-1 s-1.

Development of Al-12Si-xTi system active ternary filler metals for Al metal matrix composites

To improve the wettability of Al metal matrix composites（Al-MMCs） by common filler metals,Al-12Si-xTi（x=0.1,0.5,1,3.0;mass fraction,%） system active ternary filler metals were prepared.It was demonstrated that although the added Ti existed within Ti（Al1-xSix）3（0≤x≤0.15） phase,the shear strength and shear fracture surface of the developed Al-12Si-xTi brazes were quite similar to those of traditional Al-12Si braze due to the presence of similar microstructure of Al-Si eutectic microstructure with large volume fraction.So,small Ti addition（～1%） did not make the active brazes brittle and hard compared with the conventional Al-12Si braze.The measured melting range of each Al-12Si-xTi foil was very similar,i.e.,580-590 ℃,because the composition was close to that of eutectic.For wettability improvement,with increasing Ti content,the interfacial gap between the Al2O3 reinforcement and filler metal（R/M） could be eliminated,and the amount of the remainder of the active fillers on the composite substrate decreased after sessile drop test at 610 ℃ for 30 min.So,the wettability improvement became easy to observe repeatedly with increasing Ti content.Additionally,the amount and size of Ti（AlSi）3 phase were sensitive to the Ti content（before brazing） and Si content（after brazing）.

MACHINING OF METAL MATRIX COMPOSITES

Two types of aluminium-based composites reinforced respectively with 20 vol short fibre alumina and with a hybrid of 15 vol SiC particle and 5 vol short alumina fibre are machined with different tool materials:cemented carbide,ceramic,cubic boron nitride(CBN)and polycrystalline diamond(PCD).The analysis on tool wear shows that the various tool materials exhibite different tool wear behaviours,and the tool wear mechanisma are discussed.Apparently,PCD tools do not necessarily guarantee dimensional stability but they can provide the most economic means for machining all sorts of composites.Consequently,a suitable tool material is suggested for machining each metal matrix composite(MMC) from the standpoints of tool wear and machined surface finish.

MgO-attached graphene nanosheet(MgO@GNS)reinforced magnesium matrix nanocomposite with superior mechanical,corrosion and biological performance

Magnesium(Mg)alloys are gaining great consideration as body implant materials due to their high biodegradability and biocompatibility.However,they suffer from low corrosion resistance and antibacterial activity.In this research,semi-powder metallurgy followed by hot extrusion was utilized to produce the magnesium oxide@graphene nanosheets/magnesium(MgO@GNS/Mg)composite to improve mechanical,corrosion and cytocompatibility characteristics.Investigations have revealed that the incorporation of MgO@GNS nanohybrids into Mg-based composite enhanced microhardness and compressive strength.In vitro,osteoblast cell culture tests show that using MgO@GNS nanohybrid fillers enhances osteoblast adhesion and apatite mineralization.The presence of MgO@GNS nanoparticles in the composites decreased the opening defects,micro-cracks and micro-pores of the composites thus preventing the penetration of the corrosive solution into the matrix.Studies demonstrated that the MgO@GNS/Mg composite possesses excellent antibacterial properties because of the combination of the release of MgO and physical damage to bacterium membranes caused by the sharp edges of graphene nanosheets that can effectively damage the cell wall thereby facilitating penetration into the bacterial lipid bilayer.Therefore,the MgO@GNS/Mg composite with high mechanical strength,antibacterial activity and corrosion resistance is considered to be a promising material for load-bearing implant applications.

Effect of heat treatment on the microstructure,mechanical properties and fracture behaviors of ultra-high-strength SiC/Al-Zn-Mg-Cu composites

A high-zinc composite,12vol%SiC/Al-13.3 Zn-3.27 Mg-1.07Cu(wt%),with an ultra-high-strength of 781 MPa was success-fully fabricated through a powder metallurgy method,followed by an extrusion process.The effects of solid-solution and aging heat treat-ments on the microstructure and mechanical properties of the composite were extensively investigated.Compared with a single-stage sol-id-solution treatment,a two-stage solid-solution treatment(470℃/1 h+480℃/1 h)exhibited a more effective solid-solution strengthen-ing owing to the higher degree of solid-solution and a more uniform microstructure.According to the aging hardness curves of the com-posite,the optimized aging parameter(100℃/22 h)was determined.Reducing the aging temperature and time resulted in finer and more uniform nanoscale precipitates but only yielded a marginal increase in tensile strength.The fractography analysis revealed that intergranu-lar cracking and interface debonding were the main fracture mechanisms in the ultra-high-strength SiC/Al-Zn-Mg-Cu composites.Weak regions,such as the SiC/Al interface containing numerous compounds and the precipitate-free zones at the high-angle grain boundaries,were identified as significant factors limiting the strength enhancement of the composite.Interfacial compounds,including MgO,MgZn2,and Cu5Zn8,reduced the interfacial bonding strength,leading to interfacial debonding.

Damping performance of SiC nanoparticles reinforced magnesium matrix composites processed by cyclic extrusion and compression

This work dealt with the damping performance and its underlying mechanism in SiC nanoparticles reinforced AZ91D composite(SiC_(np)/AZ91D)processed by cyclic extrusion and compression(CEC).It was found that the CEC process significantly affects the damping performance of the composite due to alterations in the density of dislocations and grain boundaries in the matrix alloy.Although there would be dynamic precipitation of the Mg17Al12 phase during processing which increases the phase interface and limits the mobility of dislocations and grain boundaries.The results also showed that the damping capacity of 1%SiC_(np)/AZ91D composite continuously decreases with adding CEC pass number and it consistently increases with rising the applied temperature.Considering the first derivative of the tanδ-T curve,the dominant damping mechanism based on test temperature can be divided into three regions.These three regions are as follows(i)dislocation vibration of the weak pinning points(≤T_(cr)),(ii)dislocation vibration of the strong pinning points(T_(cr)∼T_(V)),and(iii)grain boundary/interface sliding(≥T_(V))

Wear Studies on Metal Matrix Composites: a Taguchi Approach

An attempt has been made to study the influence of wear parameters like applied load, sliding speed, sliding distance and percentage of reinforcement on the dry sliding wear of the metal matrix composites. A plan of experiments, based on techniques of Taguchi, was performed to acquire data in controlled way. An orthogonal array and the analysis of variance were employed to investigate the influence of process parameters on the wear of composites. The objective is to establish a correlation between dry sliding wear of composites and wear parameters. These correlations were obtained by multiple regressions. Finally, confirmation tests were conducted to verify the experimental results foreseen from the mentioned correlations.

Microstructure evolution of rare earth Pr modified alumina-silicate short fiber-reinforced Al-Si metal matrix composites

Al-Si metal matrix composites (MMCs) reinforced with 20 vol.% alumina-silicate shot fibers (Al2O3-SiO2(sf)) were fabricated by an infiltration squeeze method. Pure Pr metal was added into these composites. The effect of Pr addition on the microstructure evolution of Al-Si MMCs was investigated by SEM,TEM,and EDS. Pr addition is favorable to make uniform microstructures with the modified eutectic Si crystal. PrAlSi phase with high contents of Pr and Si is observed on the interface between the fiber and the m...

Effect of particle characteristics on deformation of particle reinforced metal matrix composites

The particle characteristics of 15%SiC particles reinforced metal matrix composites(MMC)made by powder metallurgy route were studied by using a statistical method.In the analysis,the approach for estimation of the characteristics of particles was presented.The study was carried out by using the mathematic software MATLAB to calculate the area and perimeter of each particle, in which the image processing technique was employed.Based on the calculations,the sizes and shape factors of each particle were investigated respectively.Additionally,the finite element model(FEM)was established on the basis of the actual microstructure.The contour plots of von Mises effective stress and strain in matrix and particles were presented in calculations for considering the influence of microstructure on the deformation behavior of MMC.Moreover,the contour maps of the maximum stress of particles and the maximum plastic strain of matrix in the vicinity of particles were introduced respectively.

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.

Laser Additive Manufacturing on Metal Matrix Composites: A Review

Important progresses in the study of laser additive manufacturing on metal matrix composites(MMCs)have been made.Recent efforts and advances in additive manufacturing on 5 types of MMCs are presented and reviewed.The main focus is on the material design,the combination of reinforcement and the metal matrix,the synthesis principle during the manufacturing process,and the resulted microstructures as well as properties.Thereafter,the trend of development in future is forecasted,including:Formation mechanism and reinforcement principle of strengthening phase;Material and process design to actively achieve expected performance;Innovative structure design based on the special properties of laser AM MMCs;Simulation,monitoring and optimization in the process of laser AM MMCs.

Processing of nanostructured metallic matrix composites by a modified accumulative roll bonding method with structural and mechanical considerations

Particulate reinforced metallic matrix composites have attracted considerable attention due to their lightweight, high strength, high specific modulus, and good wear resistance. A1/B4C composite strips were produced in this work by a modified accumulative roll bonding process where the strips were rotated 90° around the normal direction between successive passes. Transmission electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction analyses reveal the development of nanostructures in the Al matrix after seven passes. It is found that the B4C reinforcement distribution in the matrix is improved by progression of the process. Additionally, the tensile yield strength and elongation of the processed materials are increased with the increase of passes.

Development of three kinds of active ternary filler metals of AI-Si-Ti, Zn-AI-Ti and Cu-AI-Ti systems for AI metal matrix composites

To improve the wettability of common fiUer metals on Al metal matrix composites （ AI-MMCs ） , three kinds of active ternary filler metals, Al-Si-Ti, Zn-Al-Ti and Cu-Al-Ti systems, were prepared by the addition of Ti. Excessive melting temperature made the gravity segregation of Ti remarkable in ingot. The effect of Ti content on the melting point for AI-Si-Ti ternary system was not as sensitive as that for Al-Ti binary system. The Al-12Si-1Ti filler metal showed good ability to form brazing foil during rapid cooling, ductile fracture surface and similar shear strength to conventional Al-12Si filler metal. Moreover, the Al2 03 reinforcements on initial surface could be covered by the Al-12Si-1Ti filler metal without interfacial gaps after sessile drop test. For Zn-9.5Al-0. 5 Ti braze alloy, severe vaporization of Zn and severe segregation of Ti Occurred. During wettability test for traditional Al-12Si and Zn-9.5Al-0. 5Ti, although some Si or Zn could penetrate into the composite, interfacial gap still remained. The prepared Cu-19Al-1 Ti interlayer consisted of primary phase of Al4Cu9 and network Cu-Al-Ti ternary intermetaUic compound, showing poor ability to form foil and very brittle nature. These results demonstrated that Al-Si-Ti system should be promising for Al-MMCs.

Thermal residual stresses and stress distributions under tensile and compressive loadings of short fiber reinforced metal matrix composites

The thermal residual stresses and the stress distributions of short fiber reinforced metal matrix composite under tensile and compressive loadings were studied using large strain axisymmetric elasto plastic finite element method. It is demonstrated that the thermal residual stresses can result in asymmetrical stress distributions and matrix plasticity. The thermal residual stresses decrease the stress transfer in tension and enhance the stress transfer in compression. The fiber volume fraction has more important effects on the thermal residual stresses and the stress distributions under tensile and compressive loadings than the fiber aspect ratio and the fiber end distance. [