International Research Journal of Engineering and Technology (IRJET)
e-ISSN: 2395-0056
Volume: 10 Issue: 04 | Apr 2023
p-ISSN: 2395-0072
www.irjet.net
TRIBOLOGICAL STUDY ON HEAT-TREATEDALUMINIUM MATRIX COMPOSITES SARVESH CHINNIAH A1, KARTHIKEYAN R2, VIJAY KARIKALAN3, KATHIR BALAJI K4, Dr. KARUPPUSAMY T5 1, 2, 3 Department of Mechanical Engineering, Kumaraguru College of Technology, Coimbatore. 4 Senior Engineer, Titan Company Limited, Bangalore.
5 Assistant Professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Kumaraguru College of Technology, Coimbatore.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------***-------------------------------------------------------------------ABSTRACT Al 7075 composites are widely used in various industrial applications. The Al 7075 alloy was reinforced with Si3N4 and Al2O3 at different proportions. Composites were fabricated using the stir-casting method. The reinforcements were preheated at a temperature of around 250oC before adding it to the matrix. The casted composite is machined and turned to obtain the final specimen with the desired size. Casted specimens were age hardened at various temperatures ranging from 150oC – 200oC and quenched using water at room temperature to improve their mechanical properties such as hardness and wear characteristics. The aging period varied between 2 to 8 hours. Further, the micro-hardness of As-cast and heat-treated specimens were studied and the wear analysis was done on the specimen with higher hardness. Keywords: Aluminium 7075(Al7075), Silicon nitride (Si3N4), Alumina (Al2O3), Stir-casting, hardness, Heat treatment, Quenching, Wear analysis.
I.INTRODUCTION A Composite is a combination of two or more constituent materials each having distinct physical and chemical properties, which is composed of two phases namely matrix (continuous phase) and reinforcement (dispersed phase). These composites possess greater properties than their constituents. The aerospace industry demands materials with enhanced properties such as high strength, temperature- withstanding capability, fatigue resistance, wear resistance, etc. That’s where composite material comes into play with greater mechanical properties than conventional materials. Aluminium matrix composites reinforced with ceramics which are oxides, carbides, carbonates, nitrides, etc. This proved to display superior mechanical and physical properties that are applicable to the aerospace and automobile industry where wear has a significant effect on the lifespan and failure of the material.
II. LITERATURE REVIEW R. Pramod et al. studied the wear characteristics of Al7075 reinforced with Al 2O3 with the help of an Artificial Neural Network. Alumina particles of size 150 µm were added in the range of 2% – 6%wt. It was concluded that Aluminium composite with 6% wt. Al2O3 showed excellent wear resistance when compared to the other composite specimens [1]. Avinash Lakshmikanthan et al. conducted research on the mechanical and tribological properties of heat-treated A357 composite reinforced with dual-sized SiC. The size of SiC ranged from 140+10 µm to 30+5µm. Heat treatment of composite is done through aging at varying temperatures such as 160oC, 180oC, and 200oC for 6 hours. It was inferred that all the composite specimens showed superior mechanical properties in contrast to A357 [2]. A. Pramanik et al. studied the influence of reinforcement on metal matrix composite. Al6061 matrix was reinforced with 10%wt. Al2O3. The size of Al2O3 ranged from 6 to 18µm. From the study, it was proved that wear resistance was improved in all varying aspects such as sliding speed, load, and sliding distance. It was also inferred that wear resistance is drastically increased by means of resisting plastic deformation [3]. E. Rajkeerthi et al. conducted research on heat-treated aluminum matrix composite reinforced with 10%wt. Al2O3 to study its effect on hardness, tensile and compression properties. The aluminum 6000 series is used for the study. Heat treatment was done through quenching and precipitation hardening processes. It was concluded that the precipitation-hardened specimens displayed greater hardness when compared to quenched specimens [4]. P.S. Raghavendra Rao et al. performed a study on the mechanical characteristics of aluminum (LM6) matrix reinforced with silicon nitride. The percentage of silicon nitride ranged from 2 to 10 wt. %. It was found that agglomeration is reduced by a uniform distribution of matrix and reinforcements. It was also inferred that hardness, yield strength, and ultimate tensile were greatly improved when compared to the matrix alloy but with reduced ductility [5].
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