Microstructure and Properties of In Situ Si and Fe-rich Particles Reinforced Al Matrix Composites Assisted with Ultrasonic Vibration

doi:10.1007/s40195-014-0125-4

Abstract

Abstract:

In this research, the in situ Si and Fe-rich particles reinforced Al matrix composites were fabricated by rheocasting (RC) process assisted with ultrasonic vibration (USV). After USV treatment, the polygonal primary Si crystals were refined into particles with average diameter of about 15-23 μm, and the fraction of primary Si declined to about 5.4-6.5 vol%. The coarse plate-like δ-Al₄(Fe,Mn)Si₂ phase was transformed into fine particles with average diameter of about 17-20 μm, and the fraction of particle-like Fe-bearing particles is about 3.6-5.3 vol%. The ultimate tensile strength of the RC composites increases with the increase of Fe content at 350°C. The increase of the elevated temperature strength of the composites is mainly attributed to the refinement of δ-Al₄(Fe,Mn)Si₂ phase and the increase of the volume fraction of the Fe-bearing compounds. Compared with the composites without USV, the RC composites assisted with USV have thinner mechanical mixing layer in wear test, which corresponds to smaller wear rate.

Key words: Fe-bearing phase, Metal matrix composites, Microstructure, Properties, Ultrasound

Lü Shulin, Wu Shusen, Lin Chong, An Ping. Microstructure and Properties of In Situ Si and Fe-rich Particles Reinforced Al Matrix Composites Assisted with Ultrasonic Vibration[J]. Acta Metallurgica Sinica (English Letters), 2014, 27(5): 862-869.

Figures/Tables 11

Table 1 Chemical compositions of the in situ particles reinforced Al composites (wt%)

Composites	Si	Fe	Cu	Ni	Mn	Mg	Al
C1	17	0.23	2	1	0.4	0.4	Balance
C2	17	2	2	1	0.8	0.4	Balance
C3	17	3	2	1	0.8	0.4	Balance

Fig. 1 Microstructures of the as-cast composites produced by conventional GC: a C1; b C2; c C3

Table 2 EDX results of intermetallic compounds in C2 composite produced by conventional GC (at%)

Compounds	Al	Si	Fe	Mn	Ni	Cu	Mg
B	50.96	30.77	14.48	2.63	0.82	0.33	-
C	75.69	13.78	7.43	1.44	1.05	0.62	-
D	68.01	11.36	11.89	6.29	0.69	1.1	0.66

Fig. 2 XRD patterns of the as-cast C2 a; C3 b composites produced by conventional GC

Fig. 3 Microstructures of the as-cast composites produced by RC: a C1; b C2; c C3

Fig. 4 XRD patterns of the as-cast C2 a, C3 b composites produced by RC

Table 3 Average diameters and volume fractions of reinforcements in C1, C2, and C3 composites with RC

Composites	Average diameter of particle-like δ phase (μm)	Volume fraction of Fe-bearing phase (vol%)	Average diameter of primary Si (μm)	Volume fraction of primary Si (vol%)	Total volume fraction of particles (vol%)
C1	-	-	27	9.3	9.3
C2	18	3.6	22	6.5	10.1
C3	20	5.3	23	5.4	10.7

Table 4 Mechanical properties of T6 treated C1, C2, and C3 composites produced by different processes

Process	Composites	At room temperature			At 350°C
Process	Composites	UTS (MPa)	Elongation (%)	Hardness (HB)	UTS (MPa)	Elongation (%)
GC	C1	278	0.72	112	110	1.41
	C2	236	0.53	127	123	0.90
	C3	196	0.28	141	120	0.45
RC	C1	306	0.93	119	116	1.55
	C2	289	0.70	139	132	1.18
	C3	262	0.35	150	135	0.55

Fig. 5 SEM fractographs of the tensile samples produced by different processes: a C2 by GC; b C2 by RC; c C3 by GC; d C3 by RC

Fig. 6 Wear rates of the composites produced by different processes as a function of applied load: a C1; b C2; c C3

Fig. 7 SEM images showing the subsurface of the C1 a, d, C2 b, e, and C3 c, f composites with USV a-c treatment and without USV treatment d-f after wear tests under a load of 200 N (arrow marks indicate the sliding direction)

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