| Summary: | Engineering applications of the recently developed zinc-aluminium casting alloys have been restricted due to certain inherent disadvantages such as segregation. However, segregation can be overcome by thorough mh:!ng of the melt and close temperature control or by rapid solidification of the melt, which can be achieved by squeeze casting. A more serious problem exists in service if components are subjected to a modest temperature increase to about 80°C, when there is a drastic loss of strength. It was therefore thought that the incorporation of ceramic fibres in the matrix could improve the properties of the material at modestly elevated temperatures. In the majority of engineering applications, stresses exist in more than one direction, so castings with isotropic properties are preferred and consequently reinforcement of composite in three dimensions would be necessary to maintain isotropic properties. An investigation was conducted to establish the influence of squeeze casting on the mechanical properties and structure of ZA-8, ZA-12 and ZA-27 alloys. The relationship between these factors and controlled process variables such as die temperature and applied squeeze pressure was established. The mechanical properties of the castings at room temperature and the effect of ageing at 95°C on tensile strength and dimensional changes were established. The results showed a substantial improvement in the tensile strength of the 'as-cast' squeeze cast alloys when compared with the 'as-cast' gravity die cast alloys. In the case of ZA-27 alloy, squeeze casting significantly improved ductility, which is a feature of benefit for all composite systems. The results also showed that pressure and die temperature substantially affect dimensional changes of the alloys when aged at 95°C. A major aspect of the research was the evaluation of the mechanical properties of the fibre reinforced ZA-27 alloy at elevated temperatures. Short silicon carbide fibres were randomly oriented in the matrix to obtain isotropic properties by a technique involving squeeze infiltration, followed by remelting and dispersal in the melt using specially designed equipments. Squeeze casting was used in the final stage of the composite fabrication. Castings of squeeze cast composite (with up to 10% volume fibre) and squeeze infiltrated composite (with up to 18-20% volume fibre) were produced with a sound structure and with fibres that were uniformly distributed and randomly oriented in three dimensions. It was found that the reaction between the fibres and molten alloy must be closely controlled for optimum properties of the composite. In this respect, the optimum time of contact between the fibre and the molten alloy was experimentally determined. It was found that the fibre supplied was of inferior tensile strength, which resulted in poor tensile strength of the tested composite up to a temperature of 100°C. However, the fibre brought substantial Improvement ln the tensile strength of the composite when tested at temperatures of 150 to 250°C. The modulus of elasticity of the composite was substantially improved at room temperature as well as at elevated temperature. The fatigue life of the squeeze cast composite was improved compared with squeeze cast matrix alloy (fibre-free). Squeeze cast composites with 3% volume fibre showed an Improvement in tribological properties compared with squeeze cast matrix alloy and squeeze cast and squeeze infiltrated composites with higher volume percentage of fibre. Wear of cutting tools was adversely affected by the presence of fibre.
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