Effect of post-fabrication processing on the tensile properties of centrifugally cast silicon carbide particulate reinforced aluminum composites

• Main Author: Muller, Kurt Alwin.
• Other Authors: Dutta, Indranath
• Language: en_US
• Published: Monterey, California. Naval Postgraduate School 2014
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10945/39984

Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited. === A centrifugally cast A356 aluminum-matrix composite reinforced with silicon carbide (SiC) particles was thermo-mechanically processed by rolling and the resulting properties were studied. Tensile testing, hardness testing and optical microscopy were conducted. This study included evaluations of the mechanical properties of the composite following rolling at varying strains, temperature, strain per pass and aging treatments. The effects of both single and multi-step rolling processes were evaluated, and the composites were tested following solution treatment. Testing revealed that the ductility was associated with progressive homogenization of the particulate distribution at increasing strain levels. It was found that rolling just under the solvus temperature produced poorer mechanical properties for the composite than for those rolled at a temperature significantly above or below the solvus temperature. Strain per pass was found to have insignificant effect on the final properties, with total strain being the controlling factor. For equal strength conditions, the underaged composite was more ductile than the overaged composite.