No abstract

The present study investigated the microstructure, mechanical and corrosion behaviour of Al6061 alloy reinforced with nano zirconium diboride (ZrB2) particles. The stir casting route is carried out to fabricate the Al6061 metal matrix nano composites (AMMNCs) by varying 0 to 2 Wt. % of ZrB2 nanoparticles. X-ray Diffraction (XRD) was used to study the crystalline size and phase distribution of AMMNCs. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) analysis reveals the uniform dispersion of ZrB2 nano particulates in AMMNCs. Ultimate tensile strength and yield strength, hardness of the AMMNCs were increased by 33.58 %, 27.54 %, and 40.57 %, respectively, with the addition of ZrB2 nano particulates, while the elongation decreased to 46.03 %. with the increase in ZrB2 Wt. %. The corrosion rate of AMMNCs (2 Wt. % ZrB2) decreased by 86% compared to Al 6061 alloy. Fracture analysis of the samples showed that the fracture behaviour of Al6061 matrix alloy changed from ductile inter granular fracture to cleavage. The results show that the developed nano composite enhances mechanical properties and corrosion resistance with an increase in Wt. % of reinforcement.

Aluminum matrix composites (AMCs) are crucial to the progress of composite application areas due to their remarkable mechanical properties. Their usage has expanded into different fields such as the aerospace, automobile, and defense industries. The present study used wrought Al alloy AA6061 as the matrix, while ilmenite (FeTiO3) particles were used as reinforcement at different weight percentages to prepare metal matrix composites. One of the most economical and simple casting routes among the several available fabrication techniques for the preparation of composites is the stir casting method, which was applied in the present investigation to prepare the AMCs. The machinability of the fabricated composites and the surface roughness property after machining were studied to understand the effect of speed and feed during machining. The results showed that an increase in speed decreased the cutting forces and the surface roughness. Meanwhile, an increase in surface roughness was observed with an increase in feed.