Highly sliding-wear resistant B4C composites fabricated by spark-plasma sintering with Ti–Al additives

Kim

et al. 2021

Metals

In this study, to evaluate the effect of boron carbide (B4C) addition on the wear performance of aluminum (Al), Al6061 and 5, 10, and 20 vol.% B4C/Al6061 composites were manufactured using the stir casting and hot rolling processes. B4C particles were randomly dispersed during the stir casting process; then, B4C particles were arranged in the rolling direction using a hot rolling process to further improve the B4C dispersion and wear resistance of the composites. Furthermore, a continuous interfacial layer between B4C and the Al6061 matrix was generated by diffusion of titanium (Ti) and chromium (Cr) atoms contained in the Al6061 alloy. Wear depth and width of the composites decreased with increasing B4C content. Furthermore, with B4C addition, coefficient of friction (COF) improved as compared with that of Al6061. The results indicate that interface-controlled, well-aligned B4C particles in the friction direction can effectively increase the wear properties of Al alloys and improve their hardness.

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effect of Boron Carbide Addition on Wear Resistance of Aluminum Matrix Composites Fabricated by Stir Casting and Hot Rolling Processes

Kim

et al. 2021

Metals

“…The high abundance of 10 B renders B 4 C a suitable material for ideal neutron radiation shielding [2]. In addition, B 4 C has others attractive properties, such as ultra-high hardness, low density, and stable molecular structure, and is widely used in bulletproof armor [3], wear-resistant components [4], and refractories [5]. However, pure B4C presents challenges in densification through sintering [3,6] and exhibits poor fracture toughness (about 3.7 MPa•m 1/2 ) [7,8], which hinders its development and application.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Influence of B4C Particle Size on the Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of B4C/Al Composites Fabricated by Pressureless Infiltration

Liu

Peng

Wei

et al. 2023

Metals

To investigate the effect of B4C particle size on the microstructure and mechanical properties of B4C/Al composites, and to provide theoretical guidance for the subsequent thermal processing of composites, B4C/Al composites with varying B4C particle sizes (0.2 µm, 0.5 µm, 1 µm, 10 µm) were fabricated using pressureless infiltration. The microstructure of the composites was characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM), while the mechanical properties were analyzed by hardness test, three-point bending and high temperature compression. The results indicated that Al3BC and AlB2 were the primary interfacial reaction products in B4C/Al composites, and interface reaction could be alleviated with increasing particle size. B4C/Al composites with larger B4C particle sizes exhibited a relatively uniform and discrete distribution of B4C, while those with smaller B4C particle sizes showed agglomeration of B4C. The Vickers hardness and peak flow stress of B4C/Al composites gradually decreased with the increase of B4C particle size, while the bending strength, flexural modulus, and fracture toughness tended to increase. In addition, when B4C particle size was 10 µm, the composites displayed optimal comprehensive performance with the lowest peak flow stress (150 MPa) and the highest fracture toughness (12.75 MPa·m1/2).

“…The liquid phase proceeding from the additives reacts with solid-state particles in the material and forms new phases, which appear in a multi-particulate microstructure [ 14 ]. Despite these advantages, liquid-phase sintering is not entirely adequate because the remaining intergranular phase irretrievably impairs the hardness and fire resistance of the resulting B 4 C composites [ 15 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Intriguingly, in the specific case of boron carbide, its reaction with the sintering additive will automatically produce other borides and carbides, which exhibit similar, although a lower than B 4 C, hardness. This method of sintering has come to be applied to boron carbide very recently, many types of research performed so far show that the obtained composites, based on boron carbide and the sintering additive exhibit better properties, such as hardness [ 16 , 17 ], fracture toughness [ 16 , 17 ], Young’s modulus [ 16 ], and abrasion [ 15 ] than the bulk boron carbide ceramics fabricated under always interchangeable conditions [ 14 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Ceramic Matrix Composites Obtained by the Reactive Sintering of Boron Carbide with Intermetallic Compounds from the Ti-Si System

et al. 2022

In this study, we investigated the effect of adding two different intermetallics, Ti5Si3 and TiSi2, for the preparation of TiB2-SiC-B4C composites. As part of the research, stoichiometric composites consisting only of two phases TiB2 and SiC were obtained. The TiB2-SiC-B4C composites were prepared via pressureless sintering. The presence of the phases in the sintered composites was confirmed using X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy. The SEM-EDS examination revealed that the TiB2 and SiC phases were formed during the composite process synthesis and were distributed homogeneously in the B4C matrix. The obtained results allowed us to usually exceed 2000 °C and the use of specialized equipment for firing, that is, vacuum or protective atmosphere furnaces as well as control and measurement equipment. Such an approach generates high costs that are decisive for the economics of the technological processes. In the case of our compositions, it is possible to lower the temperature to 1650 °C. The TiB2-SiC-B4C composites were classified as UHTCs.