Wear behavior of as‐cast and heat treated triple particle size SiC reinforced aluminum metal matrix composites

Abstract

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to study the wear behavior of as‐cast (AC) and heat treated (HT) triple particle size (TPS) silicon carbide (SiC) reinforced aluminum alloy‐based metal matrix composites (SiCp/Al‐MMC).Design/methodology/approachAl‐MMCs were prepared using 20 vol.% SiC reinforcement into aluminum metal matrix and developed using a stir casting process. Stir casting is a primary process of composite production whereby the reinforcement ingredient material is incorporated into the molten metal by stirring. The TPS composite consist of SiC of three different sizes viz., coarse, intermediate, and fine. The solution heat treatment was done on AC composite at 540°C for 4 h followed by precipitation treatment. The wear test was carried out using a pin‐on‐disc type tribo‐test machine under dry sliding condition. A mathematical analysis was also done for power factor values based on wear and friction results. The wear morphology of the damaged surface was also studied using optical microscope and scanning electron microscope (SEM) in this investigation.FindingsThe test results showed that HT composite exhibited better wear resistance properties compared to AC composite. It is anticipated that heat treatment could be an effective method of optimizing the wear resistance properties of the developed Al‐MMC material.Practical implicationsThis paper provides a way to enhance the wear behavior of automotive tribo‐components such as brake rotor (disc and drum), brake pad, piston cylinder, etc.Originality/valueThis paper compares the wear behavior of AC and HT TPS reinforced Al‐MMC material under dry sliding condition.