Characterization, corrosion and failure strength analysis of Al7075 influenced with B4C and Nano-Al2O3 composite using online acoustic emission

Abstract

Abstract This paper aims to establish the mechanical, corrosion and failure analysis using online acoustic emission of Al7075 alloy, Al7075-B4C composite and Al7075- B4C-Al2O3 hybrid composite with different Boron Carbide (B4C) content of 5, 10, 15 & 20% and Nano Aluminium Oxide (Al2O3) content of 2% on a weight basis with the high energy stir casting method. The casted samples have been characterized by x-ray Diffraction (XRD), Thermo gravimetric analysis (TGA/DSC), Energy Dispersive Spectrum (EDS), and Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM). In case of hybrid composite, the hardness and the tensile strength decrease when the content of Al2O3 increases. However, in the present research, the addition of B4C with nano Al2O3 particles in certain proportions has increased the hardness and tensile strength. In addition, the tensile fractographs of the specimens were analysed using SEM. Acoustic Emission (AE) method was used for monitoring the acoustic energy that are released at the time of deformation process and early crack detection. The influence of the volume fraction of the B4C particulates on the microstructural and corrosion characteristics of Al7075- B4C with nano Al2O3 metal matrix composites (MMCs) was also studied. It has been observed from the literature that the direct strengthening of composites occurs due to the presence of hard ceramic phase, while the indirect strengthening arises from the thermal mismatch between the matrix alloy and reinforcing phase during solidification. Based on the database for material properties, the application area of HAMCs has been proposed in the present review. The effects of nanomaterial dispersion in the metal matrix and the formation of interfacial precipitates on these properties are also addressed. Particular attention is paid to the fundamentals and the structure–property relationships of such novel Nano composites.