Tribological and aging behavior of hybrid Al 7075 composite reinforced with B4C, SiC, and TiB2

Abstract

In this study, B4C+SiC/B4C +TiB2/SiC+TiB2 hybrid reinforcements were added to Al 7075 matrix via the powder metallurgy method. The powders were subjected to mechanical grinding for 240 min, as shown in the graphical abstract. The hybrid composite powder structure produced by the mechanical grinding was then placed in a vertical casting chamber and molten Al 7075 (main matrix) was added to obtain the samples. Samples were dissolved for 1 h at 480 ?C, and then aged at 120 ?C in 4-h increments (32 h in total). After the aging process, the wear behavior of the samples was investigated. In the study, FESEM images were examined for microstructural analysis, and hardness plots of the aged samples were created depending on the time after the solutioning treatment. The friction coefficient, volume loss, and worn surface images were investigated to determine the wear behavior of the hybrid structures. Results showed that the increased reinforcement rate and the reinforcement size and type directly affected the hardness and wear behavior. In the experiments, the highest hardness and wear resistance behavior were obtained in the hybrid sample of 3% B4C + 3% SiC after 12 h of aging.