Tensile and Fracture Behavior of Bi-Containing Alloy Sintered on SAE 1010 Steel Sheet

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to investigate the fractural behavior of lead (Pb)-free material containing bismuth (Bi) that was developed to replace the Pb included in sintered copper (Cu)-based alloy for plain bearings. Mechanical properties and microstructure of two different sintered Cu-based alloys (CuSn10Pb10 and CuSn10Bi7) were compared and analyzed. Under tensile load, a CuSn10Pb10 layer is decomposed into powder and changed to form pores leading to an expansion. Therefore, even after tensile elongation, the matrix itself did not stretch, with no work hardening. However, in the case of CuSn10Bi7, a Bi kept its original shape, resulting in it being the same length as the steel plate, where the hardness and strength increased due to the effect of work hardening. These results suggested that the performance of the alloys was different under a high tensile load, where plain bearings usually undergo tensile deformation.