Effect of SiO 2 amount on microstructures and tensile properties of alumina short fiber-reinforced composites by low-pressure infiltration method

Abstract

The tensile properties of two types of alumina (Al₂O₃ and Al₂O₃–SiO₂) and short fiber-reinforced A366 alloy composite created by low-pressure infiltration have been studied. The applied pressure and temperature of molten alloy are 0.4 MPa and 1073 K, respectively. The composite containing 10 vol.% of fiber preform was sectioned and the microstructure was observed by scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy. Tensile properties of Al₂O₃ fiber-reinforced A366 alloy composites were investigated, in conjunction with investigation of effects of amounts of SiO₂ sol added as binder to fabricated preform and effects of changed chemical composition of Al₂O₃ fiber. The composite with SiO₂ sol of 8 mass% has higher relative density in comparison with composite with SiO₂ sol of 2 mass%. SiO₂ sol raised the relative density of composite by the reaction with aluminum. In addition, the ultimate tensile strength of composite which has Al₂O₃ fiber-reinforced A366 alloy composite containing SiO₂ sol of 8 mass% was approximately 20% higher than that of Al₂O₃–SiO₂ fiber-reinforced A366 alloy composite containing SiO₂ sol of 8 mass%.

Keywords

low-pressure infiltration composites short fiber tensile strength fracture behavior

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