Microstructural evolution and mechanical properties of in situ TiB2/Al composites fabricated with exothermic reaction process under high-intensity ultrasound produced by the magnetostrictive transducer were investigated. In this method, the microstructure and grain refining performance of the TiB2/Al composites were characterized by optical morphology(OM), scanning electron microscopy(SEM), energy-dispersive spectrometer(EDS), and X-ray diffraction(XRD) analysis.Microstructural observations show a decreasing trend in the grain size of the composites due to the ultrasound and the content of TiB2 particles in the composites. Compared with the process without ultrasound, the morphology and agglomeration of TiB2 particles are improved by high-intensity ultrasound. Meanwhile, it is proposed that the formation of TiB2 particles occurs via the transformation from Ti Al3, and at the optimal amount of the reactants, the conversion efficiency of Ti Al3 into TiB2 almost reaches up to 100 %. Finally, the effects of high-intensity ultrasound and TiB2 particles on the mechanical properties of the TiB2/Al composites were also discussed.
The mechanical and tribological properties of Cu-based powder metallurgy(P/M) friction composites containing 10wt%–50wt% oxide-dispersion-strengthened(ODS) Cu reinforced with nano-Al_2O_3 were investigated. Additionally, the friction and wear behaviors as well as the wear mechanism of the Cu-based composites were characterized by scanning electron microscopy(SEM) in conjunction with energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy(EDS) elemental mapping. The results indicated that the Cu-based friction composite containing 30wt% ODS Cu exhibited the highest hardness and shear strength. The average and instantaneous friction coefficient curves of this sample, when operated in a high-speed train at a speed of 300 km/h, were similar to those of a commercial disc brake pad produced by Knorr-Bremse AG(Germany). Additionally, the lowest linear wear loss of the obtained samples was(0.008 ± 0.001) mm per time per face, which is much lower than that of the Knorr-Bremse pad((0.01 ± 0.001) mm). The excellent performance of the developed pad is a consequence of the formation of a dense oxide composite layer and its close combination with the pad body.
High-performance Al–Cu–Mg alloy was fabricated by high-energy ball milling, sintering, and hot extrusion. The microstructure and mechanical properties of the material were preliminarily investigated. Results show that the formation of liquid phase during sintering promotes the densification of the aluminum powders. A97.1 % theoretical density is achieved in this alloy after sintering. The material shows excellent mechanical properties after extrusion and heat treatment. The ultimate tensile strength and yield strength of the extruded samples with heat treatment are 613 and 465 MPa, respectively.
Wei-Wei YangZhi-Meng GuoHui-Qin CaoJi LuoAn-Ping Ye
In this study, two kinds of WC–Co coatings with different decarburization levels were deposited by high-velocity oxy-fuel(HVOF) spraying using the ultrafine WC–Co composite powder and commercial micronsized powder, respectively. The hardness and elastic modulus were measured on the top surface and cross sections of the prepared coatings by the nanoindentation method. The results show that the ultrafine-structured coating has much higher density and inhibited decarburization than the conventional coating, which thus results in higher hardness and elastic modulus values than the micronsized coating. The wear resistance of thermal-sprayed cermet coatings greatly depends on the cross-sectional hardness and elastic modulus which reflects the bond strength between splats to some extent. Based on the analysis, a better understanding of the microstructure and properties in cermet coating materials was obtained.
