Accumulative roll bonding was adapted to fabricate a carbon nanotube reinforced aluminum matrix composite. The microstructure was investigated by transmission electron microscopy, and it was confirmed that the nanotubes were embedded into the metal matrix while maintaining their multiwalled structure. Measurements revealed that the as-received carbon nanotubes had a bimodal diameter size distribution, while only nanotubes with diameters >30 nm and more than 30 walls were retained during four consecutive rolling operations at 50% reduction. The elastic deflection and vibration damping properties of the laminated composite were investigated by cantilever bending test and by impulse excitation method in samples with different concentrations of carbon nanotubes. Measurements by both methods revealed that a 0.23wt% concentration of nanotubes increased the elastic modulus according to the rule of mixtures and the damping behavior of the composites increased by the addition of nanotubes up to 0.1wt%. / Materials Engineering

Advanced aluminum graphite composites have unique thermal properties due to opposing coefficients of thermal expansion of aluminum and graphite. The thermal and mechanical properties of such composites are anisotropic due to directional properties of graphite fibers and their designed orientation. A joint with different fiber orientations would theoretically produce an isotropic material for thermal management. This paper presents results for welding and brazing of the composite using different joining techniques. Laser welding of Al-Gr composite showed that a power density above 30kW/mm2 gives a weld with microstructure defects. Also the laser beam melts the matrix and delaminates the graphite fibers. The molten aluminum reacts with graphite to form aluminum carbide (Al4C3). The joint strength is compromised when laser welding at optimal conditions to minimize the carbide formation. Also porosity and redistribution of graphite fibers is seen during laser welding. These defects prompt us to consider a low temperature joining. Brazing is considered since the low melting temperature of a filler material suppresses the formation of Al4C3 while minimizing pores and microstructural defects in the joint. Microstructural study and shear test are performed to analyze the joints. Shear strengths of brazed joints are determined to be 20-21MPa which is comparable to the composite shear strength (46.5MPa in x-y plane and 19MPa in z plane). The fracture surface is found to be mostly on the composite rather than in brazed material or along the interface. Also, the microstructural study showed no Al4C3 formation and minimal porosity in the brazed region. These results show a successful joining of the composite using laser brazing and resistance brazing methods.

A systematic method for quantitative characterisation of the topological properties of two-phase materials has been developed, which offers an effective way for the characterisation of twophase materials. In particular, a topological transformation has been proposed, which allows a two-phase microstructure with any grain size, grain shape and phase distribution to be transformed into a three-microstructural-element body (3-E body). It has been shown that the transformed 3·E body is mechanically equivalent along the aligned direction with the original microstructure. The Hall·Petch relation developed originally for single-phase metals and alloys has been successfully extended to two~ductile-phase alloys. It has been shown that the extended Hall- Petch relation can separate the individual contribution to the overall efficiency of different kinds of boundaries as obstacles to dislocation motion. A new approach to deformation behaviour of two-ductile-phase alloys has been developed based on Eshelby's continuum transformation theory and the microstructural characterisation developed in this thesis. In contrast to the existing theories of plastic deformation, this approach can consider the effect of microstructural parameters, such as volume fraction, grain size, grain shape and phase distribution. In particular, the interactions between particles of the same phase have also been taken into account by the topological transformation. Consequently, the newly developed theory can be applied in principle to a composite with any volume fraction. This approach has been applied to various two-ductile-phase alloys to predict the true stress·true strain curves, the internal stresses and the in situ stress and plastic strain distribution in each microstructural element. It is found that the theoretical predictions are in very good agreement with the experimental results drawn from the literature. A new approach has also been developed for the prediction of the Young's moduli of particulate two-phase composites. Applications of this approach to AVSiCp and Co/WCp composite systems and polymeric matrix composites have shown that the present approach is superior to both the Hashin and Shtrikman's bounds and the mean field theory in terms of the good agreement between the theoretical predictions and the experimental results from the literature. Furthermore, this approach can be extended to predict the Young's moduli of multiphase composites by iteration. This iteration approach has been tested on some Ti-6Al- 4V-TiB composites. An experimental investigation has being carried out to study the in situ Ti-6AI-4V-TiB (hereafter, Ti/TiB is used for convenience) metal matrix composites produced through a rapid solidification route. Production of in situ Ti/fiB metal matrix composites through rapid solidification route can completely exclude problems such as wetting and chemical reaction encountered by alternative production routes. The relevant microstructural phenomena in in situ Ti/TiB metal matrix composites, such as the growth habit of TiB phase and the w-phase transformation, have also been investigated. The TiB phase in the consolidated composites exhibits two distinguished morphologies: needle-shaped TiB and nearly equiaxed TiB. The needle-shaped TiB phase formed mainly from the solidification process always grows along the [010] direction of the B27 unit cell, leaving the cross-section of the needles consistently enclosed either by (100) and {101 1 type planes or by (100) and {102l type planes. It is also found that the cross-sections of the nearlyequiaxed TiB particles formed from the B supersaturated Ti solid solution are also bounded by the same planes as above, although the growth rate along the [010] direction has been considerably reduced. Experiments have also been perfonned to investigate the effect of pre-hipping heat treatments on the microstructure of RS products. It is found that pre-hipping heat treatments at a temperature below 800°C can lead to the precipitation of fine equiaxed TiB particles from the B super-saturated Ti solid solution, which are uniformly distributed throughout the a+B matrix. The majority of those TiB precipitates do not grow up by Ostwald ripening process after long time exposure at higher temperature. Microstructural examination has confirmed the existence of a B to w transformation in RS Ti- 6AI-4V alloys with and without B addition after consolidation. In addition, the B to w transformation has also been observed in RS Ti-Mn-B alloys after consolidation. Systematic electron diffraction work on the B-phase offers a strong experimental evidence for the B to W transformation mechanism proposed by Williams et al.

No description available.

Rapid modern technological changes and improvements bring great motivations in advanced material designs and fabrications. In this context, metal matrix composites, as an emerging material category, have undergone great developments over the past 50 years. Their primary applications, such as automotive, aerospace and military industries, require materials with increasingly strict specifications, especially high stiffness, lightweight and superior strength. For these advanced applications, carbon fiber reinforced aluminum matrix composites have proven their enormous potential where outstanding machinability, engineering reliability and economy efficiency are vital priorities. To contribute in the understanding and development of carbon fiber reinforced aluminum matrix composites, this study focuses on composite fabrication, mechanical testing and physical property modelling. The composites are fabricated by squeeze casting. Plain weave carbon fiber (AS4 Hexcel) is used as reinforcement, while aluminum alloy 6061 is used as matrix. The improvement of the squeeze casting fabrication process is focused on reducing leakage while combining thermal expansion pressure with post-processing pressing. Three different fiber volume fractions are investigated to achieve optimum mechanical properties. Piston-on-ring (POR) bend tests are used to measure the biaxial flexural stiffness and fracture strength on disc samples. The stress-strain curves and fracture surfaces reveal the effect of fiber-matrix interface bonding on composite bend behaviour. The composites achieved up to 11.6%, 248.3% and 90.1% increase in flexural modulus, strain hardening modulus and yield strength as compared with the unreinforced aluminum alloy control group, respectively. Analytical modelling and finite element modelling are used to comparatively characterise and verify the composite effective flexural modulus and strength. Specifically, they allowed iii evaluating how far the experimental results deviate from idealized assumptions of the models, which provides an insight into the composite sample quality, particularly at fiber-matrix interfaces. Overall, the models agree well with experimental results in identifying an improvement in flexural modulus up to a carbon fiber volume fraction of 4.81vol%. However, beyond a fiber content of 3.74vol%, there is risk of deterioration of mechanical properties, particularly the strength. This is because higher carbon fiber volume fractions restrict the infiltration and wetting of carbon fibre by the liquid, potentially leading to poor fiber-matrix interface bonding. It is shown that higher thermal expansion pressures and subsequent post-processing pressing can overcome this challenge at higher carbon fiber volume contents by reducing fiber-aluminum contact angle, improving infiltration, reducing defects such as porosity, and overall improving fiber-matrix bonding.

This research is a systematic study exploring a new fabrication methodology for long-fiber-reinforced metal matrix composites (MMCs) using a novel additive manufacturing technology. The research is devoted to the manufacture of long-fiber-reinforced MMC structures using the Ultrasonic Consolidation (UC) process. The main objectives of this research are to investigate the bond formation mechanisms and fiber embedment mechanisms during UC, and further to study the effects of processing parameters on bond formation and fiber embedment, and the resultant macroscopic mechanical properties of UC-made MMC structures. From a fundamental research point of view, bond formation mechanisms and fiber embedment mechanisms have been clarified by the current research based on various experimental observations. It has been found that atomic bonding across nascent metal is the dominant bond formation mechanism during the UC process, whereas the embedded fiber are mechanically entrapped within matrix materials due to significant plastic deformation of the matrix material during embedment. From a manufacturing process point of view, the effects of processing parameters on bond formation and fiber embedment during the UC process have been studied and optimum levels of parameters have been identified for manufacture of MMC structures. An energy-based model has been developed as a first step toward analytically understanding the effects of processing parameters on the quality of ultrasonically consolidated structures. From a material applications point of view, the mechanical properties of ultrasonically consolidated structures with and without the presence of fibers have been characterized. The effects on mechanical properties of UC-made structures due to the presence of embedded fibers have been discussed.

No description available.

No description available.

Ferroelectric and piezoelectric ceramic reinforced metal matrix composites are new materials being explored for vibration damping purposes. The high damping ability of ferroelectric and piezoelectric ceramics such as barium titanate (BaTiO3) and lead zirconate titanate (PZT) is due to the anelastic response of ferroelastic domain walls to applied external stress. In piezoelectric ceramics, vibration energy can also be dissipated through the direct piezoelectric effect if the appropriate electric circuit is connected across the ceramic. In this work we have examined the vibration damping behavior of BaTiO3, nickel-barium titanate (Ni-BaTiO3) composites and nickel-lead zirconate titanate (Ni-PZT) composites. BaTiO3 ceramics were fabricated by a combination of uniaxial pressing and cold isostatic pressing followed by sintering in air. Low frequency (0.1Hz-10Hz) damping capacity of BaTiO3, tanδ has been measured in three-point bend configuration on a dynamic mechanical analyzer. Tanδ has been found to increase with temperature up to the Curie temperature (Tc) of BaTiO3, after which there was a drop in damping capacity values due to the disappearance of ferroelectric domains above Tc. Furthermore within the frequency range tested, tanδ has been found to decrease with increasing vibration frequency. We also observed that tanδ decays with the number of vibration cycles (N). The decrease in tanδ with N, however, is fully recovered if BaTiO3 is heated above the Tc. Ni-BaTiO3 composite composed of a layer of BaTiO3 ceramic sandwiched between two layers of Ni were fabricated using a combination of electroless plating and electroforming. The damping behavior of the composite was analyzed in terms of the damping mechanisms below Tc and the damping mechanisms above Tc of BaTiO3. Below Tc, vibration damping ability of the composite was highly influenced by ferroelastic damping in the BaTiO3 component. Above the Curie temperature, the damping capacity was influence more by the inherent damping mechanisms in the nickel matrix. The damping mechanisms in Ni-PZT composites were evaluated at a low vibration frequency of 1Hz. In these composites we identified ferroelastic domain wall motion as the main damping mechanism active below the Tc of PZT. Using a poled PZT ceramic enhanced the damping capacity of the composite because of favorable ferroelastic domain orientation in the direction of applied stress. Based on our experimental results, we found no evidence of a direct piezoelectric damping mechanism in the Ni-PZT composites. / Ph. D.

A mathematical model has been created based on J.D. Eshelby's equivalent inclusion method that can predict the elastic modulus and damping capability in the form of Joule heat for any piezoelectric ceramic-reinforced metal matrix composite system. Specifically, barium titanate (BaTiO₃), lead titanate (PbTiO₃), and zinc oxide (ZnO) piezoelectric ceramics have been modeled as dispersed particles shaped as spheres, prolate spheroids, and discs within a host of common structural metallic matrices including 304 stainless steel, mild steel, aluminum, brass, copper, lead, magnesium, nickel, Ni-20wt%Cr, tin, titanium, Ti-6Al-4V(at%), and tungsten. Composite systems that were predicted to exhibit the greatest level of damping capacity include copper, aluminum, and magnesium matrices reinforced with PbTiO₃, BaTiO₃, and ZnO, in descending order of damping magnitude. In general, higher-conducting, lower-stiffness metallic matrices coupled with more-piezoelectric, higher-stiffness ceramic reinforcement resulted in the greatest level of predicted damping capability and enhanced composite elastic modulus. Additionally, a Ni-20wt%Cr-30v%BaTiO₃ composite has been created using mechanical alloying processing. Specifically, pure constituent powders were combined stoichiometrically in a SPEX milling vial utilizing a charge ratio of 4:1 and subsequently milled for 24 hours. Separate composite powder samples were then annealed in a hydrogen tube furnace at 400°C, 500°C, and 600°C for one and five hours at each temperature. X-ray diffraction was performed on the as-milled and the annealed powders revealing that each was composed of the starting constituents in the appropriate proportions. Representative powders were mounted and polished using common metallographic procedures and microstructures were examined by optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and transmission electron microscopy. All of the powders exhibited a good dispersion of BaTiO₃ particles ranging in diameter from 1μm to about 25nm with no noticeable difference between the as-milled and the annealed powders. / Master of Science