EXPERIMENTAL AND NUMERICAL INVESTIGATIONS OF

ALUMINIUM METAL MATRIX COMPOSITES

1. INTRODUCTION

The limitations on the monolithic materials with their basic

properties, including density, strength, toughness and stiffness, increase the
demand for new materials. With the advances in material technology,
composites are introduced to fulfil the void that exists in the material research
by combining high strength and lightweight materials. Particularly among
composites, the metal matrix composites became popular for their high
strength in addition to wear and damping resistance. Further, the metal matrix
composites are explored with different reinforcing materials of low cost and
low density. Among different reinforcing materials, particulate
reinforcements are more focused by researchers due to its manufacturability
combined with isotropic properties.

Hence, many studies began to explore the possible combinations of

particulate reinforcements, especially with the concern of optimizing the
reinforcement inclusion percentages. The main aim of this optimization was
to identify the optimized enhanced properties of the metal matrix composite.
With the assistance of literature, it can be clearly understood that more studies
(Manu et al., 2016; Pazhouhanfar and Eghbali, 2018; Pournaderi and Akhlaghi,
2017; Marachakkanavar et al., 2017) are concerned with Al6061 reinforcements,
which is also known as aluminium–magnesium–silicon alloy. Massive
applications of Al6061 in various fields and, in particular, in the areas of
aircraft, marine, automotive are notable. With the growing applications of
Al6061, many new reinforcing materials have started to blend with Al6061.
However, taken into consideration the recent developments seeking better
solutions than the existing material properties, this study took the opportunity
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to explore the inclusion of three different particle-reinforcing materials, which

includes zirconia (ZrO2), zirconia+ alumina (ZrO2 +Al2O3) and fused zirconia
alumina (40FZA) in which fused zirconia alumina is a novel candidate
material used in this study. For analysing the effectiveness of the candidate
materials, various behavioural analyses were performed, including
mechanical, tribological and corrosion behaviours. In order to improve the
reliability of the results, numerical analysis was performed along with the
experimental analysis. As this study contains different candidate materials and
behavioural criteria, multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) methodology
was adopted. Although there are many existing methodologies, a numerical
modelling approach, Visual PROMETHEE, was adopted. With this concern,
to fulfil the aim of the research, the following objectives were made:

o To explore the various behaviours, including mechanical,

tribological and corrosion, of Al6061 with different
reinforcement inclusion percentages.

o To identify and compare the effectiveness of different

percentages (5%, 10% and 15%) of inclusion of zirconia,
zirconia+ alumina and fused zirconia alumina with Al6061.

o To compare and identify the best reinforcement material along

with reinforcement percentage through Preference Ranking
Organization Method for Enrichment Evaluations (Visual
PROMETHEE), a numerical modelling approach.
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1.1 Proposed research framework

Figure 1.1 Proposed research framework of the study

ORGANIZATION OF THESIS

Chapter 1 introduces the terminologies existing within the

considered concepts, including definitions, research objectives and research
framework.

Chapter 2 reviews the existing literatures in the considered field.

This section is broadly classified into two subsections, namely metal matrix
composite and applications of MCDM in composite materials. Further, this
chapter concludes with the research gap analysed from the literature review.
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Chapter 3 deals with the experimental investigations of the

considered three candidate reinforcement materials, which include ZrO2,
Al2O3 and 40FZA. Three different properties (mechanical, tribological and
corrosion) were tested under ASTM standards. Finally, the findings are being
used for numerical analysis.

Chapter 4 proposes a numerical model with the assistance of

Visual PROMETHEE, a multi-criteria decision-making tool. It combines all
the experimental outputs and formulates them as inputs and processes.

Chapter 5 discusses the various results obtained from the

experimental investigations of the three materials. The microstructural
analysis of the composites before and after the investigations is also compared
with the base metal. The validation of the results is obtained through the
numerical model.

Chapter 6 concludes with the findings of the study along with the
useful discussions and implications. Further, the acknowledgements and
recommendations are provided, which can be formulated as a research
objective in the future.

2. REVIEW OF LITERATURE

Many studies exist with the concept of Al6061 reinforcement

optimization; hence, the recent, highly cited studies are listed below along
with the literature gap as a subsection.

Panwar and Chauhan (2018) used the Taguchi technique to

optimize the Al6061–redmud composite considering the factors such as
particle size, ageing and reinforcement. The tensile behaviour was found to
analyse the effect of the above-mentioned variables. This study concludes that
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there is a strong correlation between the particle size and impact strength of
the Al6061–redmud composite.

Pazhouhanfar and Eghbali (2018) studied the different percentages

of inclusion of K2TiF6 reinforcements with the respective weights, including
3%, 6% and 9% in Al-TiB2. Various properties have been studied, which
includes mechanical strength, fracture toughness and microhardness. The
specimens were fabricated using stir-casting method. From this study, it can
be confirmed that the mechanical properties have been improved by 6% with
the inclusion of 9% of K2TiF6 reinforcements in Al-TiB2.

Sharma et al. (2018) studied the impact of different tool rotational

speeds in the properties of Al6061–SiC–graphite hybrid composites. The
composite fabrication was done through friction stir processing. With respect
to the tool rotational speed, the microstructure, axial deformation and
spectroscopic characterization were analysed. For this experimental testing,
nano-indentation has been used. Furthermore, the result obtained indicates
that the tool rotational speed positively affects the mechanical properties of
the considered composite.

Jadhav et al. (2018) considered the Al6061/Al2O3 metal matrix

composite and optimized it using Taguchi methods. This study considered the
effect of drill geometry, cutting parameters and reinforcement percentage and
analysed the enhancements of mechanical properties of the composite
materials. In addition, this study shed light on the exploration of cost-effective
surface finish and machining parameters through the optimization obtained
from this study.

Thirumoorthy et al. (2018) made a review on the particulate

reinforcement in composites. This study suggested that there are many
opportunities existing for the green composites to enhance the environmental
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properties of the materials. In addition, very few studies are reported in the
field of nitrides and oxides particulate reinforcements in aluminium
composites.

Kumar and Megalingam (2018) studied the composite material,

Al6061/alumina/graphite/redmud hybrid composite, in the application of
brake rotor under the concern of its tribological behaviour. This study
considered three different redmud particulate reinforcements, including 3%,
7% and 11%, by which it has been identified that 11% inclusion of redmud
particulate improves the wear resistance up to 90% and coefficient of friction
up to 48%.

2.1 Research Gap

The inclusion of particle reinforcements with Al6061 has been

reported in various studies. Some studies focused on the applications of
nanocomposites with Al6061; many studies (Manu et al., 2016; Pazhouhanfar
and Eghbali, 2018; Pournaderi and Akhlaghi, 2017; Marachakkanavar et al.,
2017) explored Al6061 with various matrices, as there is enough room left
behind for further research. However, previous studies only focused on one or
two particle reinforcements that are also more conventional. Very few
researchers have concentrated on zirconia reinforcement with aluminium
matrix. Fused zirconia alumina is a novel candidate material, and to find the
unique properties of this material when reinforced with aluminium, this study
focused on the reinforcement of zirconia and alumina in aluminium matrix.

3. MATERIALS AND METHODS

3.1 Materials

Al6061 alloy was used as a base metal for this study. The chemical
composition of Al6061 is shown in Table 3.1. In addition, three different
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reinforcing materials, zirconia (ZrO2), zirconia+ alumina (ZrO2 +Al2O3) and

fused zirconia alumina (40FZA), were included as the reinforcements.
Zirconia and alumina have been used with Al6061 with various perspectives.
Both these materials provide high toughness and high mechanical strength.
However, this study introduced a novel combination, fused zirconia alumina
(40FZA), which is an abrasive mainly used in the manufacturing of grinding
wheel. Table 3.1 shows the chemical composition of 40FZA.

Table 3.1. Chemical composition of Al6061 (wt %) and 40FZA (wt %)

Chemical composition of Al6061 (wt %)

Element Cr Fe Mg Mn Si Zn Ti Cu Al

Amount (wt%) 0.35 0.7 1.2 0.15 0.8 0.25 0.15 0.40 Bal

Chemical composition of 40FZA (wt %)

Element ZrO2 Al2O3 SiO2 TiO2 Fe2O3 MgO

Amount
59% 40% 0.2% 0.25% 0.2 0.35%
(wt%)

3.2 Specimen preparation

For casting all the specimens, stir-casting technique was adopted

due to its applicability advantages over other existing techniques. With the
optimized temperature of 900°C, an appropriate quantity of Al6061 was
melted; further, the molten Al6061 was stirred well with the assistance of MS
stirrer. In order to create a vortex, this stirring process was maintained at 400-
500 rpm for 15 minutes. On the other hand, zirconia powder was preheated
for 1 hour by maintaining the temperature at 300°C. With the assistance of
vortex created in previous steps, the preheated zirconia was introduced into
the vortex, based on the percentages of inclusion, 5%, 10% and 15%. Based
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on the percentages of inclusion, the injection time was varied. The molten
aluminium along with the reinforcement was stirred for 5 minutes.
Throughout the process, argon gas was supplied to prevent the oxidation of
the composites. The same procedure was repeated for all reinforcements with
different percentages of inclusion. Finally, the molten mixture of Al6061 and
corresponding particle reinforcements were poured into the mild steel die .
This die was preheated at 300°C. Table 3.2 shows the different percentages of
inclusion of different candidate reinforcing materials.

Table 3.2 List of considered alternative reinforcements and their mix

propositions

Reinforcements Notation Alternative mix proportion

A1 Al6061+5% ZrO2
A2 Al6061+10% ZrO2
Al6061+ zirconia A3 Al6061+15% ZrO2

A4 Al6061 + 5% ZrO2 +5% Al2O3

A5 Al6061 + 10% ZrO2+ 10%Al2O3

Al6061+ zirconia+ alumina A6 Al6061 + 15% ZrO2 +15% Al2o3

A7 Al6061 + 5% 40FZA
Al6061+fused zirconia A8 Al6061 + 10% 40FZA
alumina A9 Al6061 + 15% 40FZA
Al6061 A10 100% Al6061

3.3 Methods

Experimental and numerical methods were adopted to analyse the

behaviour of Al6061 by varying the percentages of inclusion of reinforcement
materials.
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3.3.1 Microstructural Characterization

To find the elemental composition and to determine the

crystallographic properties of the components, EDS and XRD analyses were
carried out. Optical microscopy and scanning electron microscopy (SEM)
analyses were also performed on the composites to observe the bonding and
distribution of reinforcements in the matrix.

3.3.2 Experimental investigation

To satisfy the aim of the study, experimental investigations were

done to explore the mechanical, tribological and corrosion behaviours of the
proposed reinforcement inclusion.

Archimedes’ method was used to investigate the experimental

density of the composites by weighing small pieces cut from the specimens.
In addition, based on the known densities of the matrix alloy and the
reinforcements the theoretical density was calculated using the rule of
mixtures.

(a) Mechanical tests

Under the mechanical behaviour, tensile, impact, hardness and

fracture toughness were explored. The tensile test was conducted, based on
the ASTM: E-8 standard, on the universal testing machine having a capacity
of 200 tonnes. Next, the microhardness of the test specimens was measured.
This study adopted Vickers hardness test to identify the hardness of the test
specimens, and the test was done as per the ASTM E10-14 standard. A
maximum of 250 kgf load was applied to the testing specimen withstanding
up to 10 sec with a 5-mm-diameter indentation. Impact strength was
measured by using the Charpy impact test based on the ASTM E23-12C
standard. Similar to the tensile test, the plane-strain fracture toughness was
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measured using universal testing machine. All the tests were performed
under the ASTM: E399-83 standards. The load was increased substantially to
observe the increase in fracture toughness. The surfaces of the broken pieces,
in both tensile test and plane strain fracture toughness test, were analysed
through SEM to identify the nature of failure.

b) Tribological test

The testing specimens were explored for their tribological behaviour with the
assistance of DUCOM pin-on-disc test. An abrasive wear test was performed
on all the specimens. By maintaining a load of 10 N and a rotational speed of
320 rev/min, the abrasive wear test was conducted using a grade 80 abrasive
paper. For successful results, the number of trials was limited to 6, and the
diameter of the disc was maintained at 160 mm and the rotation was allowed
for 60 s for all testing specimens. Based on the mass differentiation of the
testing specimen before and after the wear test, the abrasive wear was
calculated to identify the effective alternative candidate material, which has
high resistance towards wear. For visual analysis, scanning electron
microscope was used to identify the nature of the wear on the surface of test
specimens.

c) Corrosion tests

To identify the corrosion resistance of the proposed reinforcement

inclusion, three types of corrosion environment, namely acid (HCl), base
(NaOH) and salt (NaCl), were considered to perform the above-mentioned
corrosion test, respectively. Based on the test, the corrosion rate was
identified for each of the corrosion environment on different alternative
reinforcement mix propositions. For all the test conditions, the testing
specimens were allowed to induce corrosion for a maximum of 28 days.
Every second day, the specimens were weighed for the mass loss and its
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corrosion rate was determined to obtain more clarity on the reinforcement

corrosion properties. The experiments were conducted based on the referred
standards for all test specimens. The corroded surfaces were observed by
scanning electron microscope. Electrochemical corrosion tests were also
performed to identify the cyclic voltammetry curves, Tafel polarization curves
and impedance spectroscopy images. Corrosion rates were calculated using
the Tafel curves and were compared with the corrosion rates determined
through the immersion test.

3.3.3 Numerical analysis

To select the optimized reinforcement of Al6061 and also to find

the optimized behaviour of the reinforced composite, the experimental results
of all the samples were given as inputs to the numerical analysis, and
depending upon the behaviour, maximum and minimum results were
identified. However, this study considered only 10 different alternative
options, but in real-time applications, numerous options may be considered.
In addition, it can highly help the researchers to explore different evaluating
criteria. With this consideration, this study adopts the MCDM for optimizing
the best alternative particle reinforcement for Al6061. As mentioned earlier,
there are many tools that are evident over the years under the umbrella term of
MCDM, and some of the methods are quite eligible for exploring the
behaviours of the given alternatives. In the row, analytical hierarchy process
(AHP), TOPSIS, ELECTRE and PROMETHEE have been widely used by
researchers. Among these methods, Visual PROMETHEE gained more
popularity in recent years because of the explicit advantages over selecting
the optimized solution over the other.

4 RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

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The three different reinforcing materials in Al6061 composite

provide various results respective with the methods of experimentation as
follows:

a) Microstructural characterization

The energy-dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) quantitative results of

ZrO2, Al2O3, 40FZA and Al6061 powders show the presence of their
respective components with appropriate ratios. SEM images of ZrO 2 powder
are found to be agglomerated in big clusters. The SEM images of 40FZA
powder show fine crystalline structured particles. The X-ray powder
diffraction (XRD) analysis showed peaks indicating the presence of the
matrix component, aluminium. As the reinforcements increased, peaks of
alumina and zirconia were also identified. Optical micrograph images of
Al6061 composites show ZrO2 particles at grain boundaries in dendrite and
non-dendrite shapes. The SEM images of all the composite materials showed
homogeneous distribution and deep penetration of reinforcement in molten
aluminium. Strong structural bonding was analysed with effect of the
inclusion of the reinforcement materials with different reinforcing
percentages. SEM images of the zirconia reinforced composite showed some
Zro2 particles agglomerated in the interdendritic regions. With the
observation, the optical micrograph and SEM images of Al6061 with fused
zirconia alumina with Al6061 showed better performance than the other
considered existing reinforcements.

b) Mechanical behaviour

As the reinforcements increased, the values obtained from the

experimental results were found to be decreasing whereas the values obtained
from the theoretical calculations were found to be increasing than the base
metal’s value. This may be due to the presence of entrapped gases during
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vortex formation, increase in surface area contact with air, pouring distance
from crucible to mould or shrinkage during solidification.

Improvement in ultimate tensile strength with an increase in the

reinforcement was observed. This may be due to the effective load transfer
from the matrix to the reinforcement during tensile loading and the perfect
adhesion between aluminium and the reinforcements through good wetting
behaviour. The ultimate tensile strength of fused zirconia alumina reinforced
composite was found to be very much higher when compared to zirconia and
alumina reinforced matrix. Its small crystal size and unique columnar
microstructure were the main reasons for their increase in the tensile strength.
However, the tensile strength of the Al6061 was found to be slightly higher
than the reinforced composites due to its tough and ductile nature.

The addition of the reinforcement in the aluminium matrix showed a

mild decrease in the impact strength than the base metal, but the addition of
40FZA in the aluminium matrix showed an increase in the impact strength.
This may be due to their fine primary corundum and alumina-zirconia
crystalline structure.

The inclusion of the reinforcements in aluminium matrix significantly

enhanced the hardness properties of the composites, and it increased with the
increase in the volume fraction of the reinforcement. The reinforcement of
fused zirconia alumina in the aluminium matrix increased the hardness values
to a very high level than the other reinforcements. The increase in hardness
was due to an enormous amount of dislocations generated at the particle–
matrix interface during the solidification process. The higher the amount of
particle–matrix interface the more was the hardening due to dislocation.

The fracture toughness value of zirconia (6 to 10 MPa√m) is very high

when compared with any other ceramics. This was the main reason for the
increase in the plain-strain fracture toughness rate of the composite than the
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base metal. Ductile fracture was the main reason for the failure of
unreinforced aluminium alloy, whereas all the other reinforced specimens
failed due to brittle fracture. The fracture in the unreinforced aluminium alloy
took place in a very progressive manner, and the matrix started its
deformation by consuming the whole of the fracture energy. But in the case of
the composites, the deformation was resisted by the reinforced particles,
which acted like a barrier, and hence, the fracture energy of the composites
increased.

c) Tribological behaviour

The presence of reinforcements in the aluminium alloy reduced

the abrasive mass loss of the composites. Hard reinforcement in the matrix
prevented the direct wearing of the matrix and reduced the plastic
deformation of the matrix. But a severe wear transition region was observed
in the case of unreinforced alloy. Being a soft material and because of the
thermal softening, it underwent heavy plastic deformation.

The microstructure of aluminium alloy shows that it has undergone

heavy plastic deformation and long continuous grooves can be seen on the
worn surface where the material was removed. The higher degree of shear in
the soft aluminium alloy produced great thermal stresses in the alloy resulting
in the delamination of the material. Worn surfaces of the reinforced
composites showed limitations in the material delamination and plastic
deformation.

d) Corrosion behaviour

From the immersion test analysis, the corrosion rate of the

reinforced Al6061 composite was analysed in three different environments,
such as acid, salt and base. In all these three environments, composites
showed less corrosion rate than the base metal. The inclusion of the
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reinforcements formed a strong protective layer against oxidation, which

drastically reduced the chances of corrosion and the formation of non-
propagating pits. In electrochemical testing, the values of current density and
negative potential started decreasing as the reinforcements increased, thereby
reducing the corrosion rate. Residual stresses arise in the matrix due to the
variation in the mechanical and thermal properties of the composites. These
regions under residual stresses are the regions that are considered to be the
preferred sites for dissolution and pitting. However, it was observed that as
the reinforcements increased, the residual stresses decreased, thereby
decreasing the formation of pits.

e) Numerical validation

To validate the experimental results, the numerical analysis was

done using the Visual PROMETHEE method. The outputs obtained from the
experimented results were given as inputs with the concern of each criterion.
Under three major categories, the criteria were formulated, and finally, each
experimental study has been considered as criteria with their respective
objective functions. By giving equal weightage to each criterion, the leaving
flow and entering flow have been identified. Based on the leaving and
entering flows, the net flow has been identified. Based on three different
reinforcing materials, totally ten alternatives were formed based on their value
proposition. Based on the net flow, the final rankings were listed, in which
40FZA has received high net flow; hence, the PROMETHEE ranks 40FZA as
the best option as a reinforcing material, in which, particularly, the
PROMETHEE recommends to consider Al6061 with 15% of 40FZA.

Comparing all the reinforced materials, 40FZA promised a higher value in all
behaviours (microstructural, mechanical, tribological and corrosion).
Moreover, the composite with 15% inclusion of 40FZA proved to be the best
on all its behaviours. From the numerical analysis, it was found that the
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results of the experimental and numerical analyses were highly concordant

with each other.

5 CONCLUSION

Composite materials are getting more involved in industrial

applications in recent years; hence, many studies try to bring out the novel
composite material along with the different proposition of matrix and
reinforcements of the composite materials. These three different particle-
reinforcing materials, zirconia (ZrO2), zirconia+ alumina (ZrO2 +Al2O3) and
fused zirconia alumina (40FZA), were fabricated with the percentages of
inclusion, 5%, 10% and 15%. In order to improve the validity and to bridge
the literature and virtual gap, this study combines the experimental and
numerical analyses. The testing specimens were evaluated experimentally
under three behaviours, namely mechanical, tribological and corrosion.
Further, Visual PROMETHEE, the numerical analysis, was adopted to deal
with the outputs from the experimental analysis. With the assistance of the
sequential methods of PROMETHEE, it has been validated that 15% of fused
zirconia alumina provides greater results compared to other considered
alternatives. Also, this study serves as a pioneering work to motivate other
researchers adopt the proposed framework of combining experimental and
numerical analyses along with necessary modifications with respect to the
level of applications.

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