Evaluation of mechanical properties of 1050-Al reinforced with SiC particles via accumulative roll bonding process

Accumulative roll bonding was successfully used as a severe plastic deformation method to produce Al-SiC composite sheets. The effect of the addition of SiC particles on the microstructural evolution and mechanical properties of the composites during accumulative roll bonding was studied. The Al-1, 2 and 4 vol.% SiC composite sheets were produced by accumulative roll bonding at room temperature. Monolithic Al sheets were also produced by the accumulative roll bonding process to compare with the composite samples. Field emission scanning electron microscopy revealed that the particles had a random and uniform distribution in the matrix by the last accumulative roll bonding cycles, and strong mechanical bonding takes place at the interface of the particle matrix. This microstructural evolution led to improvement in the hardness, strength and elongation during the accumulative roll bonding process. It is also shown that by increasing the volume fraction of particles up to 4 vol.% SiC, the yield and tensile strengths of the composite sheets increased more than 1.2 and 1.3 times the accumulative roll-bonded aluminum sheets, respectively. Field emission scanning electron microscopy observation of fractured surface showed that the failure broken of composite was shear ductile rupture.