A comparative study on the wear properties of coarse-grained Al6061 alloy and nanostructured Al6061-Al2O3 composites

Wear behavior of nanostructured Al6061 alloy and Al6061-Al2O3 nanocomposites produced by milling and hot consolidation were investigated. The samples were characterized by hardness test, pin-on-disk wear test, X-ray diffraction (XRD), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Nanocomposites containing 3 vol% Al2O3 showed a maximum hardness of 235 HV and optimum wear rate of 4 x 10(-3) mg/m. Increasing the amount of Al2O3 up to 5 vol% resulted in decrease in hardness values (similar to 112 HV) and a sharp rise in wear rate (similar to 18 x 10(-3) mg/m). (C) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.