Investigation of Mechanical Characterization, Thermal Behavior and Dielectric Properties on Al7075-TiB2 MMC Fabricated Using Stir Casting Route

MMCs have the potential to replace conventional materials in recent years because of their superior strength, low cost, ease of availability and high-temperature resistance which have piqued the application interest in aerospace industries and automotive industries. This study focuses on mechanical characterization of MMC of Al7075 strengthened with titanium diboride through stir casting process by varying the weight percentage of titanium boride from 2 to 8%. The results show that the composites containing 8 wt% of TiB2 have higher tensile strength, microhardness up to 83.5% and 75.6% respectively and lower the impact strength up to 52.4%. The grain size decreases with an increase in the reinforcement percentage of TiB2 particles, and composite with 8% reinforcement of TiB2 shows good uniform distributions, interdendrite pattern and non-occurrence of porosity, thereby reducing the agglomeration of reinforcements. The EDAX result of developed composites shows that no foreign elements are present in the Al7075/TiB2 composites. The investigation of thermal behavior of composites by simulation with varying weight percentage of reinforcements shows that the presence of TiB2 particles in the matrix leads to reduced heat transfer through the fabricated specimens. Evaluation of dielectric properties shows a rapid decrease in electrical conductivity up to 3.17 times and an increase in dielectric constant up to 9.65 times for weight fraction of 8% TiB2 with the base matrix.

Automated summary

This study investigates the mechanical, thermal, and dielectric properties of Al7075-based metal matrix composites reinforced with varying weight percentages of titanium diboride (TiB2). The results show that composites with 8% weight fraction of TiB2 exhibit higher strength and microhardness, but lower impact strength. The grain size decreases with increasing reinforcement content, resulting in improved uniformity in the composites.