TiAl/B4C marine material-Fabrication, mechanical and corrosion properties

A novel TiAl/B4C intermetallic/ceramic matrix composite was fabricated by high energy ball milling followed by hot press sintering. The microstructure of TiAl/B4C composite was studied and its mechanical properties and corrosion resistance behaviors were investigated. The bending strength and fracture toughness of the composite reached 437.3 MPa and 4.85 MPa m1/2, respectively, i.e., much higher values than the monolithic phase B4C. The potentiodynamic polarization measurements and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy results indicated the excellent corrosion resistance of such composite material.