Compression behavior of Al2O3k/Al composite materials fabricated by counter-gravity infiltration casting

Al2O3k/Al composite materials were produced using alumina hollow particles as pore-forming materials through the counter-gravity infiltration casting system. Mechanical properties of Al2O3k/Al composite materials under quasi-static compressive load were studied. The experimental results show that the quasi-static compressive stress–strain curves of Al2O3k/Al composite materials include three distinct regions: the linear elastic region, the yield platform region and the densification region. Compared with aluminum foam, the yield stress and plateau stress of Al2O3k/Al composite material are much greater, and the densification strain is reduced relatively. This may be due to the fact that Al2O3k/Al composite materials have the characteristics of both plastic material and brittle material. The alumina hollow particle size and the void content are the key influencing factors for the compression performance such that with the decrease of the particle size and the void content, the yield stress and plateau stress increase gradually.