Aging Behavior of Nano-SiC/2014Al Composite Fabricated by Powder Metallurgy and Hot Extrusion Techniques

The aging-hardening kinetics of powder metallurgy processed 2014Al alloy and its composite have been studied. The existence of n-SiC particulates leads to the increase of peak hardness. Interestingly, the aging-hardening peak of the composite takes place at earlier time than that of the unreinforced alloy. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) studies indicated that the major precipitation phases are Al5Cu2Mn3 and θ′ (Al2Cu). Besides, Ω phase appeared in both specimens at peak hardening condition, which has been rarely observed previously in aluminum metal matrix composites without Ag. Accelerated aging kinetics and increased peak hardness may be attributed to the higher dislocation density resulted from the mismatch of coefficients of thermal expansion between n-SiC and 2014Al matrix. The results are beneficial to fabricating high performance composites for the application in automobile field such as pistons, driveshaft tubes, brake rotors, bicycle frames, railroad brakes.