Despite their promising mechanical and thermal properties, metal-matrix composites have, for a long time, been afforded only limited use in very specific applications. Improvements in the reinforcement fabrication and composite processing techniques are pivotal for increasing their commercial applicability. Reinforced metals have begun to show their presence in large-scale commercial applications.
Despite their promising mechanical and thermal properties, metal-matrix composites have, for a long time, been afforded only limited use in very specific applications. Improvements in the reinforcement fabrication and composite processing techniques are pivotal for increasing their commercial applicability. Reinforced metals have begun to show their presence in large-scale commercial applications.
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Despite their promising mechanical and thermal properties, metal-matrix composites have, for a long time, been afforded only limited use in very specific applications. Improvements in the reinforcement fabrication and composite processing techniques are pivotal for increasing their commercial applicability. Reinforced metals have begun to show their presence in large-scale commercial applications.
Direitos autorais:
Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
Formatos disponíveis
Baixe no formato PDF, TXT ou leia online no Scribd
Despite their highly promising mechanical and thermal
properties, metal-matrix composites have, for a long time, been afforded only limited use in very specific applications. Shortcomings such as complex processing requirements and the high cost of the final product have presented the greatest barriers to their proliferation. Improvements in the reinforcement fabrication and composite processing techniques are therefore pivotal for increasing their commercial applicability. Significant efforts have been, and continue to be, devoted to this end with encouraging results; reinforced metals have begun to show their presence in large-scale commercial applications. Notable examples include the alumina fiber-reinforced aluminum-alloy pistons for diesel en- gines introduced by Toyota Motor Corporation in 1982 (Donomoto et al. 1983) and, more recently, the alumina and carbon fiber-reinforced cylinder liners of the Honda Prelude (Ebisawa et al. 1991; Hayashi et al. 1989). Processing of metal-matrix composites can be broadly divided into two categories of fabrication tech- nique: (1) solid state (including powder metallurgy and diffusion bonding) and (2) liquid state.* A majority of the commercially viable applications are now produced by liquid-state processing because of inherent advan- tages of this processing technique over solid-state tech- niques. That is, the liquid metal is generally less expen- sive and easier to handle than are powders, and the composite material can be produced in a wide variety of shapes, using methods already developed in the casting industry for unreinforced metals. Conversely, liquid- It should be noted that for this monograph, the latter category is defined to include techniques that involve fully or partially molten matrix material during the fabrication of the composite. Liquid-State Processing Vl?RONIQUE J. MICHAUD state processes often suffer from a lack of reproducibil- ity as a result of incomplete control of the processing parameters, and of undesirable chemical reactions at the interface between molten metal and reinforcement (see Chapter 3). Also, they are often limited to low-melting- point alloys, although some reinforced intermetallics have now been produced by liquid-state processes. Liquid-state processing technologies currently being investigated and developed utilize a variety of methods to physically combine the matrix and the reinforcement. On this basis, wecan sort them into four major catego- ries: (1) Infiltration, (2) Dispersion, (3) Spraying, and (4) In-situ fabrication. For each category, the underlying method and the specific processes are described herein, together with a discussion of the governing physical phenomena, because their identification and study is crucial for understanding and improving the processes. Two of these phenomena, wettability and interfacial reactivity, are covered more extensively in Chapter 3 and so are touched upon only briefly here. Finally, some recent innovations and strategies for optimization of the processing of these materials are underlined and some possible future trends are briefly discussed. 1.1 Infiltration Processes I . 1.1 Desmption Infiltration processes involve holding a porous body of the reinforcing phase within a mold and infiltrating it with molten metal that flows through interstices to fill the pores and produce a composite. Two examples of infiltration processes are given in Figure 1.1. Such 3