Effect of processing cycles on aluminum/tungsten carbide composites prepared by continual annealing and press bonding process

Abstract

In the present work, a novel technique is introduced called CAPB (continual annealing and press bonding) for the manufacturing of a bulk aluminum matrix composite dispersed with 10 vol.% WC particles (Al/WCp). The microstructure of the fabricated composite after fourteen cycles of CAPB showed an excellent and homogenous distribution of the WC particles in the aluminum matrix and strong bonding between the various layers. The results indicated that the tensile strength of the composites increased with the number of CAPB cycles, and reached a maximum value of 140 MPa at the end of fourteenth cycle, which was 1.6 time higher than the obtained value for annealed aluminum (raw material, 88 MPa). Even though the elongation of the Al/WCp composite was reduced during the initial cycles of CAPB-ing, it increased significantly during the final cycles. © Published under licence by IOP Publishing Ltd.