Fabrication and Characterization of Aluminum (Al-6061) Matrix Composite Reinforced with Waste Glass for Engineering Applications

Abstract

Aluminum composites with various reinforcement materials are widely applicable in advanced engineering due to their better strength to weight ratio, better stiffness, and high thermal conductivity as well as excellent wear and corrosion properties. This stimulates curiosity to study aluminum metal matrix composite reinforced with waste glass to improve its mechanical and physical properties. The composite specimens were prepared using stir-casting rout by varying weight percentage of reinforcing waste glass powder from 0% to 30%. The fabricated composite samples were characterized using universal testing machine, FTIR, DSC, TGA, and optical microscope. The results revealed that as the waste glass particle content increased in the metal matrix, there was a significant enhancement of the mechanical properties like hardness and tensile strength as compared to the pristine sample. The microstructural properties analyzed using optical microscope show good bonding between the reinforcements and the pristine materials in the composite that indicates the glass particulates are uniformly distributed in the Al-6061 matrix. All in all, the effect of waste glass powder in aluminum metal matrix composite was clearly observed and it enhances the mechanical, physical, and thermal properties of the newly fabricated aluminum-based composite materials.