Materials and Design 45 (2013) 561570

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Materials and Design

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Tribological properties of powder metallurgy Processed aluminium self

lubricating hybrid composites with SiC additions
P. Ravindran a,, K. Manisekar b, P. Rathika c, P. Narayanasamy d
a

Department of Mechanical Engineering, St. Mother Theresa Engineering College, Vagaikulam, Thoothukudi 628 102, Tamilnadu, India
Centre for Manufacturing Sciences, National Engineering College, Kovilpatti 628 503, Tamilnadu, India
c
Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering, V.V. College of Engineering, Tisayanvilai 627 657, Tamilnadu, India
d
Department of Mechanical Engineering, Renganayagi Varatharaj College of Engineering, Sivakasi 626 128,TamilNadu, India
b

a r t i c l e

i n f o

Article history:
Received 19 July 2012
Accepted 8 September 2012
Available online 28 September 2012
Keywords:
Metalmatrix composite
Solid lubricants
Sliding wear
Wear testing

a b s t r a c t
In this experimental study, aluminium (Al)-based graphite (Gr) and silicon carbide (SiC) particlereinforced, self-lubricating hybrid composite materials were manufactured by powder metallurgy. The
tribological and mechanical properties of these composite materials were investigated under dry sliding
conditions. The results of the tests revealed that the SiC-reinforced hybrid composites exhibited a lower
wear loss compared to the unreinforced alloy and AlGr composites. It was found that with an increase in
the SiC content, the wear resistance increased monotonically with hardness. The hybridisation of the two
reinforcements also improved the wear resistance of the composites, especially under high sliding
speeds. Additionally, the wear loss of the hybrid composites decreased with increasing applied load
and sliding distance, and a low friction coefcient and low wear loss were achieved at high sliding speeds.
The composite with 5 wt.% Gr and 20 wt.% SiC showed the greatest improvement in tribological performance. The wear mechanism was studied through worn surface and wear debris analysis as well as
microscopic examination of the wear tracks. This study revealed that the addition of both a hard reinforcement (e.g., SiC) and soft reinforcement (e.g., graphite) signicantly improves the wear resistance
of aluminium composites. On the whole, these results indicate that the hybrid aluminium composites
can be considered as an outstanding material where high strength and wear-resistant components are
of major importance, predominantly in the aerospace and automotive engineering sectors.
2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction
There is an increasing worldwide need for advanced lightweight materials with particular properties [1]. Light weight metal
matrix syntactic foams and metal matrix composites (especially
aluminium composites) have the potential to be used as replacements for steel and cast irons components [2,3]. A key challenge
for lightweight materials is the ability to produce an efcient component at acceptable mechanical properties [46]. The outcome of
such studies raised awareness of the promising application prospects. In this context, Aluminium Powder Metallurgy (P/M) can
provide components with excellent mechanical and fatigue properties, low density, corrosion resistance, high thermal and electrical conductivity and excellent machinability [6,7]. The primary
driver for the use of aluminium P/M is the unique properties of
aluminium relating to the ability to produce complex net or near
Corresponding author. Address: 57/D, Vannar 2nd street, Melashunmugapuraam, Thoothukudi 628 003, Tamilnadu, India. Tel.: +91 0461
2328915, mobile: +91 9842160709.
E-mail addresses: energyravindran@gmail.com, sweetravindran@yahoo.com,
ravi@mtec.ac.in (P. Ravindran).
0261-3069/$ - see front matter 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.matdes.2012.09.015

net-shaped parts, which can eliminate the operational and capital

costs associated with complex machining operations. At the present time, aluminium metal matrix composites (AMMCs) are well
recognised and steadily improving due to their advanced engineering properties, such as wear resistance, low density, specic
strength and stiffness [6,7]. Among all of these superior properties,
the improved wear resistance of AMMCs has attracted signicant
attention in the eld of tribology [6,7]. Wear is one of the most
commonly encountered industrial problems leading to the replacement of components and assemblies in engineering. However,
wear reduces the operating efciency by increasing material losses,
fuel utilisation and the rate of component replacement [8]. Thus,
assessment of the wear behaviours of engineering materials is
essential. In this context, both the mechanical strength and the
wear resistance of composites increase with the addition of hard
SiC particles to the aluminium matrix alloy. However, the consequent increase in hardness makes machining difcult [9]. Additional problems associated with these hard particles are their
tendency to detach from the matrix and act as third-body abrasives, leading to an increase in wear [10,11]. Furthermore, the
use of a single reinforcement in an aluminium matrix may
sometimes compromise the values of its physical and tribological

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P. Ravindran et al. / Materials and Design 45 (2013) 561570

properties [6,10,11]. Thus, it is essential to identify ways to retain

the advantageous inuence of SiC while simultaneously attending
to the problems of machining SiC-reinforced composites. Graphite
particulates are well suited for this application, as their addition
improves the machinability and wear resistance of AlSiC composites. AlSiC composites reinforced with graphite particulates are
known as AlSiCGr hybrid composites [6,9].
Recent investigations [1219] have revealed that the addition of
hard, solid lubricant particles improves the tribological properties
of these composites under sliding wear conditions, which is due
to strengthening of the SiC to matrix and lubrication by the scattering of Gr on the two counter faces. One of the advantages of Al/SiC/
graphite composites is that they are self-lubricating materials, and
yet, their strength is improved by the presence of the SiC ceramic
particles. Basavarajappa et al. [10] investigated the inuence of
sliding speed on the dry sliding wear behaviour and subsurface
deformation of hybrid metal matrix composites using a liquid metallurgy technique. In addition, Riahi and Alpas [20] showed that
the formation of a tribolayer delayed the transition from mild to
severe wear. Rohatgi et al. [21]. have reported that the reduction
in the friction coefcient of Al10SiC6Gr is caused by the combination of an increase in the bulk mechanical properties as a result
of the addition of SiC and the formation of a graphite lm. Biswas
and Pramila Bai [22] showed that unreinforced AlSi composites
had better wear properties than those with 2.75.7% graphite.
Ted Guo and Tsao [23] observed that the wear of Al10SiC(2
8)Gr increases as the graphite content approaches 5% because of
the reduced fracture toughness and then decreases due to the formation of a thick solid lubricant lm that overrides the effect of the
reduced fracture toughness.
Hybrid composites have been studied with respect to different
combinations of reinforcements and matrices and their contribution to the tribological properties of the materials. The authors of
this report have previously described the application of factorial
techniques to study the wear of Al hybrid composites [6]. And also
depicted tribological behaviour of powder metallurgy-processed
aluminium hybrid composites with the addition of graphite solid
lubricant [7]. But no systematic attempt has been made to study
the inuence of the hybridisation of SiC on the tribological properties of aluminium-based composites prepared by powder metallurgy route. Furthermore, it is evident from these studies that the
majority of the alloys chosen as matrices have been the A356,
6xxx and 7xxx series alloys. Although some studies have been reported on the 2xxx series alloys reinforced with both silicon carbide and graphite particulates, much less attention has been
given to the Al 2024 alloy matrix composites, which, has the highest hardness among all Al alloys [24]. Therefore, in the present
study, the effect of the SiC content in Al 2024 hybrid composites
on the dry sliding friction and wear properties is investigated. Furthermore, SEM images of the worn surface and debris were analysed to understand the modes of wear.

investigation, and details of its composition are given in Table 1.

This matrix was chosen because it provides an excellent combination of strength and damage tolerance at elevated and cryogenic
temperatures. SiC particles with average size of 55 lm together
with ake Gr particles with average size of 55 lm were also used
as the reinforcing particles. The size distribution of the SiC and
Gr particles was measured using particle size analyzer. The results
are shown in Fig. 1. The SEM micrographs of these powders are
shown in Fig. 2. To carry out the study, six types of composites
were prepared (refer Table 3). Table 2 provides the details of the
SiC and Gr particulates, which were used as reinforcements. Generally, the wear resistance of metal matrix composites increases with
increasing size and shape of the reinforcement particles [7].
According to literature study, size selection of the reinforcement
particles (SiC, Gr) was based on its potential applications and tribological features [9,10,13,17]. Table 3 gives the details of the hybrid
composites. The mixing of the powder was performed in a planetary tumbler mixer using stainless steel balls with a diameter of
8 mm and a ball to powder weight ratio of 10:1. The uniformly
mixed powder is then heated up to 150 C for evaporating the volatile matter present in the mixture. The mixed powders were
pressed in a uniaxial press at 845 MPa to form green compacts. Before each run, die wall lubrication was performed manually using
zinc stearate. The surfaces of the green compacts were coated before sintering with developed ceramic-alumina mixture and dried
under room-temperature condition for a period of 8 h. Then, next
coating was applied at a direction of 90 to the direction of rst
coating and was allowed to dry for a further period of 8 h under
the same condition.

2. Experimental setup and procedures

2.1. Specimen preparation
The composites were fabricated by the P/M process route.
Aluminium 2024 was used as the matrix material in the present

Table 1
Details of reinforcements.
Reinforcement

Average grain size (lm)

Density (g/cm3)

SiC
Gr

53
53

3.22
2.092.23

Fig. 1. Particle size distribution of (a) as-received SiC powder and (b) as-received Gr
powder.

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P. Ravindran et al. / Materials and Design 45 (2013) 561570

Fig. 2. SEM micrographs of as-received: (a) Aluminium powders, (b) SiC particles, (c) Gr particles.

2.3. Wear test

Table 2
Chemical composition of the matrix alloy.
Element
Content%

Cu
4.0

Mg
1.8

Fe
0.5

Mn
0.25

Si
0.5

Cr
0.25

Zn
0.2

Al
Balance

2.2. Sintering
Sintering of powder sequentially involves the establishment
and growth of bonds between the particles of powder at their areas
of contact and migration of the grain boundaries formed at the
bonds [11]. The coated compacts were sintered in an electric mufe furnace at a closely regulated temperature of 530 C for 60 min
as suggested by Yamagushi et al. [25] and allowed to get cooled to
room temperature in the furnace itself. At last, in order to reach to
the proper shape and size, all the compacts were trimmed to the
exact size with a diameter of 8 mm and a height of 30 mm. The
ends of the specimens were sequentially polished with abrasive
paper of grades 600, 800 and 1000. The density of the composite
specimens was determined using a high precision digital electronic
weighing balance with an accuracy of 0.0001 g by using Archimedes principle. Hardness of sintered compacts were performed in
Brinell scale with a ball diameter of 2.5 mm and a load of 30 kg.
Table 3 shows the mechanical properties of the samples.

Dry sliding wear tests were performed in accordance with the

ASTM G99-05 standards for pin-on-disc equipment (Ducom, model
No: ED-201, Bangalore, India). Wear disc of AISI 52 100 (EN31)
hardened steel material was used in pin on disc. Prior to testing,
the pins and disc surface were cleaned with acetone. All of the tests
were performed on hybrid composite pins of various compositions
with applied load ranges from of 5 to 30 N. A varying sliding distance of 1000 or 3000 m was employed, with sliding speeds of
1 m/s and 2 m/s. After each test, the specimen and counter face
disc were cleaned with organic solvents to remove traces. The
pin was weighed before and after testing to an accuracy of
0.1 mg to determine the amount of wear loss. The coefcient of
friction was determined from the applied normal load and the obtained tangential load from the strain gauges. Each test was repeated six times, and the average results were taken.

3. Results and discussions

3.1. Morphology of aluminium, graphite and silicon carbide powder
The size distribution of the SiC and Gr particles was shown in
Fig. 1a and b. The average size of the particles was determined

Table 3
Mechanical properties of the samples.
S. No

Composition (wt.%)

Density (g/cm3)

Hardness (BHN)

1
2
3
4
5
6

Al
Al
Al
Al
Al
Al

2.83
2.79
2.84
2.87
2.92
2.94

52
48
53
56
58
63

2024
2024/5 wt.%
2024/5 wt.%
2024/5 wt.%
2024/5 wt.%
2024/5 wt.%

of
of
of
of
of

Gr composite
Gr/5 wt.% of SiC hybrid composite
Gr/10 wt.% of SiC hybrid composite
Gr/15 wt.% of SiC hybrid composite
Gr/20 wt.% of SiC hybrid composite

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P. Ravindran et al. / Materials and Design 45 (2013) 561570

by sieve analysis and found to be 55 lm. An SEM micrograph of the

as-received powder mixture containing aluminium, graphite, and
coarse SiC particles is shown in Fig. 2ac. The graphite takes the
form of akes, and the Al particles appear in round and cylindrical
shapes. The SiC particles have an ellipsoidal shape.

reveal the ake structure of the graphite particles and cube-like

structure of the SiC particles. These graphite and SiC particles are
uniformly distributed throughout the Al 2024 matrix phase. The
absence of cracks can also be observed from the micrographs.
3.3. X-ray diffraction analysis

3.2. Microstructure analysis

Metallographic analysis offers a powerful quality control as well
as an important investigative tool. The grain structures and reinforced particles size, shape and their distribution were observed
in micrographs. The more important use of optical microscope in
microstructure examination was in the analysis of reinforced particles in aluminium matrix. Metallographic specimens of sintered
preforms were prepared using standard hand polishing using
240, 600, 800 and 1000-grit silicon carbide papers. The specimens
were then nish-polished using 1 lm diamond paste suspended in
distilled water to obtain mirror-like surface nish. To expose the
microstructural features, the polished specimens were etched with
Keller etching solution. The etchpolishetch procedures were
used to attain good microstructure. These microstructure investigations show the presence of Gr and SiC in each hybrid composites.
Fig. 3a shows the microstructure of sintered pure al 2024 matrix.
Fig. 3bf shows micrographs of sintered performs of aluminium
with various percentages of Gr and SiC particles. The micrographs

The X-ray diffraction (XRD) results for the prepared composites

are shown in Fig. 4. These results indicate the presence of aluminium (in the largest peaks), and the presence of silicon carbide particles and carbon is indicated by minor peaks. A clearly visible
carbon peak can be observed in the hybrid composites. The increase in the intensity of the SiC peaks with the increasing silicon
carbide content of the composite is evident. Fig. 4 also shows that
there is no oxygen reaction in the samples during the sintering
process. The XRD pattern conrmed the presence of aluminium,
Gr (C) and SiC particles in the hybrid composite. These XRD facilities were taken from Central Electrochemical Research Institute,
Karaikudi, Tamil Nadu, India, using HITACHI SU-6600.
3.4. Density and hardness
Fig. 5 shows the variation of density of hybrid composites at SiC
content. It is observed that there is an increase in density with increase in SiC reinforcement. This can be attributed to the addition

Fig. 3. Optical micrographs of the produced composites. (a) Al 2024, (b) Al 2024/5%Gr, (c) Al 2024/5%Gr/5% SiC, (d) Al 2024/5% of Gr/10%SiC, (e) Al 2024/5%Gr/15%SiC, (f) Al
2024/5%Gr/20%SiC.

P. Ravindran et al. / Materials and Design 45 (2013) 561570

Fig. 4. XRD results for the prepared composites.

565

to the formation of thin lms, which act as solid lubricant. Fig. 7a

shows the variation of wear loss of Al 2024, AlGr and AlSiCGr
hybrid composites with increase in silicon carbide. It is showed
that an increase in silicon carbide content results in decreased
wear loss of all the materials except AlGr composites. This high
wear resistance of composite materials is due to the presence of
SiC which acts as load-supporting element. It is also observed that
the dispersion of silicon carbide, a hard face in the soft aluminium
matrix tends to reduce the wear loss of hybrid composites. The severe reduction in the wear loss of hybrid composites can be attributed to the following reasons. An increase in hardness results in
the improvement of wear resistance of materials [26,27]. Interfacial bond between the matrix and the silicon carbide particle perform a major role in wear mechanisms. This outstanding of the
wear resistance of the composites has been attributed to the good
interfacial bond between the matrix and the reinforcement. The
transferred graphite lubricant layer may spread over the disc surfaces under dry sliding conditions, leading to the lowering of material loss.
3.6. Effect of sliding speed

of higher density reinforcements of SiC. Fig. 5 also shows the variation of hardness of the iron composite with increased SiC content. It can be understood from Fig. 5 that the hardness of the
composites was improved with the increase in weight percent of
SiC reinforcements. The increase in hardness of hybrid composite
is owing to the following reasons (i) high hardness of SiC reinforcement particles. (ii) Uniform distribution of SiC in the composites.
(iii) The increased density that contributes to the increase in
hardness.

Fig. 6b shows the variation of coefcient of friction with sliding

speed. It is observed that sliding velocity has a signicant effect on
the coefcient of friction of all the materials studied. At all sliding
velocities studied Al5%Gr composite exhibited outstanding anti
friction behaviour while hybrid composite (Al20%SiC5%Gr) possessed the highest coefcient of friction. The increase of coefcient
of friction with increased sliding speed which can be attributed to
the fact that the SiC reinforcements in the composites are squeezed
out onto the mating surfaces forming mechanically mixed layer
and also the smeared graphite particles formed the lubricant lm
in contact interface. The lubricant lms formed at the contact surface exist only for a shorter period due to increased sliding speed.
This lubricant lm is removed from the contact surface after certain specic period of sliding distance and they are forced out from
the contact region. This results in increased coefcient of friction at
increasing sliding speed. The variation of wear loss of composites
with sliding speed is shown in Fig. 7b. It is noted that an increase
in sliding speed results in decreased wear loss of all the materials.
Equally, at all sliding speeds studied Al/20SiC/5Gr composites have
lower wear loss when compared with other composites. A decrease
in wear loss with increase in sliding speed can be mainly caused by
the solid lubrication of graphite particles, which are released during sliding and form a tribolayer at the contact surfaces [6,10,16].
With greater than 5% graphite reinforcement, the wear loss tends
to increase. This tendency may be attributed to a decrease in the
fracture toughness of the composite [10]. Under all studied sliding
speeds, Al/20SiC/5Gr composites possess the lowest wear rates.

3.5. Effect of silicon carbide (SiC)

3.7. Effect of load

The effect of weight percentage of SiC in Al matrix on coefcient

of friction of hybrid composites is shown in Fig. 6a. It is observed
that increased content of SiC in Al matrix results in increased coefcient of friction. It is also observed that Algraphite composite
(i.e. 0 wt.% of SiC) exhibit lower coefcient of friction when compared with that of hybrid composites and Al 2024 matrix. Drastic
improvement in the coefcient of friction around 0.25 at observed
for composite with more than 10% SiC content. It conrms that
pulled out SiC particles slide at the contact surface and thereby increases the coefcient of friction. This can be attributed to the fact
that during sliding, silicon carbide particles (a hard phase) may get
removed from the matrix and get crammed between the surfaces
leading to higher coefcient of friction. The lower value of coefcient of friction of Algraphite composite can be mainly attributed

The variation of coefcient of friction with normal load is

shown in Fig. 6c. It is observed that there is an increase in coefcient of friction with increasing normal load for both Al 2024 and
hybrid composites in the load range of 1030 N. However at all
the loads studied, the coefcient of friction of Al5%Gr composite
is lower when compared with hybrid composites. This can be
attributed to the fact that the severity of plastic deformation increases with increase in applied load. It conversely increases the
contact of SiC particles to counter surface and also transfer of aluminium matrix to the counter surface. These are possible reasons
for the increase in coefcient of friction with the increase in load.
The variation of wear loss with applied load at a constant sliding
speed of 2 m/s and for a xed sliding distance of 2000 m is shown
in Fig. 7d. It is observed that the wear loss of the hybrid composites

Fig. 5. Variation of density and hardness of hybrid composites with different

weight percentage of SiC.

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P. Ravindran et al. / Materials and Design 45 (2013) 561570

Fig. 6. Variation of the co-efcient of friction of Al 2024 and hybrid composites with (a) weight percentage of SiC, (b) sliding speed, (c) applied load (d) sliding distance.

increases gradually with increase in load. The increase in wear loss

with increased load of all the materials studied can be attributed to
the larger amount of plastic deformation and delamination wear at
higher loads. Moreover, the composites with graphite content
alone are easier to be fractured from matrix during sliding. It leads
to higher wear loss of Al5%Gr composites. Under all studied loads,
Al/20SiC/5Gr composites possess the lowest wear loss.
3.8. Effect of sliding distance
The variation of coefcient of friction with test duration for Al
2024, AlGr and AlSiCGr hybrid composites are shown in
Fig. 6d. It is observed that for all the materials studied there is a
stable increase in value of coefcient of friction with increase sliding distance at a sliding speed of 2 m/s. However, for the entire test
interval studied AlGr composite shows the lowest coefcient of
friction while hybrid composite possesses the highest values of
coefcient of friction. Pulled out SiC particles can be mechanically
abraded between the contact surfaces and also the smeared graphite particles formed the lubricant lm in contact surfaces. The lubricant lms formed at the contact surface subsist only for a
shorter duration due to its sliding speed. This lm is removed from
the contact surface after certain period of sliding distance and they
are drive out from the contact surface region. This results in increased coefcient of friction at increase in sliding distance.
Fig. 7c shows the wear loss as a function of the sliding distance.
It is noted that an increase in sliding distance results in increased
wear loss of all the materials. Conversely, at all sliding speeds studied Al/20SiC/5Gr composites have lower wear loss when compared

with other composites. This effect is caused by the hard SiC particles, which are released during sliding and form a mechanically
mixed layer at the contact surfaces [16,26].
3.9. Wear mechanism
The SEM micrographs of the worn surface of Al 2024 and the
composite specimens slide at load of 20 N are shown in Figs. 8
10. The typical SEM micrographs of worn surface morphology of
Al 2024 matrix at are shown in Fig. 8. The worn surface of the Al
2024 matrix (Fig. 8a and b) clearly exhibits the presence of deep
permanent grooves, micro cutting, grain pullouts and fracture of
the oxide debris, which may have caused the increase of wear loss.
This morphology shows that the Al 2024 matrix has undergone signicant severe plastic deformation. However, the worn surfaces of
the other composites (Figs. 9 and 10) exhibit ner grooves and
slight plastic deformation at the edges of the grooves. As the SiC
weight fraction increases the surface morphologies also have been
changed. The surfaces also appear to be smooth because of the
graphite reinforcement content. The worn surface morphology of
the Al5%Gr composite is shown in Fig. 9a and b. The worn surface
of Al5%Gr composite was smooth with less grooves due to the
lubrication effect of graphite. The general wear pattern seems to
be ploughing out of the material from the surface. The grooves
were very ne and the plastic deformation at the edge of grooves
was fewer. Fig. 10a and b shows very small size microcrystal of
graphite particles with smaller amounts of oxide particles at the
worn surface. Also these loose particles are tightly packed with
themselves. It forms an adherent lm over the contact surfaces.

P. Ravindran et al. / Materials and Design 45 (2013) 561570

567

Fig. 7. Variation of wear loss of Al 2024 and hybrid composites with (a) weight percentage of SiC, (b) sliding speed, (c) sliding distance, (d) applied load.

Fig. 8. SEM morphologies of the worn surface of Al 2024 matrix at applied load of 20 N. (a) Low-magnication micrograph and (b) high-magnication micrograph.

Fig. 9. SEM morphologies of the worn surface of Al/5%Gr composite at applied load of 20 N. (a) Low-magnication micrograph and (b) high-magnication micrograph.

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P. Ravindran et al. / Materials and Design 45 (2013) 561570

Fig. 10. SEM morphologies of the worn surface of Al/5% of Gr/20%SiC composite at applied load of 20 N. (a) Low-magnication micrograph and (b) high-magnication
micrograph.

Fig. 11. SEM micrographs of the collected debris (a) Al 2024, (b) Al/5%Gr (c) Al/5%Gr/5%SiC (d) Al/5% of Gr/10%SiC (e) Al/5%Gr/15%SiC (f) Al/5%Gr/20%SiC.

Finally it leads to decrease of plastic deformation of pin surface of

Al5%Gr20%SiC hybrid composites. The ne graphite grains were
mixed with the other wear debris and then a smooth Gr-rich tribolayer was formed on the worn surface Therefore, the probability of
severe wear in the Al5%Gr20%SiC composites is low, and abrasion and delamination are the dominant wear mechanisms
[12,16,28].

3.10. Wear debris analysis

SEM analysis of the wear debris formed during steady state
wearing was carried out to identify the wear mechanisms in the
composites. The wear debris particles observed in Fig. 11a are larger and shaped like thin sheets. This morphology shows that the
Al2024 matrix has undergone signicant plastic deformation. It is

P. Ravindran et al. / Materials and Design 45 (2013) 561570

569

Fig. 12. Optical micrographs of the worn surface of disc mated with Al2024 matrix with a speed of 1.5 m/s at (a) applied load of 10 N and (b) applied load of 20 N.

Fig. 13. Optical micrographs of the worn surface of disc mated with Al5%Gr10%SiC composite with a speed of 1.5 m/s at (a) applied load of 10 N and (b) applied load of
20 N.

Fig. 14. Optical micrographs of the worn surface of disc mated with Al5%Gr20%SiC composite with a speed of 1.5 m/s at (a) applied load of 10 N and (b) applied load of
20 N.

clear from Fig. 11cf that the wear debris from the Al/SiC/Gr hybrid
composites is smaller than the debris from the Al/5Gr composite
because the SiC particles scattered in the aluminium matrix can
minimise the mean size of the wear particles and form the
mechanically mixed layer. Furthermore the wear debris in the hybrid composite seems to be loose in nature and non-adherent because of the hard SiC particles. The wear debris particles
observed in Fig. 11a and b are larger and shaped like thin sheets.
However, the wear debris of the hybrid composite consists of a
combination of ne and coarse powders with irregular shapes. As
shown in Fig. 11e and f, the composite with 15% SiC has larger strip
debris than the composite with 20% SiC content because of graphite self lubrication and high SiC content which increase the severity
of microcutting effects [6,14]. Therefore, the morphology and size
of the wear debris is dictated by the amount of SiC content in
the composite.

shown in Figs. 1214. All the images are observed to be asymmetrical, rough and exhibiting deep grooves while sliding against their
pin. The worn surface of disc mated with Al2024 matrix with a
speed of 1.5 m/s is shown in Fig. 12a and b. From the microstructure it is observed that the grooves are more in depth than the surface of the other worn out surfaces. The worn surface of disc mated
with Al5%Gr20%SiC composite with a speed of 1.5 m/s is shown
in Fig. 14a and b. It shows the small wear grooves and a mixture of
rough and relatively large smooth regions. This reduces the tendency of fracture wear and hence low wear loss. Conversely, specimen containing graphite forms a solid lubrication with aluminium
matrix and increases the hardness which decreases the wear loss
with increase in sliding distance [14]. Increasing applied load from
10 to 20 N is marginally increasing depth of grooves and thickness
of graphitic lm on the disk surfaces which is evident from the
optical micrographs Figs. 1214.

3.11. Worn surface analysis of counter disc surface

4. Conclusions

Examination of the worn out surfaces of the disc provides an

indication for the wear mechanisms occurred. The optical micrographs of worn out surface of disc against the composite pins are

Hybrid AlSiCGr composites have been successfully developed

by powder metallurgy technique. For all the loads and the sliding
velocities studied, the developed composites have exhibited higher

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P. Ravindran et al. / Materials and Design 45 (2013) 561570

wear resistance and higher coefcient of friction when compared

with matrix. The incorporation of SiC reinforcement to Al2024 alloy increases the wear resistance of the composites. The addition
Gr reinforcement in Al2024/SiC composites as a hybrid reinforcement further increases the wear resistance of the composite. The
wear resistance of the composites increases with increasing the
reinforcement content. The formation of smooth Gr-rich tribolayer seems to be a key aspect controlling the wear behaviour of
these hybrid composites. Increased content of SiC reinforcement,
leads to higher coefcient of friction. The presence of hard ceramic
particularly in high content SiC hybrid composites was found to
have inuence on the wear properties. The wear mechanism operating in hybrid composite with 20%SiC and 5% graphite hybrid
composites was delamination and oxidative wear. Wear debris
become smaller as the amount of SiC addition increases.
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