Study of Mechanical and Tribological Properties of Aluminum Matrix Composites Reinforced with Ceramic Particles Fabricated by Stir Casting Technique

Ahmed, Teba Jamal

doi:10.26706/jpie.6.2.20251101

Abstract

The present work is focused on the evaluation of mechanical and tribological properties of ceramic particle reinforced aluminum matrix composites (AMCs) fabricated by stir casting process. Aluminum alloy Al6061 has been used as base matrix with silicon carbide (SiC) and aluminum oxide (Al2O3) particles used as reinforcements at varying weight fractions of 5%, 10% and 15%. The main objective is to determine the effect of reinforcement ratio on hardness, tensile strength, wear resistance and microstructure. Stir casting was selected due to its suitability for low cost production applications besides achieving uniform particle distribution when appropriately optimized for process parameters. The developed samples were tested for tensile strength, hardness values besides conducting dry sliding wear test using pin-on-disc apparatus to study their tribological behavior. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analysis has been carried out for studying microstructural distribution as well interface bonding between matrix & reinforcing particles. Hardness and wear resistance had shown an increasing trend with the percentage of reinforcement, while tensile strength increased up to 10% reinforcement and slightly decreased at 15% because of particle agglomeration and porosity. Microstructural analysis revealed ceramic particles well dispersed uniformly at lower contents but clusters formed at higher contents. A comparative analysis found mechanical properties and tribological behavior optimum in a composite reinforced with 10 wt.% hence highlighted between particle strengthening interaction and structural integrity.

Keywords

Aluminum matrix composites (AMCs)Stir castingSilicon carbide (SiC)Aluminum oxide (Al₂O₃)Mechanical and tribological properties

References

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[2] R. Jaiswal and A. Kumar, “Characterization of friction stir processed Al6061/SiC composite made using different tool pin geometry,” Int. J. Eng., vol. 38, no. 3, pp. 539–547, 2025, doi: 10.5829/ije.2025.38.03c.03.

[3] A. Aherwar, A. Ahirwar, and V. K. Pathak, “Dry sliding tribological characteristics evaluation and prediction of TiB₂–CDA/Al6061 hybrid composites using machine learning methods,” Sci. Rep., vol. 15, Art. 16710, 2025, doi: 10.1038/s41598-025-01336-0.

[4] M. K. Abbass and N. A. B. Sharhan, “Characteristics of Al6061–SiC–Al₂O₃ surface hybrid composites fabricated by friction stir processing,” J. Mater. Eng., vol. 1, no. 4, pp. 147–158, 2023, doi: 10.61552/JME.2023.04.002.

[5] M. Arun, K. Ragupathy, T. Anand, and S. Vishvanathperumal, “Fabrication and characterization of a stir casting-based aluminium hybrid MMC reinforced with SiC, TiC, and MoS₂,” MATEC Web Conf., vol. 393, Art. 01007, 2024, doi: 10.1051/matecconf/202439301007.

[6] K. G. Harish et al., “Mechanical, tribological, and morphological properties of SiC and Gr reinforced Al-0.7Fe-0.6Si-0.375Cr-0.25Zn based stir-casted hybrid metal matrix composites for automotive applications,” J. Mater. Res. Technol., vol. 28, no. 3, pp. 3267–3285, 2024, doi: 10.1016/j.jmrt.2023.12.171.

[7] B. Monteiro and S. Simões, “Production and characterization of hybrid Al6061 nanocomposites,” Metals, vol. 14, no. 11, Art. 1206, 2024, doi: 10.3390/met14111206.

[8] A. Aherwar, A. Ahirwar, and V. K. Pathak, “Triboinformatic analysis and prediction of B₄C and granite-powder-filled Al6082 composites using machine learning regression models,” Sci. Rep., vol. 15, Art. 27160, 2025, doi: 10.1038/s41598-025-12603-5.

[9] D. Tirfe et al., “Optimizing the dry sliding wear behavior of stir-casted Al6061/nano-Al₂O₃/quartz hybrid metal matrix composite using Taguchi method,” Adv. Tribol., vol. 2024, Art. 3589701, 14 pp., 2024, doi: 10.1155/2024/3589701.

[10] H. A. Al-Salihi and H. K. Judran, “Effect of Al₂O₃ reinforcement nanoparticles on the tribological behavior and mechanical properties of Al6061 alloy,” AIMS Mater. Sci., vol. 7, no. 4, pp. 486–498, 2020, doi: 10.3934/matersci.2020.4.486.

[11] S. K. Kumar Murmu et al., “Exploring tribological properties of Al6061–SiC–fly ash MMC fabricated via stir casting,” Front. Mater., vol. 11, Art. 1415907, 2024, doi: 10.3389/fmats.2024.1415907.

[12] A. Kareem et al., “A review on AA6061 metal matrix composites produced by stir casting,” Materials, vol. 14, no. 1, Art. 175, 2021, doi: 10.3390/ma14010175.

[13] S. K. Sharma et al., “Progress in aluminum-based composites prepared by stir casting: Mechanical and tribological properties,” Lubricants, vol. 12, no. 12, Art. 421, 2024, doi: 10.3390/lubricants12120421.

[14] P. Beldar et al., “Microstructural and tribological investigation of B₄C-reinforced Al6061 composites: Insights from SEM and wear analysis,” J. Eng. Appl. Sci., vol. 72, Art. 189, 2025, doi: 10.1186/s44147-025-00769-8.

[15] R. V. S. Sadanand, S. Y. Nayak, and A. Prabhu, “Experimental investigation of mechanical properties of silica-sand-reinforced AA6061 composites subjected to thermomechanical treatment,” Sci. Rep., vol. 15, Art. 36673, 2025, doi: 10.1038/s41598-025-20553-1.

[16] S.-C. Yoo et al., “Enhanced mechanical and wear properties of Al6061 alloy nanocomposite reinforced by CNT-template-grown core–shell CNT/SiC nanotubes,” Sci. Rep., vol. 10, Art. 12896, 2020, doi: 10.1038/s41598-020-69341-z.

[17] N. Radhika et al., “Characterization, mechanical properties, and wear behavior of functionally graded aluminum hybrid composite,” Sci. Rep., vol. 14, Art. 19509, 2024, doi: 10.1038/s41598-024-70189-w.

[18] A. A. Ansseif, A. N. Sabti, and Z. A. Mohammed, “Determining the weights of integer linear programming model using the analytic hierarchical process (AHP),” J. Prod. Ind. Eng., vol. 5, no. 2, pp. 48–58, 2024, doi: 10.26706/jpie.5.2.20240902.

[19] S. S. Munther, “Multivariate analysis of dry milk samples: An applied approach using factor and cluster methods,” J. Prod. Ind. Eng., vol. 6, no. 1, pp. 1–11, 2025, doi: 10.26706/jpie.6.1.20250601.

[20] S. K. Samanta, P. Jana, and S. Samajdar, “Selection and sensitivity analysis of flare piping materials for the onshore hydrocarbon industry,” J. Prod. Ind. Eng., vol. 4, no. 1, pp. 1–12, 2023, doi: 10.26706/jpie.4.1.20230102.