Effect of microstructure, mechanical and wear on Al-CNTs/graphene hybrid MMC’S

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ABSTRACT

The current research focuses on developing an Aluminium/Gr-CNT hybrid composite with two nanoscale reinforcements (Graphene and CNT). Stir casting was used to create hybrid composites with different weight fractions of graphene (1, 2, 3, and 5 Wt. %.) and a fixed CNT content of 2 Wt.%. The influence of varying graphene content with fixed CNT content on density, microstructure, hardness, and wear on hybrid MMC's was investigated. Hardness and wear tests were carried out as per ASTM E384 and G99 standards. Microstructure showed a relatively uniform dispersal of reinforcements (Gr and CNT) in pure Al matrix. The study revealed that the hardness of Al/Gr/CNT hybrid composites is higher than that of pure aluminium. The increase in hardness and addition of reinforcements lead to a significant reduction in wear rate. Wear surface morphology studies reported that pure aluminium had undergone an adhesion wear mechanism, whereas Al/Gr/CNT hybrid composites had undergone abrasion wear.

KEYWORDS:

• Aluminium (Al)
• graphene (Gr)
• carbon nanotubes (CNT)
• liquid metallurgy
• hardness
• microstructure
• adhesive wear

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).