microstructure and mechanical properties of al-tic composite fabricated by accumulated extrusion bonding (aeb)

There is a growing demand for the use of light metals such as al and its alloys in various industrial applications due to their high strength-to-weight ratio. many studies were conducted to improve their properties by developing fine-grained structures and/or adding reinforcing particles. in this study, al-tic composite samples were fabricated using the accumulated extrusion bonding (aeb) method, which is a severe plastic deformation technique. the effects of particle volume fraction and the number of extrusion passes on the microstructure and mechanical properties of the composites were investigated. the results indicated that the aeb of the pure al sample at 390°c with a 90% reduction in cross-sectional area resulted in proper interlayer bonding. the composite samples were fabricated by incorporating varying content of tic particles (0.5, 1, and 2 vol.%) between the layers. it was found that the strength and hardness of the composite increased with the volume fraction of reinforcing particles. after four aeb passes, the composite sample containing 2 vol.% tic exhibited a uniform distribution of tic particles, resulting in an 83% increase in tensile strength and a 156% increase in hardness compared to the annealed sample.