21

CHAPTER 2
LITERATURE REVIEW

2.1

INTRODUCTION TO METAL MATRIX COMPOSITES

The potential for extensive application of cast composites is very

large in

India especially in areas of

transportation,

energy and

electromechanical machinery. The extensive use of composites can lead to

large savings in materials, energy and in several instances reduce
environmental pollution. Considerable progress has been made in the field of
cast metal matrix composites since cast aluminium-graphite particle
composites were first synthesized in 1965. Stir casting and pressure
infiltration have emerged as the two major processes to make composites.
Metal matrix composites in general consist of continuous or discontinuous
fibers, whiskers or particulates dispersed in a metallic alloy matrix. These
reinforcements provide the composite with properties not achievable in
monolithic alloys (Pradeep Rohatgi 1993).
According to Surappa (2003), the major advantages of Aluminium
Matrix Composites (AMCs) compared to unreinforced materials are as
follows:
Greater strength
Improved stiffness
Reduced density(weight)

22

Improved high temperature properties

Controlled coefficient of thermal expansion
Thermal/heat management
Enhanced and tailored electrical performance
Improved abrasion and wear resistance
Control of mass (especially in reciprocating applications)
Improved damping capabilities.
2.2

MANUFACTURING OF METAL MATRIX COMPOSITES

Harris (1988) classified fabrication techniques into two broad

categories namely solid phase fabrication methods and liquid phase

fabrication methods. Solid phase fabrication methods include diffusion
bonding, hot rolling, extrusion, powder metallurgy, pneumatic impaction, etc.
Liquid-phase fabrication methods include liquid metal infiltration, squeeze
casting, compo casting, pressure casting, spray co deposition, stir casting etc.
The liquid metallurgy techniques are the least expensive and the multi step
diffusion bonding techniques may be the most expensive.
2.2.1

Stir Casting
This process involves incorporation of ceramic particulate into

liquid aluminium melt and allowing the mixture to solidify. The crucial thing
is to create good wetting between the particulate reinforcement and the liquid
aluminium alloy melt. The simplest and most commercially used technique is
known as vortex technique or stir casting technique. In this method the matrix
material is melt and stirred vigorously to form a vortex at the surface of the
melt. The vortex technique involves the introduction of pre-treated ceramic
particles into the vortex of molten alloy created by the rotating impeller.

23

Stirring is continued for few minutes before the slurry is cast (Hai Zhi Ye and
Xing Yang Liu 2004). Stirring helps in two ways: (a) transferring particles
into the liquid metal and (b) maintaining the particles in a state of suspension.
It is then poured into the die and allowed to solidify. Mechanical stirring in
the furnace is a key element of this process. The resultant molten alloy, with
ceramic particles, can then be used for die casting, permanent mold casting, or
sand casting.
A homogeneous distribution of secondary particles in the
composite matrix is critical for achieving a high strengthening effect because
an uneven distribution can lead to premature failures in both reinforcementfree and reinforcement-rich areas. The reinforcement-free areas tend to be
weaker than the other areas. Under an applied stress, slip of dislocations and
initiation of microcracks can occur in these areas relatively easily, eventually
resulting in failure of the material. Microstructural inhomogeneties can cause
notably particle agglomeration and sedimentation in the melt and
subsequently during solidification. In the areas of signi cant segregation or
agglomeration of normally highly brittle hard particles, weak bonds are
formed in the material which can lead to the reduced mechanical properties. A
major concern associated with the stir casting process is the segregation of
reinforcing particles caused by surfacing or settling of the reinforcement
particles during the melting and casting processes.
Inhomogeneity in reinforcement distribution in these cast
composites could also be a problem as a result of interaction between
suspended ceramic particles and moving solid-liquid interface during
solidification. The nal distribution of the particles in the solid depends on
material properties and process parameters such as the wetting condition of
the particles with the melt, strength of mixing, relative density, and rate of
solidi cation. The distribution of the particles in the molten matrix also

24

depends on the geometry of the mechanical stirrer, stirring parameters,

placement of the mechanical stirrer in the melt, melting temperature, and the
characteristics of the particles added.
Generally it is possible to incorporate upto 30% ceramic particles in
the size range 5 to 100 m in a variety of molten aluminium alloys. The melt
ceramic particle slurry may be transferred directly to a shaped mould prior to
complete solidification or it may be allowed to solidify in billet or rod shape
so that it can be reheated to the slurry form for further processing by
technique such as die casting, and investment casting. The process is not
suitable for the incorporation of sub-micron size ceramic particles or
whiskers. (Surappa 2003).
An interesting recent development in stir casting is a two-step
mixing process. In this process, the matrix material is heated to above its
liquidus temperature so that the metal is totally melted. The melt is then
cooled down to a temperature between the liquidus and solidus points and
kept in a semi-solid state. At this stage, the preheated particles are added and
mixed. The slurry is again heated to a fully liquid state and mixed thoroughly.
The resulting microstructure has been found to be more uniform than that
processed with conventional stirring. The effectiveness of this two-step
processing method is mainly attributed to its ability to break the gas layer
around the particle surface. Compared with conventional stirring, the mixing
of the particles in the semi-solid state can more effectively break the gas layer
because the high melt viscosity produces a more abrasive action on the
particle surface. Hence, the breaking of the gas layer improves the
effectiveness of the subsequent mixing in a fully liquid state.
In principle, stir casting allows for the use of conventional metal
processing methods with the addition of an appropriate stirring system such as
mechanical stirring; ultrasonic or electromagnetic stirring; or centrifugal force

25

stirring. The major merit of stir casting is its applicability to large quantity
production. Among all the well-established metal matrix composite
fabrication methods, stir casting is the most economical (Compared to other
methods, stir casting costs as little as one third to one tenth for mass
production. For that reason, stir mixing and casting is now used for largescale production of Metal Matrix Particulate Composites. Various metals such
as Al, Mg, Ni, and Cu have been used as the matrix and a wide variety of
reinforcements like SiC, graphite, SiO2, Al2O3 Si3N4, and ZrSiO4, have been
used as reinforcements. Processing of metal matrix composites by stir mixing
and casting requires special precautions including temperature control and
design of pouring and gating systems (Pradeep Rohatgi 2001).
2.3

RULE OF MIXTURES
Most studies concerned with the evaluation of mechanical

behaviour of composites use "Rule-Of-Mixtures"(ROM) to predict and/or to

compare the properties of the composite. ROM is an operational tool that uses
weighted volume average of the component properties in isolation to obtain
the magnitude of property for the composite.
2.4

MECHANICAL PROPERTIES AND DISTRIBUTION OF

REINFORCEMENT IN ALUMINIUM COMPOSITES
MMC materials have a combination of superior properties than

unreinforced matrix like increased strength, higher elastic modulus, higher

service temperature, improved wear resistance, high electrical and thermal
conductivity, low coefficient of thermal expansion and high vacuum
environmental resistance. These properties can be attained with proper choice
of the matrix and reinforcement.

26

Fogagnolo (2004) produced aluminium matrix composite materials

reinforced with Silicon Nitride, Aluminium Nitride and Zirconium di Boride
by powder metallurgy and observed uniform distribution of reinforcement.
Mechanical alloying increased the tensile strength and powder hardness when
compared with unreinforced aluminium alloy. Addition of reinforcement
improved the ultimate tensile strength and hardness of the extruded materials.
Increase in composition of SiC in aluminium matrix increased the
hardness, impact strength and normalized displacement (Manoj Singla et al
2009). Homogenous dispersion of SiC particles in the Al matrix showed an
increasing trend in the samples prepared by two step stir casting technique.
Zhou and Xu (1997) produced two different aluminium matrix
composites (A356 and 6061) reinforced with SiC particles by gravity casting
and reported that a two-step mixing method improved the wettability of the
SiC particles and ensured good particle distribution. SiC particles are located
predominantly in interdendric regions as substrates of Si crystals in
(A356-10%SiC) composites. Arda Cetin and Ali Kalkanli (2008) observed
that addition of Mg in alloy improved the wettability of SiC particles.
Tamer Ozben et al (2008) examined the effect of SiC reinforcement
in aluminium (Al/7Si/2Mg) and observed that an increase in SiC increased the
tensile strength, hardness and density of Al/SiC composites, the impact
toughness decreased with increase in SiC particles. Machinability of MMC
was very less compared to traditional materials because of the abrasive
reinforcement element.
Bayraktar et al (2008) studied the damage mechanism of
SiCp/aluminium composites in as received and heat treated conditions of the
composites fabricated with different production methods. The crack initiated
at the interface (SiC/matrix) with large debonding at the interface between the

27

SiC particles and the matrix causes reduced fatigue strength. The mechanical
behaviour of these composites was related to the particle geometry (shape),
distribution and size of reinforcement particles in the matrix.
Chennakesava Reddy and Essa Zitoun (2010) reported that the
yield strength, ultimate strength, and ductility of Al/SiC metal matrix
composites are in the descending order of Al 6061, Al6063 and Al 7072
matrix alloys. The contents of alloying elements such as Si, Fe, Mg and Cu
play a vital role in the mechanical properties Al/SIC composites. Mg
improved the wettability between Al and SiC particles by reducing the SiO2
layer on the surface of the SiC. The fracture modes of composites are ductile
in nature.
Hamouda et al (2007) reported that the tensile strength and youngs
modulus of silicon dioxide particulate reinforced LM6 aluminium alloy
composites decreased gradually with increase in silicon dioxide. This was due
to the dominating nature of the compressive strength of quartz particulate
reinforced in LM6 alloy matrix.
Tensile strength, impact strength and fatigue properties of
aluminium composites reinforced with longitudinal steel fibers are higher
compared to composites reinforced with transverse fibers (Agbanigo and
Alowode 2008). This was due to the fact that transverse fibers created areas of
stress concentration which aids initiation and propagation of cracks resulting
in early commencement of deformation and fiber matrix debonding.
Fracture behaviour of two MMC materials Al6061/Al2O3 and Al-Si
alloy SiC were studied by Perez Ipina et al (2000). Annealing heat treatments
promoted an increase in fracture toughness and observed formation of fatigue
precracking after heat treatment.

28

Cepeda-Jime Nez et al (2008) developed a multilayered composite

laminate of Al 7075 and Al 2024 alloys by hot roll bonding with high impact
toughness. A post rolling tempering reduced the stresses around the interfaces
and optimized the precipitation hardening during T6 treatment. The
mechanism of interface pre-delamination was responsible for delamination
and crack nucleation in every layer of the composite laminate.
Wang Weimin et al (2002) fabricated (TiB2-Al2O3)/Al composites
by self-propagating, high temperature synthesis and hot pressing. The
fabrication processes parameters had a great influence on the ignition
temperature of synthesis reaction, reaction temperature and density of the
synthesized products. The fracture toughness increased rapidly with increase
in Al content in composites. The bending strength increased with increase in
Al content till about 30 vol% and then decreased with further increase in Al
content.
Roy et al (2006) produced Al based composites reinforced with
Fe-aluminide and alumina by in-situ process and observed that the initiation
temperature of in-situ reaction decreased significantly with the use of
nano sized Fe2O3 crystallites. Evolutions of reinforcements are favoured by
the increase in pressing temperature.
Adamiak (2006) added titanium aluminide intermetallics particles
to aluminium matrix composites by hot extrusion and found that the addition
of intermetallic reinforcement particles to the composites do not influence
their tensile properties. The higher reinforcement content resulted in higher
particle dispersion hardening.
Veeresh Kumar et al (2010) were successful in adopting liquid
metallurgy technique in preparing Al6061-SiC and Al7075-Al2O3 composites
and found that Al6061-SiC composites exhibited superior tensile strength

29

properties than that of Al7075-Al2O3 composites. The wear resistance of the

composites are higher, SiC significantly improved the wear resistance of
composites than Al2O3 composites.
Neelima Devi et al (2011) found that the weight to strength ratio of
aluminium silicon carbide composite was about three times than that of mild
steel. Aluminium silicon carbide alloy composite material was two times less
in weight than aluminium for the same dimensions.
Abouelmagd (2004) reinforced different weight fractions of Al2O3
and Al4C3 particles in pure aluminium by powder metallurgy. Hardness and
compressive strength improved to about four times by the addition of Al2O3
and Al4C3. Addition of Al4C3 caused the ductile to brittle transition
phenomenon and showed large number of cracks. The crack width increased
with increase in deformation temperature.
Wodarczyk-Fligier et al (2010) observed uniform distribution of
boron nitride in aluminium matrix. Hardness of composite materials increased
with increase in boron nitride. Precipitation hardening caused an additional
increase in hardness of composite materials. Addition of boron nitride
decreased the tensile strength and corrosion resistance of composites.
Hardness of Al6061 aluminium composite increased with increase
in addition of frit particles (Ramesh et al 2010). Addition of frit particles
significantly improved the ultimate tensile strength and compressive strength
of Al6061 initially. Ultimate tensile strength of composites decreased above
the addition of 6wt % of frit particles. Above 8 wt % of frit the compressive
strength of composites decreased with increase in frit particles.

30

2.5

FLY ASH AS REINFORCEMENT IN ALUMINIUM

COMPOSITES
Fly ash, being a waste material formed as a result of coal combustion in

power and metallurgical plants needs ecological processing to avoid its

dumping in waste grounds or landfills. In view of the combination of physical
and chemical properties and from the economical and ecological standpoint,
fly ash may be an attractive material as reinforcement in metal matrix
composites. Metal matrix composites manufactured by dispersing coal fly ash
in aluminum alloys improved the mechanical properties and wear resistance.
Babu Rao et al (2010) presented that fly ash can be classified into
two types namely the precipitator and cenosphere. The solid spherical
particles of fly ash are called precipitator fly ash and the hollow particles of
fly ash with density less than 1.0 g/cm3 are called cenosphere fly ash.
Addition of precipitator fly ash particles in aluminium alloy improved the
stiffness, strength and wear resistance. However addition of fly ash decreased
the density of composites. Cenosphere fly ash consisting of hollow fly ash
particles can be used for the synthesis of ultra light composite materials due to
its low density. Fly ash mainly contains elements like oxygen, silicon,
aluminium, iron, calcium, magnesium, sodium, potassium and titanium.
Incorporation of fly ash particles in aluminium alloy promotes the use of fly
ash and has the potential for conserving energy intensive aluminium, thereby
reducing the cost of aluminium products.
Rohatgi et al (2006) reported that incorporating fly ash into
aluminium castings decreased the energy content, material content, cost and
weight. Fly ash was incorporated in aluminium alloy matrix using stir casting
and pressure infiltration techniques. The sand and permanent mold castings
demonstrated adequate castability of aluminium melts containing up to 10 %
by volume of fly ash particles. The density and coefficient of thermal

31

expansion of castings decreased with increase in fly ash content. The hardness
and wear resistance increased as the fly ash content increased. Tensile
strength of heat treated composites (T6) containing less than 8 vol% fly ash
was similar to that of the aluminium alloy.
LI Yue-ying et al (2007) investigated the mechanical behaviours of
Al/fly ash particles synthesized by squeeze casting method. The hardness of
the composites was higher than that of the Al matrix and increased with
increase in volume fraction of fly ash particles. The tensile strengths and
elongation of composites are lower than that of the Al matrix and decreased
with increase in volume fraction of fly ash particles.
Rohatgi et al (2005) observed that the presence of fly ash
cenospheres in pure Al matrix decreased the coefficient of thermal expansion.
Increase in applied pressure and infiltration time decreased the coefficient of
thermal expansion. Increase in infiltration pressure and temperature improved
the infiltration and decreased the entrapment of air voids.
Differential thermal analysis study by Guo et al(1998) indicated
that pressure infiltrated aluminium with 40 vol.% fly ash composite was
chemically stable after holding for 10 hrs at 850C enhancing the chemical
stability of aluminium-fly ash composites during synthesis and reheating.
Yadong Li et al (1998) combined polyethylene terephthalate plastic
waste with fly ash and observed that fly ash served as a filler element. Fly ash
particles served as a heat conductor, decomposition inhibitor and as
lubricating agent. Fly ash improved the compressive strength, melting and
mixing processes. Sobczak et al (2003) observed oxy-redox reactions between
Al and fly ash constituents such as SiO2, Fe2O3, Fe3O4 and mullite resulting in
the formation of a thick reaction product region.

32

Zuoyong Dou et al (2007) used fly ash particulates to produce

aluminium matrix composites and found that the Electro Magnetic
interference Shielding Effectiveness (EMSE) of aluminium improved with
increasing frequency. At higher frequency the EMSE properties of the
composites was similar to that of the aluminium alloy.
Rohatgi et al (2006) synthesized A356fly ash cenosphere
composites using gas pressure - infiltrated technique and observed the
presence of voids in regions where cenospheres are very close to each other.
The stress strain curves of composites showed a stress plateau region, which
was commonly observed in foam materials. The compressive strength, plateau
stress and modulus of the composites increased with increase in density.
The damping properties of the hollow sphere fly ash/6061Al
composites with different fly ash diameters was measured by Wu et al (2006)
using forced vibration mode and bending vibration mode. The damping
capacity of fly ash/Al composite with smaller fly ash diameter was higher
than composite with larger fly ash diameter in both vibration modes.
The effect of three different stir casting routes on the structure and
properties of fine fly ash particles reinforced Al/7Si/0.35Mg alloy composite
was evaluated by Rajan et al (2007). Squeeze casting technique resulted in a
well dispersed and relatively agglomerate and porosity free fly ash particle
dispersed composites compared to liquid metal stir casting, compo casting,
modified compo casting and squeeze casting routes.
Wang Deqing et al (2001) employed squeeze infiltration process to
synthesize lead fly ash composite and found the external composite surface
consist a layer of pure lead. Corrosion testing indicated that the corrosion
resistance of the composite has improved.

33

Bienias et al (2003) reported that the addition of fly ash particles in

aluminium by squeeze casting technology was advantageous in comparison
with gravity casting for obtaining higher structural homogeneity with
minimum porosity, good interfacial bonding and uniform distribution of fly
ash particles.
Mahendra and Radhakrishna (2007) observed uniform distribution
of fly ash in Al/5Cu alloy. The fluidity and density of the composites
decreased, the hardness increased with increase in percentage of fly ash
particulates. The tensile strength, compression strength and wear resistance
increased with increasing percentage of fly ash particulates. The slurry
erosive wear resistance increased with increasing fly ash content. Corrosion
increased with increase in percentage of fly ash content.
Rohatgi et al (2002) observed aluminium fly ash composites have
higher specific strength and specific hardness compared to aluminium.
Hardness of the composite was higher than that of aluminium alloy.
No significant change in the aging kinetics was observed due to the presence
of spherical fly ash particles in the composite. Aging times of the order of
104 to 105 seconds was required to reach the peak hardness and improved
compressive strength.
2.6

THEORY OF WEAR
Wear behaviour is the surface damage or removal of material from

one or both of the two solid surfaces in sliding, rolling or impact motions
relative to one another. Wear is usually a progressive loss of weight and
alteration of dimensions over a period of time. Wear is an undesirable product
in almost all machine applications such as bearing seals, gears and cams etc.
Wear of components ranges from mild polishing type attrition to rapid and
severe removal of material.

34

2.6.1

Types of Wear
In most basic wear studies dry friction was investigated to avoid the

influence of fluid lubricants. Dry friction is defined as the friction under

unlubricated conditions generally lubricated by atmospheric gases especially
oxygen. Wear can be classified as follows:
Abrasive wear
Adhesive wear
Corrosion wear
Erosive wear
Fatigue wear
2.6.1.1

Abrasive Wear
Abrasive wear occurs when asperities of rough, hard surface or

hard particles slides on a softer surface and damage the interface by plastic
deformation or fracture. In ductile materials with high fracture toughness the
hard asperities or hard particles results in plastic flow of the softer material.
Abrasion can be generally classified into two body or three body abrasions.

2.6.1.2

Adhesive Wear
Adhesive wear occurs when two smooth flat bodies are in sliding

contact either in lubricated or unlubricated conditions. Adhesion (or bonding)

occurs at the asperity contacts and these contacts are shared by sliding
resulting in detachment of a fragment from one surface and attachment to the
other surface.

35

2.6.1.3

Corrosive Wear
Most of the metals are thermodynamically unstable in air and reacts

with oxygen to form oxide developing oxide layers on the surface of metal
when their interfacial bonds are poor. Corrosion wear is the gradual eating
away or deterioration of unprotected metal surfaces by the effects of the
atmosphere, acids, gases, alkalis, etc. This type of wear creates pits and
perforations and may eventually dissolve the metal parts.
2.61.4

Erosive Wear
Erosive wear is caused by the impact of particles of solid or liquid

against the surface of an object. The impacting particles gradually remove

material from the surface through repeated deformations and cutting actions.
It is a widely encountered mechanism in industry. The rate of erosive wear is
dependent on factors such as their shape, hardness, impact velocity and
impingement angle with the properties of the surface being eroded.
2.6.1.5

Fatigue Wear
Surface fatigue is a process by which the surface of a material is

weakened by cyclic loading. Fatigue wear is produced when the wear

particles are detached by cyclic crack growth of micro cracks on the surface.
These micro cracks are either superficial cracks or subsurface cracks.
2.7

WEAR BEHAVIOUR OF ALUMINIUM COMPOSITES

Aluminium based metal matrix composites have found application

in manufacturing various automotive engine components such as cylinder

blocks, pistons and piston insert rings where adhesive wear (dry sliding wear)
is a predominant process (Deuis et al 1996). Materials possessing high wear
resistance (under dry sliding conditions) are associated with a stable tribo

36

layer on the wearing surface and the formation of fine equiaxial wear debris.
The influence of applied load, sliding speed, surface hardness, reinforcement
fracture toughness and morphology were critical parameters for adhesive
wear in relation to the wear regime encountered by the matrix material.
Sannino and Rack (1995) in their review on discontinuously
reinforced aluminium composites proposed that metals undergoing dry sliding
can be independently optimized through investigation of (i) third body
behaviour: the rate of third body ejection depends on sliding velocity, load,
geometry of contact and the reinforcement characteristics (ii) Surface
behaviour where adhesion is the principal debris generation mechanism (iii)
Subsurface behaviour when delamination is the principal debris generation
mechanism.
2.7.1.

Effect of Aluminium Matrix on Wear

The dry sliding wear behaviour of four aluminium alloys A2124,

A6092 (both precipitation hardened), A3004 (dispersion hardened) and

A5056 (work hardened) was investigated by Ghazali et al (2005) against M2
steel counter face in the load range of (23140) N and at a fixed sliding speed
of 1 m/s. Severe wear was observed for all alloys, with specific wear rates in
the range of 0.3110

to 4.2310 4 mm3/ (N m). The dry sliding wear

resistance of wrought aluminium alloys was strongly influenced by the alloy

composition mainly due to the differences in the hardness and the chemical
interaction with the counter face. Wear was dominated by the transfer of Fe
from the counter face for all alloys and resulted in the formation of a
Mechanically Mixed Layer (MML). Linear relationship between specific
wear rate and thickness of the MML was observed for A2124, A5056 and
A3004 alloys.

37

Rajaneesh et al (2011) explored the wear behaviour of Zinc/

Aluminium alloy composite reinforced with SiC (30 ) particulate produced
using liquid metallurgy technique. The sliding speed was varied between 1.2
m/s to 5.1 m/s and load was varied between 10 N to 40 N. Wear rate of
composites increased with increasing load and increasing speed. Zinc based
MMC showed lower co-efficient of friction under dry sliding condition. The
presence of SiC restricted the growth of micro cracks and delamination.
Combination of delamination and abrasive wear was observed during the test.
Adhesion and melting of the specimen was also observed.
Anasyida et al (2010) found that the addition of cerium in
Al/12Si/4Mg lead to the precipitation of intermetallic compound in needle
like structures in wear test conducted in dry conditions at room temperature of
25oC. Increasing cerium content up to 2 wt% improved both wear resistance
and micro hardness of the aluminium alloy. Addition of more than 2 wt%
cerium decreased the micro hardness resulting in low wear resistance.
Formation of craters and severe localised plastic deformation were observed
on the worn surface of alloys with higher Ce content. The mechanism of wear
was a combination of abrasion and adhesion.
Tribological behaviour of Al (8090)/Li and Al/Li/15% SiC
composite was analysed by Rodriguez et al (2006). Transition from mild wear
to severe wear, dependent on nominal pressure was observed in both materials
leading to changes of two orders of magnitude in wear rate. The formation of
Mechanically Mixed Layer (MML) was a key factor in controlling the mild
wear of these materials. The morphology and composition of the wear debris
also changed with the wear mechanism.
Ramachandra, Radhakrishna (2006) in their study on aluminium
matrix composites reinforced with silicon carbide (SiC) particulates using
conventional vortex casting technique reported that the slurry erosive wear

38

resistance increased with increase in SiC content. The formation of passive

layers on the surface of slurry erosive specimens decreased the wear loss by
forming protective layers against the impact of slurry.
2.7.2

Effect of Reinforcement on Wear

Feng Tang et al (2008) conducted pin-on-disk dry sliding wear tests

at sliding speeds ranging from 0.6 to 1.25 m/s and under loads ranging from
3.98 to 6.37MPa for pin specimens of Al-5083 matrices composites
reinforced with 5 and 10 wt.% B4C particles. Two stages in the pin length
reduction curves while reinforcing B4C in aluminium alloy was observed. The
low length reduction rate in the first stage corresponded to a flat stage with
low coefficient of friction. The transition from the first stage to the second
stage attributed to the change in wear mechanism from abrasive wear to
adhesive wear.
Jha et al (1989) studied the dry sliding wear of 6061 aluminium
alloy and composites containing graphite particle dispersions developed by
power metallurgy route. The wear rate of composites increased with
increasing amount of graphite due to the increased porosity (interconnected
and interfacial) in the composites. Most of the wear debris was flaky in
nature.

Mandal et al (2007) reported that TiB2 particles improved the wear

performance of the Al/4Cu alloy. The wear resistance increased with increase
in amount of TiB2. The improvement in wear resistance of both alloy and
composites was mainly due to the formation of finer debris.
Pritt Kulu et al (2005) reported the behaviour of powder materials
and coatings under different abrasive wear conditions was dependent on the
type, composition of materials and conditions of abrasive wear (abrasive
particle size and velocity, media of abrasive wear etc). Under high-energy
impact wear TiC based cermets with optimal composition were almost as

39

good as hardmetals. The wear resistance of sprayed coatings at impact wear is

low due to their low thickness.
2.7.3

Effect of Manufacturing Processes on Wear

Das (2004) reported aluminium (LM13)/ SiC composite developed

by (stir casting or vortex technique) exhibited uniform distribution of the

particle in the matrix and good interface bonding between the ceramic phase
and the metallic matrix. Beyond a critical load and abrasive size, the Al alloy
SiC composite exhibited more or less the same wear rate compared to that of
aluminium alloy. Wear rate increased almost linearly with applied load.
Composites exhibited improved wear resistance and seizure pressure
compared to that of aluminium alloy under both dry and lubricated sliding
wear. The corrosion resistance of composite was comparatively higher than
the base alloy irrespective of the corrosive media.
Walker et al (2005) reinforced 15 vol.% of SiC particles in
aluminium alloy (2124, 5056) by powder metallurgy route. Mild wear was the
predominant wear mechanism during lubricated sliding. Two and three body
abrasives from the counter face deformed the surface by micro ploughing and
indentation. Silicate particles exceeded their fracture toughness under the
applied contact stress and liberated small particles as debris.
Dobrzanski et al (2010) reinforced EN AC - AlSi12 alloy matrix
with Al2O3 preforms by pressure infiltration and observed numerous visible
scratches on the disc caused by the pull out of Al2O3 particles from the
matrix. If the process of infiltration was complete, all pores are fulfilled with
liquid matrix material.
Vieira et al (2009) studied the unlubricated sliding wear of
centrifuged Al alloy and Al/SiCp Functionally Graded Metal (FGM) matrix

40

composites processed with different centrifugal speeds. FGM cast at low

centrifugal speed (1500 rpm) presented a smooth gradient on SiCp
distribution while FGM cast at higher centrifugal speed (2000 rpm) revealed a
sharper gradient on the distribution of reinforcing particles.
In situ micro alloying of aluminium alloy (2014) with Sn and Ag
was conducted by Bishop et al (1998) using reaction sintering technique.
Using this method, samples were microalloyed with either Sn or Ag, aged to
peak hardness, and subjected to dry sliding wear tests in accordance with
ASTM standards. Sn and Ag micro alloyed samples developed improved
wear resistance with sintering time due to an increased extent of micro
alloying.
2.7.4

Effect of Reinforcement Orientation on Wear

The sliding wear behaviour of preferred orientation of SiC whiskers

in an alumina based ceramic cutting tool material was studied by Hong Xiao
et al (1991). The surface parallel to hot pressing direction was found to have
more wear resistant than the surface perpendicular to hot pressing direction.
Oxidation of Sic whiskers occurred in the wear process which accelerates the
wear rate. The oxidation of whiskers is less on the surface parallel to hot
pressing direction.
The friction and wear behaviour of aluminium/graphite fiber
composites was examined by Nayeb Hasbemi (1991) as a function of
interfacial reaction. The wear fibers parallel to the sliding direction were
dominated by three wear mechanisms: (1) matrix removal by delamination (2)
wear due to ploughing and (3) fiber pull-out. Whenever fiber pull-out was a
contributing mechanism in the wear, the wear rate is an exponential function
of the normal load. In contrast, the wear rate of composites was proportional
to the normal load in the absence of fiber pull-out. When the fibers were

41

normal to the sliding plane and direction, fiber pull-out was minimal. When
the fibers were parallel to the sliding plane and perpendicular to the sliding
direction, fiber roll-out was significant. When the fibers were parallel to the
sliding plane and direction, fiber pull-out was significant.
Nannaji Saks and Nelson K. Szeto (1992) compared the wear
behaviour of three composites namely graphite /aluminium, stainless steel
/aluminium and Al2O3/Al/Li and reported that graphite/Al is a low-friction,
low-wear composite. Stainless steel/Al is a high-friction, high-wear and
highly anisotropic composite. The low friction was due to spreading of
graphite at the sliding interface. Fiber pull-out was the dominant mechanism
of wear, especially in the Gr/Al and SS/Al composites. Poor bonding and
fiber clusters lead to high wear and high friction.
The wear and frictional behaviour of LM 13 alloys containing up
to 30 vol % of Al2O3 fiber were investigated by Akbulut (1998) in sliding
against a hard steel counter face (63 HRC) under dry conditions at room
temperature in the transverse section of composites. Increased fiber volume in
the composites decreased the wear rate and coefficient of friction. Reinforcing
AI-Si (LM 13) alloy with alumina short fibers reduced the wear rate of the
matrix alloy by a factor from 1.2 to 4.o and the coefficient of friction by 525% , depending on the fiber volume. Excessive plastic deformation occurred
during the wear and the amount of the plastic deformation decreased with
increasing fiber volume.
Iwai et al (2000) reinforced Al2O3 fibers ranging from 0.03 to 0.26
volume fractions and rubbed against a pin of nitrided stainless steel with a
load of 10 N at a sliding velocity of 0.1 m/s in aluminium alloy. Improvement
in dry sliding wear resistance of composites was observed. Reinforcements
inhibited plastic flow and restricted propagation of wear cracks. Duration of
severe wear regime and severe wear rate decreased with increase in fiber

42

volume fraction. Wear rate of the counter face (steel pin) increased
moderately with increase in volume fraction of alumina fibers.
2.7.5

Effect of Sliding Speed on Wear

Uyyuru et al (2007) studied the tribological behaviour of stir cast

Al/Si/SiCp composites against automobile brake pad material. With increase

in applied normal load and sliding speed (1.5, 3, 4 m/s) the wear rate
increased, the coefficient of friction decreased with increase in applied normal
load and sliding speed. Heterogeneous type of tribo layer was observed over
the worn disc surfaces which affects the wear behaviour apart from acting as a
source of wear debris.
Singh et al (2001) studied the effect of granite reinforcement (10
wt.%) on dry sliding wear behaviour of aluminium silicon alloy (LM6)
manufactured by liquid metallurgy technique. Increase in sliding speed (1.89,
3.96 and 5.55 m/s) decreased the wear rate initially and then increased with
sliding speed in case of aluminium alloy. On the contrary, wear rate decreased
with sliding speed for the composite except at the maximum sliding speed and
at high pressures. Frictional heating and friction coefficient were more in case
of the matrix alloy than that of the composite. The composite seized at much
higher temperature than that of the matrix alloy.
Prasanna Kumar et al (2006) studied the wear behaviour of
zinc/aluminium alloy composites reinforced with garnet particles (0, 5, 10,15
and 20 %) fabricated by liquid metallurgy. The wear loss of composites was
less than that of the alloy and increased with increase in load and sliding
speed (upto 3.65 m/s). The wear resistant increased with increase in garnet
content. The coefficient of friction of zinc/aluminium alloy metal matrix
composite decreased with increase in percentage of garnet particles. The

43

friction coefficient of zinc-aluminium alloy metal matrix composite decreases

with increase in percentage of garnet from 0 % to 20 % by weight.
2.7.6

Effect of applied load on wear

The wear rate of composites was lower than that of Al 2219

aluminium alloy and decreased with increase in SiC content. With an increase
in load (0 to 60 N) , cracking of SiC particles occurred and a combination of
abrasion, delamination and adhesive wear was observed (Basavarajappa et al
2006). Mild wear was observed for a small applied load, but as the load
increased up to 20 N, the wear rate of the unreinforced alloy and composite
increased. At the load of 20 N, the wear pattern changed for the unreinforced
alloy, while the composite followed the same trend up to 50 N (the
unreinforced alloy seizes at this load). At a 60 N load, the SiCp reinforced
composites showed a change in the wear rate pattern to severe wear.
Mehmet Acilar and Ferhat Gul (2004) carried sliding wear tests
under normal loads of 12, 24 and 36 N at a sliding speed of 1.0 m/ s and
sliding distances of 2.2, 3.6 and 5.0 km against a steel disk using a pin-on-disc
type apparatus. The surface damage of Al/10Si/SiCp (10 and 30-vol% )
composites produced by vacuum infiltration technique increased with
increasing load since matrix materials have wear low resistance. Delamination
type of wear mechanism was observed under higher loads. Oxidation was the
wear mechanism under the low load, since oxide layer with high Fe content
formed on the steel disc surface served as a lubricant and reduced the wear.
The damage to the surface of the composites increased with increasing load.
Shorowordi

et

al

(2006)

investigated

the

tribo

surface

characteristics of two aluminium metal matrix composites reinforced with

B4C and SiC sliding against a commercial phenolic brake pad at different
pressures (0.75 to 3.00MPa). Wear rate and surface roughness of both MMCs

44

increased with increase in contact pressures, the coefficient of friction

decreased at high contact pressure. The wear rate and coefficient of friction of
Al/B4C was lower than that of Al/SiC. The surface chemistry of the transfer
layer particularly the carbon percentage influenced the wear and coefficient of
friction.
2.7.7

Effect of Sliding Distance on Wear

Ramesh et.al (2005) observed that the increase in loads and sliding

distances (90-540 m) resulted in higher volumetric wear loss but lowered the
wear coefficient of Al6061/ TiO2 composites. At larger sliding distances, rise
in temperature of the sliding surfaces resulted in softening of both the matrix
alloy and the composite pin surfaces, leading to heavy deformation at higher
sliding distances contributing to higher wear losses. The volumetric wear loss
of the composites were much lower when compared with the matrix alloy and
reduced with increased content of TiO2 in the composites at all sliding
distances studied. This is due to enhancement in hardness of the composites
resulting in improvement of wear and seizure resistance of materials.
Wear loss was found to increase more or less linearly with sliding
distance (125-500 m) for A6061 matrix alloy as well as composites
containing 7 vol.% graphite particles. The rate of increase in wear rate with
increase in sliding distance corresponding to the 6061 matrix alloy was less
than that of the graphite containing composite.
Wear rates and friction coefficients were measured by Martin
(1996) in 2618 Al alloy reinforced with 15 vol % SiC and the corresponding
unreinforced alloy in the temperature range 20- 200oC. Both materials
presented a transition from mild to severe wear as the temperature increased
with increase in sliding distance. The transition temperature was between 100

45

and 150oC in the unreinforced alloy and between 150 and 200oC in the
composite.
2.7.8

Effect of Environmental Conditions on Wear

Deuis et al (1998) formed composite coatings on composites

reinforced with discontinuous ceramic particles of Al2O3, SiC and TiC on

AA5083 aluminium alloy using plasma transferred arc (PTA) surfacing
technique and the specimens were subjected to dry and wet (liquid media
employed was either distilled water or a saline solution of 3.5 wt.% NaCl)
environments. Dry and wet abrasive wear studies were employed using
modified sand/rubber wheel abrasion tester. The wet environment promoted a
higher wear rate compared to the dry conditions. The wear environment
significantly influenced wear behaviour. Wet abrasion characterized by a
higher Np (function of wear scar length, peripheral wheel speed and Mp the
silica sand particle mass value) at the contact zone promoted a higher wear
rate compared to dry abrasion.
Rolf Wasche et al (2004) compared the friction and wear behaviour
of pressure-less sintered TiB2 and SiC against SiC and Al2O3 balls under
unlubricated conditions at room temperature. The coefficient of friction
against both ball materials decreased with increase in humidity against
alumina than against SiC. Wear rate was affected significantly by humidity
and decreased by the magnitude for Al2O3/SiC and SiC/SiC system.
Murthy et al (2004) reported that doping elements (Al, Mg and P)
reinforced with silicon carbide affected the coefficient of friction at low
humidity (30% RH) than at high humidity (60% RH). At higher humidity
coefficient of friction (COF) decreased but the effect of doping elements was
insignificant due to faster kinetics of tribo chemical reactions. Continuous

46

adhesion, twisting and rolling of small wear particles during the wear process
resulted in the formation of long needle like debris.
2.7.9

Effect of Counter Face Material on Wear

Howell and Ball (1995) conducted wear test of magnesium/silicon

aluminium alloys reinforced with SiC (20 vol. % SiC) particulates against
automobile friction linings (brake pads). They revealed that if the structure
and composition of friction linings are arranged correctly, the wear resistance
and frictional properties of aluminium MMC brake rotors are superior to
those of cast iron brake rotors. At high loads and sliding velocities,
cohesiveness of materials within the pad was poor and the wear rate of the
MMC was extremely high.
Natarajan et al (2006) studied the wear behaviour of aluminium
metal matrix composite (A356/25SiCp) sliding against brake shoe lining
material and compared it with the conventional brake drum made of grey cast
iron. MMCs have considerable higher wear resistance than conventional grey
cast iron while sliding against automobile friction material under identical
sliding speed and load conditions.
Kok and Ozdin (2007) reinforced Al2O3 (16m and 32m) in 2024
Al matrix alloy and observed significant improvement in abrasive wear
resistance of composites tested against different abrasives (600,320,240 grit).
Wear resistance increased with increasing Al2O3 particles content and
abrasive size and decreased with increasing the sliding distance, applied load
and abrasive grit size.
Straffelini et al (2004) studied the friction and wear behaviour of
aluminium based composites reinforced with SiC. The friction and wear
behaviour was connected with the characteristics of the transfer layer formed

47

on the disc surface. External heating favoured the transfer phenomena and
decreased the wear of Al-MMCs (which is negative) but decreased the
friction and increased the wear of counter face friction material.
2.7.10

Effect of Heat Treatment on Wear

Lin et al (1998) observed that the wear of Al alloy (6061)/0-6 wt%

(6 m) graphite particulate composite was characterised by ploughing

generated by hard Al chip clusters that form on the wearing material.
Tribological behaviour of aluminium improved with the addition of graphite
particulates. Tribological behaviour of composite is dependent on the
hardness of the matrix, release rate of graphite particulates, structure of the
solid lubricating film deposited on the wearing material and the structure of
Al chip clusters. The specimens were subjected to T6 treatment, solutionized
at 532 C, furnace-cooled for 2h and subsequently water quenched (27C) and
aged at 160C for 18 h before air cooling to room temperature, The annealing
treatment was conducted at 415 C for 3h before furnace cooling to room
temperature. The tribological behavior of 6061 improved with the addition of
graphite particulates and T6 heat-treatment rather than annealing.
The wear and friction characteristics of Al 2024/Al2O3 particulate
composites fabricated by liquid metallurgy route were studied by Manish
Narayan et al (1994) using a pin-on-disc machine. In heat treated (T6)
condition the unreinforced alloy seizes while the composite does not seize
within the tested range.
The effect of ceramic particulate and graphite additions on the high
temperature dry sliding wear resistance of two AI alloys was studied by
Wilson and Alpas (1996). Conditions were selected such that the materials in
contact were kept in an isothermal atmosphere and the generation of frictional
heat was minimized by the use of a low load (11.55 N) and sliding speed (0.1

48

m/s). For unreinforced 6061 Al and A356 A1 alloys a transition from mild to
severe wear occurred in ranges of 175-190 oC and 225-230 oC respectively.
With the addition of 20 vol. % Al203 to 6061 Al, the mild wear transformed to
severe wear transition was raised to a range between 310-350 C. Likewise,
an addition of 20 vol. % of SiC to the A356 Al increased this transition to
440-450C. A hybrid A356 AI composite containing 20 vol. % SiC and 10
vol.% graphite remained in a mild wear regime at the highest test temperature
of 460oC. All the reinforced alloys were able to withstand considerable
thermal softening effects while remaining in a mild sliding we at regime. The
elevated temperature sliding wear of the particulate reinforced alloys was
accompanied by extensive thermal softening of their bulk matrix
microstructures. The formation of transfer layers of comminuted particulates
and steel inclusions delayed the onset of severe wear.
2.8

WEAR

BEHAVIOUR

OF

ALUMINIUM/FLY

ASH

COMPOSITES
Rohatgi and Guo (1997) observed that abrasive wear resistance of
aluminium alloy containing 5vol% fly ash was superior to that of the base
A356 alloy below a load of 8 N at a sliding velocity of 1 m/s. The decrease in
specific wear rate with increase in load was due to an accumulation of wear
debris in the interstices between the abrading particles and observed sub
surfaces below the rubbing surfaces of composites and the base alloy.
Samrat Mohanty and Chugh (2007) incorporated fly ash particles in
automotive brake lining friction composites. Ingredients such as phenolic
resin, aramid pulp, glass fiber, potassium titanate, graphite, aluminium fiber
and copper powder were used in the composite development phase in addition
to fly ash. The developed brake lining composites have exhibited consistent
coefficient of friction and wear rates.

49

Mahendra and Radhakrishna (2005) produced Al4.5%Cu alloy fly

ash composite bush by stir casting technique. The bush made from the
composite showed more resistance to wear than the aluminium alloy under
lubricated conditions for 200 hours. A cylinder liner was cast from the
composite and then tested in a two stroke petrol engine. No seizure was
observed in the cylinder liner even after 400 hours of testing.
2.9

PROPERTIES OF ALUMINIUM HYBRID COMPOSITES

Naplocha and Granat (2008) reinforced Al2O3 and graphite in

monolithic Al/Si7 alloy and observed that alumina fibers considerably

improved the wear. Addition of graphite protected the composite from
seizure. The composite reinforced with graphite fibers was less sensitive to
applied load than composites reinforced with graphite flakes.
Satyappa Basavarajappa et al (2005) compared the wear behaviour
of aluminium alloy reinforced with SiCp and graphite. Incorporation of
graphite particles in aluminium composites decreased the wear rate. Seizure
occurred for aluminium alloy but not in Al/SiCp and graphitic composites.
Adel Mahamood Hassan et al (2009) investigated the effects of
adding copper and silicon carbide as reinforcement particles to Al/4Mg alloy.
Wear loss of alloys containing copper was less than that for the copper free
alloys. Addition of SiC in Al/Mg/Cu alloy decreased the wear rate, the
coefficient of friction values increased with increase in SiC.
Hayrettin Ahlatcia (2006) produced Al/Mg matrix hybrid
composites reinforced with Al2O3 and SiC by pressure infiltration. Matrix
hardness and compression strength increased while porosity and impact
toughness decreased with increasing Mg content. Wear resistance of the

50

composites increased with increasing Mg addition. Abrasion resistance of the

hybrid composites decreased with increase in test temperature.
Umanath et al (2011) fabricated aluminium (Al6061) based hybrid
composites reinforced with mixtures of SiC and Al2O3 by stir casting method
and found that the coefficient of friction and wear rate of the hybrid
composite was less compared to that of the matrix alloy, Al/SiC composite
and Al/Al2O3 composite.
Wilson and Alpas (1996) observed that addition of SiC and Al203 to
6061 Al alloy improved the seizure resistance. Elevated temperature sliding
wear of particulate reinforced alloys was accompanied by extensive thermal
softening of their bulk matrix microstructures. Presence of graphite in hybrid
composite introduced greater mild wear losses due to increased contact
surface extrusion effects.
Dry sliding wear of AA6061 alloy reinforced with SiC particles and
metal coated carbon fibers was studied by Urena et al (2009). Composites
manufactured with duplex (SiC and carbon) reinforcements presented better
wear behaviour than composites reinforced with SiCp because of the lubricant
effect of carbon fibers.
Tribological behaviour of Al/Saffil/C hybrid composites with
graphite and alumina fibers produced by squeeze casting method was studied
by Naplocha, Granat (2008). Crushed graphite fibers and segments of alumina
fibers embedded in the matrix were observed. In composite with flake
graphite weak layers of the matrix broke and delaminated above a graphite
pocket.

51

2.10

INFLUENCE OF PARTICLE SIZE ON COMPOSITES

Kassim et al (1999) investigated the two body abrasive wear

behaviour of aluminium matrix composites reinforced with silicon carbide

particles with mean sizes of 10 m, 27 m and 43 m fabricated by powder
metallurgy route. The abrasive wear resistance of composites against an
abrasive paper increased with increase in volume fraction and size of SiC
particles. The abrasion resistance decreased with increase in the relative
abrasive penetration depth until a critical value, abrasion resistance was
independent of the penetration depth.
Singh et al (2002) studied the two body abrasive wear behaviour
aluminium alloy/10 wt% sillimanite (Al2SiO5) particle composite against
emery papers of desired abrasive sizes fixed on a wheel. The wear rate
decreased with sliding distance and increased with increase in abrasive size
and applied load irrespective of the materials.
Sug Won Kim et al (2003) investigated the effects of alloying
elements and heat treatment of Al/Si/Cu/Mg/Ni alloy composites reinforced
with SiCp fabricated by a duplex process of squeeze infiltration (1st step)
followed by squeeze casting (2nd step). The hardness of the composites
increased with decrease in SiCp size and also with Ni addition. Al composite
reinforced with 10 m SiCp have the lowest wear amount compared to
composites with 3 m and 5 m SiCp composites.
Hayrettin Ahlatci et al (2001) investigated the abrasive wear
behaviour of pure aluminium composites reinforced with 13 m and 37 m
diameter SiC particles produced by pressure infiltration technique. Abrasive
wear tests carried out against Al2O3 revealed that the effect of SiC particles
size on the wear resistance of compacts depends on the size of the Al2O3

52

abrasive grains being rubbed. The compact which had 13 m SiC particles
exhibited higher wear rate than the compact with 3 7m SiC particles.
Sudarshan and Surappa (2008) fabricated aluminium alloy (A356)
composites with

narrow size range (53106 m) and wide size range

(0.5400 m) fly ash particles. Composites reinforced with narrow size range
fly ash particle exhibited superior mechanical properties compared to
composites with wide size range particles. At higher loads wear resistance of
composites reinforced with narrow size range fly ash particles was superior to
that of composites with wide fly ash particles.
2.11

REGRESSION ANALYSIS
Regression analysis is a statistical tool for the investigation of

relationships between variables. Regression analysis gives information on the

relationship between a response (dependent) variable and one or more
(predictor) independent variables to the extent of information contained in the
data. The goal of regression analysis is to express the response variable as a
function of the predictor variables. The duality of fit and the accuracy of
conclusion depend on the data used.
There are three types of regression. The first is the simple linear
regression. The simple linear regression is for modeling the linear relationship
between two variables. One of them is the dependent variable Y and another
is the independent variable X. The simple regression model is often written as
shown in Equation (2.1).
Y=

1x

where Y is the dependent variable,

(2.1)
0

is Y intercept,

is the gradient or the

slope of the regression line, x is the independent variable, and is the random

53

error. It is usually assumed that error

and a constant variance ( ) =

is normally distributed with E( ) = 0

in the simple linear regression. The term

linear is used because the Equation (2.1) is a linear function of the unknown
parameters

and

1.

The second type of regression is the multiple linear regression with

one dependent variable and more than one independent variables. The
multiple linear regression assumes that the response variable is a linear
function of the model parameters and there are more than one independent
variables in the model. Equation (2.2) shows the general form of the multiple
linear regression models.
Y=

1x1............

where Y is dependent variable,

pxp+

0,

(2.2)
1,

2.......

are regression coefficients, and

x1, x2.xp are independent variables in the model. In the classical regression
setting it is usually assumed that the error term

follows the normal

distribution with E( ) = 0 and a constant variance Var( ) =

The multiple linear regressions involve more issues than the simple
linear regression such as collinearity, variance inflation, graphical display of
regression diagnosis, and detection of regression outlier and influential
observation. A linear regression model may also be written as shown in
Equation (2.3).
Y=

1x1+

2x2+

12x1

x2 +

(2.3)

In the linear regression model Equation (5.3) a cross-product term,

x1x2 is included in the model. This term represents an interaction effect
between the two variables x1 and x2. Interaction means that the effect
produced by a change in the predictor variable on the response depends on the

54

level of the other predictor variable(s). The third type of regression is

nonlinear regression, which assumes that the relationship between dependent
variable and independent variables is not linear in regression parameters.
Y=

1x1+

2x1

3x3

(2.4)

Equation (2.4) is also a linear regression model and is referred to as

a polynomial regression model. Polynomial regression models contain
squared and higher order terms of the predictor variables making the response
surface curvilinear. A second order model is the one in which the maximum
power of the terms in the model is two.
Few attempts have been made to model and predict the relationship
between two or more of process variables and a response variable in different
applications. Siva et al (2009) developed a mathematical model to correlate
the various process parameters of weld bead geometry in plasma transferred
hard facing of a nickel based alloy over stainless steel plates. Multiple
regression method was used by Vishal Parashar et al (2010) to formulate the
gap voltage, pulse on time and pulse off time to the material removal rate of
wire cut Electro Discharge Machining.
Delijaicov et al (2010) applied ANN and multiple regression
technique to a data set generated by shot peening with aluminium alloy plates.
Tensile strength of friction stir welded AA6061 aluminium alloy joints was
predicted by Elangovan et al (2009) incorporating welding parameters and
tool profiles using statistical tools such as design of experiments, analysis of
variance and regression analysis. Relation between machining forces and tool
wear of aluminium metal matrix composite was studied by Lin et al (2003)
using multiple regression analysis.

55

Mondal et al (1998) studied the two-body abrasive wear behaviour

of a cast aluminium alloy/Al2O3 particle composite at different operating
conditions using factorial design of experiment and developed an empirical
linear regression equation for predicting wear rate within a selected
experimental domain. Kumar and Balasubramanian (2008) conducted wear
test and developed a mathematical model by Response Surface Method
(RSM), Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) technique was applied to check the
validity of the developed model and Students t-test was utilised to find the
significance of factors.
Sahin (2010) employed factorial design to describe the abrasive
wear behaviour of Al alloy and its composites and to develop linear equations
for predicting wear rate within selected experimental conditions. Dobrzanski
et al (2010) worked out statistical models to determine the abrasive wear of
examined materials depending on the content of ceramic phase, friction
distance and load.
2.12

ARTIFICIAL NEURAL NETWORKS

Artificial Neural Network (ANN) usually called neural network is a

mathematical model or computational model that is inspired by the structure

and/or functional aspects of biological neural networks. Neural networks
consist of an interconnected group of artificial neurons and it processes
information using computation approach. Modern neural networks are non
linear statistical data modelling tools. They are usually used to model
complex relationships between inputs and outputs. In recent times Artificial
neural network (ANN) is being used as an alternate statistical method. It has
been applied successfully to different engineering problems.
Abdelhay (2002) examined the feasibility of using an integration
system between some measured ultrasound parameters from non destructive

56

test (NDT) to determine the influence of grain size and carbon. Fadare et al
(2009) developed an ANN model to predict the tool life and wear rate while
machining Ti/6Al/4V alloy by varying the cutting parameters (cutting speed,
feed rate, depth of cut, coolant pressure, and tool type) using a three layered,
feed forward, back propagation artificial neural networks.
The machining forces-tool wear relationship of an aluminium metal
matrix composite was studied using multiple regression analysis (MRA) and
Generalised Radial Basis Function (GRBF) neural network by Lin et al
(2003). The use of a neural network analysis improved the accuracy of tool
wear prediction particularly when the functional dependency is non linear.
Hulya Kacar Durmus et al (2006) studied the effects of wear loss and surface
roughness at various ageing temperatures, load, sliding speed and abrasive
grit diameter of aluminium alloy against SiC water proof emery using
artificial neural networks and observed that the experimental results coincide
with ANN results.
Mustafa Taskin et al (2008) used ANN approach to predict the
diffusion bonding behaviour of Ni/Ti alloys manufactured by powder
metallurgy process using back propagation neural network. In neural
networks training, different temperatures and welding periods were used as
input for predicting the shear strength. Rajendraboopathy et al (2008) was
successful in generating a feed forward back propagation neural network
model to predict the failure of fiber reinforced composite materials by
acoustic emission influenced by parameters like amplitude, duration, counts
and energy.
2.13

CONCLUSIONS BASED ON THE LITERATURE

An extensive literature was carried out to understand the basic

needs of aluminium based MMCs. This includes various aspects such as

57

characterization, fabrication, testing, analysis and correlation between

microstructure and the properties.
The conclusions drawn from the study are
There exists a wide range of database in the literature for
different

reinforcements

in

aluminium

metal

matrix

composites including hybrid composites. The mechanical

properties and wear behaviour of aluminium composites were
superior to their base alloy.
Studies revealed that wear and coefficient of friction of
composites are influenced by reinforcement content, sliding
speed and applied load. Reinforcement particle size was also a
factor influencing the wear and mechanical properties of
MMCs. Few literature were available on the impact of
reinforcement size on mechanical and wear behaviour of
composites.
In particle reinforced composites fracture mode was observed
to depend on the reinforcement purity, reinforcement particle
size, nature of interface, volume fraction of reinforcement,
fabrication route adopted, heat treatment etc.
Different techniques were available for the production of
metal matrix composite. Some of the manufacturing processes
are far more expensive than others. Generally the manufacturer
prefers the lowest cost route for mass production. Therefore
stir casting technique represents a substantial proportion of
the MMCs in commercial sectors.

58

Artificial Neural Networks and statistical modelling can be

used to predict the influence of parameters on process
variables.
Thus the priority of this work will be to prepare MMC using
fly ash (an industrial waste) as reinforcement in aluminium
(A380) matrix and to study its wear characteristics. Studies
were also to be carried on the influence of particle size on
mechanical properties and wear behaviour of aluminium/fly
ash composites.