About this Abstract |
Meeting |
MS&T21: Materials Science & Technology
|
Symposium
|
Development of Light Weight Alloys and Composites
|
Presentation Title |
Insights into Metal-based Polymer Pyrolysis for In-situ MMC Production |
Author(s) |
Aaron T. Gladstein, Alan Taub |
On-Site Speaker (Planned) |
Aaron T. Gladstein |
Abstract Scope |
Metal matrix composites (MMCs) are of increasing importance to the transportation and aerospace industries as they allow for decreasing overall component weight without sacrificing mechanical properties, and in-situ MMCs offer further enhanced properties due to improved matrix-particle bonding and reduction in contamination as compared with ex-situ processes. This research focuses on MMCs made using metal-based polymer pyrolysis (MBPP), a process which creates polymer-derived ceramics (e.g. SiC) by thermally decomposing precursor polymers within the molten metal: once the bonds in the polymer break down, the elements in the polymer chain create ceramic particles. DSC-TGA was used to observe the steps in the conversion of the polymer. Tin-based MMCs were studied to compare the breakdown of the polymer in inert atmosphere and inside a melt. The morphology of the particles and their impact on microhardness was analyzed. The insights from the tin experiments were then applied to produce Al-based MMC’s. |