| Abstract Scope |
Composites have long been employed as engineering materials in automotive, defense, marine, nuclear, and structural applications. Bio-inspired composites, which consist soft-phase reinforcements within a hard matrix, offer enhanced toughness and potential self-healing capabilities. Integrating soft-phase materials into metal-matrix poses challenges due to their lower melting points relative to the matrix. This study focuses on the development of soft-phase reinforced aluminum-matrix composites using Friction Stir Processing (FSP) technique. Tin is used as the soft-phase reinforcement in an Al1050-matrix. The influence of different tool pin profiles, such as square, triangular, and circular, on the distribution of tin is investigated. Results indicate that the square pin profile achieves the most uniform dispersion of tin within the stir zone, whereas the triangular profile offers moderate distribution, but circular profile is ineffective to incorporate reinforcement. The findings also demonstrate that soft-phase reinforcements can significantly enhance the hardness of the composite, comparable to conventional hard-phase reinforcements. |