Evaluation of Mechanical Corrosion and Tribological Properties of Bronze Based Metal Matrix Composites

Abstract

The involvement of composite materials in almost every engineering domain keeps on growing only and never takes a back step. The dominance of lightweight materials in the automobile and marine industries shadows the utilization of denser materials in such analogous industries. However, the demand for high-weight materials in specific applications, particularly those related to bearings that require strong resistance to high loads, notable corrosion resilience, and improved thermal stability, continues to grow. Suitable candidates for the aforesaid applications include copper and its alloy derivatives, namely bronze and brass. However, the issue with copper and its alloys lies in their insufficient strength and wear resistance for such applications. To improve their properties, we need to mix them with natural fibers, synthetic fibers, or ceramic particles. Ceramic additives acquire a competitive edge over other additives in terms of effective binding with the base copper or its alloy derivatives. The fabrication of the bronze capitalized metal matrix composite (mmc) with hybrid ceramic additives could not be expensive, thus focusing on the comparatively cheaper and less complex liquid metallurgy alias stir casting technique. newlineThe purpose of this research is to concentrate on the fabrication (through stir casting) and characterization of the bronze capitalized metal matrix composites for high-load-withstanding bearing applications. In concern to this, three ceramic additives, namely titanium diboride (TiB2), yttrium oxide (Y2O3), and silicon carbide (SiC), are chosen as the reinforcements. The initial attempt is with TiB2 as the monolithic reinforcing element to the base bronze material, then followed by hybrid reinforcing of TiB2 with Y2O3 to the base material and finally hybrid reinforcing of TiB2 with SiC to the bronze matrix material. Totally three different metal matrix composites, namely bronze TiB2 mmc, bronze TiB2 + Y2O3 mmc, and bronze TiB2 + SiC mmc, are fabricated through newlineII newlinestir casting