RESEARCH PROGRESS ON ULTRASONIC CAVITATION BASED DISPERSION OF NANOPARTICLES IN AL/MG MELTS FOR SOLIDIFICATION PROCESSING OF BULK LIGHTWEIGHT METAL MATRIX NANOCOMPOSITE

摘要

Aluminum and magnesium structural components are of significance for numerous applications. The properties of aluminum/magnesium alloys would be enhanced considerably if reinforced by ceramic nanoparticles. However, it is very challenging to disperse the nanoparticles uniformly in the metal melts for solidification processing of bulk nanocomposites. In this study, a novel method, ultrasonic cavitation based dispersion of nanoparticles in aluminum A356 and Mg melts for solidification processing (e.g. casting) is experimented. With only 1.0wt. percent nano-sized SiC reinforcement, the ultimate tensile strength and yield strength of the aluminum alloy A356 were enhanced approximately 100 percent while the ductility was retained. Meanwhile, about 40 percent reinforcement on UTS and 60 percent enhancement on yield strength were achieved on Mg in our preliminary study. The study on micro/nano structures of the nanocomposites validates that a uniform distribution and effective dispersion of nanoparticles in the matrix were achieved. This study paves a way for high volume processing of Al/Mg nanocompoistes for industrial applications.