Microstructure and Properties of TiCp-reinforced Aluminum Matrix Composites for Sports Equipment

In view to the problem that the Al alloys for sports equipment were susceptible to wear and failure during long term service periods, the rapid hot-press sintering technique was employed to fabricate aluminum matrix composites TiC/6061 reinforced with different volume fractions of TiC_p.The effects of TiC_p volume fraction on the microstructure, phase composition, hardness, wear volume, and friction coefficient of the composites were investigated. The results show that TiC particles are uniformly dispersed in the matrix with good interfacial bonding when the volume fractions of TiC particles are 6 vol% and 12 vol%. Obvious agglomeration of TiC_p occurs at 18 vol%, and severe agglomeration with numerous pores in the matrix is observed when the TiC_p content increases to 24vol%. The composites is mainly composed of Al and TiC phases. The Rockwell hardness of the composites increases with the increase of TiC_p volume fraction, reaching a maximum of 42.9 HRA at 24vol%,which is 105.3% higher than that of the 6061 Al matrix. The minimum wear volume and average friction coefficient are achieved at 18vol% TiC_p.