HIGH-PRESSURE SQUEEZE CASTING OF STAINLESS-STEEL WIRE REINFORCED ALUMINUM MATRIX COMPOSITES

Stainless steel wire-reinforced alunminum matrix composites with a fiber volume fraction up to 40% were fabricated by high pressure squeeze casting. The mechancial properties of these composites were investigated and it was found that their tensile strength was somewhat lower than that predicted by the rule-of-mixtures; failure occurred predominantly by fiber pull-out. Details of the optical microscopic studies and the microhardness data are presented. This reveals that the fiber-to-matrix bonding is relatively weak as a result of the more-than-desirable interfacial reaction. Several inter-metallic compounds have been identified at the interface. Growth kinetics of these interface intermetallic compounds are discussed.