Production and characterization of (Al, Fe)-C (graphite or fullerene) composites prepared by mechanical alloying

(Al, Fe)-C-graphite and (Al, Fe)-C-fullerene composites have been prepared by mechanical alloying using ball milling of powders. Consolidation has been achieved by a spark plasma sintering technique (SPS). Results of XRD and TEM indicate that pure fullerene withstands milling. SEM results show homogeneous powders after milling but with different morphologies depending on the specific system. Milling produces a fine mixture of Al or Fe and graphite or fullerene. SPS produces a dense material with a nanocrystalline structure. The sintered samples have a metallic matrix (Al or Fe) with a fine dispersion ofAl(4)C(3) in the case of Al-C-(graphite (or fullerene)), Fe3C in the case of Fe-C-(graphite), and fullerene in the case of Fe-C-(fullerene). Hardness measurements show that higher values are obtained in the Al-C-(fullerene) and Fe-C-(graphite) specimens.