MECHANICAL AND METALURGICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF�AL 6061 – B4C SURFACE COMPOSITES USING FRICTION STIR SURFACING

Project Review

1. MECHANICAL AND METALURGICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF AL 6061 – B 4 C SURFACE COMPOSITES USING FRICTION STIR SURFACING THARUNNGOWTHAM R URK18ME078 B.Tech in Mechanical Engineering Under the guidance of Dr. S. MOHANASUNDARAM Assistant Professor

2. Objective of the Project Fabrication of Surface Composites using Friction Stir Surfacing (FSS). Mechanical and Metallurgical characterization of surfaced composites. Result analysis based on experimental investigations.

3. Surface Engineering Surface engineering refers to a wide range of technologies designed to modify the surface properties of metallic and non-metallic components for decorative or functional purposes. Examples include improving corrosion and wear resistance to extend component life. It makes the item virtually attractive. Surface engineering involves altering the properties of the surface phase in order to reduce the degradation over time.

4. Methodology Problem Definition Literature Survey Material Selection Consumable Tool fabrication Testing Graph Plots Conclusion Report Submission

5. Material Selection Aluminium AA 6061 - T6 Boron Carbide (B 4 C) is used as reinforced material

6. Friction stir surfacing It is a process, where coating material is applied to a substrate. Hurco VMX 24 CNC 3-axis Machining center. Spindle speed-10000 rpm RV Machine tools, Coimbatore.

7. Consumable Tool Fabrication: In this study, a composite material is coated over an alloy. To fabricate the composite rod, the stir casting method and micro-drilling methods are available. In micro-drilling method, the distribution of reinforcement particles is not uniform. So stir casting method is preferred. It is done at Karunya Institute of Technology and Sciences.

8. Machine Setup The fabricated AA6061-B 4 C consumable rod is rotated at a speed and hard pressed on AA6061 substrate and moved in transverse direction.

9. Process Parameters S. No Weight % of B 4 C Rotational Speed (rpm) Traverse Speed (mm/min) Axial Load (kN) 1 1800 1400 4 2 3 1900 1300 5 3 6 2000 1100 1 4 9 2100 1200 2 5 12 2200 1000 3

10. Fabricated Samples

11. Bending Stress The FS processed composites were cut in wire EDM according to the ASTM E-290 standard, with a thickness of 10 mm parallel to the processed direction. The sample is placed on the top of the 2-point support and the uniform load is applied at its center. The sample starts bending. The point where it is about to break is noted and the corresponding load is the maximum that it can withstand. Bend testing also determines the bonding strength of coated material.

12. This graph shows that the value of Bending stress keeps on increasing when the weight percentage of boron carbide increases. The maximum value obtained for bending stress is 79.49. This is achieved when the Weight percentage of boron carbide is increased by 12%.

13. Micro-Hardness The micro-hardness and of the samples are tested similar to the friction stir processed composites as per the ASTM E-92 and ASTM G99-04 standards. Micro-Hardness is tested in Vickers Hardness Tester. Microhardness is the ability of the material to resist deformation when a smaller amount of load is applied.

14. Wear tests were conducted with the process parameters, by rubbing the AA6061-B4C surface composite specimens on a hardened chromium steel disc. Wear is the removal of material from solid surface as a result of mechanical action exerted by another solid.

15. Coating Thickness and Width

16. Rotational Speed vs Bending Stress   Rotational Speed vs Wear

17. Final Experimental Results

18. Conclusion The Al 6061- B 4 C surface composites were produced in the friction stir surfacing process with the combination of process parameters. The uniform coating thickness and wider coatings are achieved with the application of rotational speed, traverse speed and axial load. The bending test was performed to check the quality of the bonding and the rotational speed contribute more to the improvement in the bonding. The maximum microhardness of 122.70 HV is achieved for 12% B 4 C composite. The wear value was found to be minimum that is 62.61 and is achieved for 12% B 4 C composite. It can be used in automobile and aerospace industries. It is also mainly used in nuclear Applications. .

19. Thank you