Microstructures and Mechanical Properties of Tungsten Particle Reinforced 6061Al Composites Fabricated by SPS-Hot Rolling

Tungsten particle (Wp) reinforced 6061Al matrix composites with different volume fractions of Wp (1 vol~7 vol%) were fabricated by spark plasma sintering (SPS) followed by hot-rolling. The effects of Wp content on the microstructure, mechanical properties and electrical resistivity of the as-rolled composites were investigated. The results show that the Wp is homogeneously distributed in the metal matrix, achieving excellent metallurgical bonding. At the interface of Wp/6061Al, element solid solution and WAl12 intermetallics form during the fabrication process. The mechanical test results show that with the increase of Wp, relative density and ductility of the as-rolled composites decrease while the tensile strength first increases and then decreases. It is noteworthy that both high tensile strength and ductility are obtained by the composites with 1 vol% and 3 vol% Wp, being 192.85 MPa, 16.84% and 315.18 MPa, 11.93%, respectively. Besides, the fabricated Wp reinforced 6061Al matrix composites have excellent electrical conductivity and the increase of Wp content has little influence on the electrical conductivity. Copyright © 2020, Northwest Institute for Nonferrous Metal Research. Published by Science Press. All rights reserved.