Fabrication and mechanical behaviour of Al-Kaoline metal matrix composite fabricated through powder metallurgy technique

In this present work Aluminium-Kaoline metal matrix composite was fabricated through powder metallurgy technique. Kaoline is a clay material which is abundantly available in northern states of India. This paper summarizes the mechanical behaviour of Aluminium matrix reinforced with kaoline reinforcement. Composite samples are fabricated by using powder metallurgy technique with reinforcement percentages of 5%wt, 10%wt, 15%wt, 20% wt. Tensile strength, Compression Strength, Density and hardness tests were carried out on the fabricated composite samples. It was found that the hardness value of the A-Kaoline composite increases from 77 VHN to 187 VHN for unreinforced Aluminium to 20% reinforcement. The tensile and compression strength of the composite was enhanced with addition of reinforcement from 0% to 20% due to the existence of hard ceramic particles like Al2O3 and SiO2 in Kaoline reinforcement. Tensile strength was enhanced about 54.8% with 20% reinforcement when compared to Pure Aluminium. (C) 2020 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.