Effect of Fe and Mn additions on microstructure and wear properties of spray-deposited Al-20Si alloy

In this study, the hypereutectic AI-Si alloys were synthesized by spray atomization and deposition technique. The microstructures of spray-deposited alloys were studied using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The dry sliding wear behavior of the alloys was investigated under the applied load of 8.9-35.6 N. The wear behavior of the alloys was dependent on the morphology of the intermetallics in microstructure and applied load. At lower load (8.9 and 17.8N), the Fe-containing alloy showed higher wear rate compared with the binary alloy due to the tendency for embrittlement brought about by needle-like intermetallics. At higher load (35.6 N), Fe- and Mn-containing alloy exhibited inferior wear resistance than the binary alloy due to the fragmentation of the intermetallics, thus leading to easier crack nucleation and propagation. (C) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.