Mechanical Behaviour of Aluminium Alloy Reinforced With SiC/Fly Ash/Basalt Composite for Brake Rotor

Gray cast iron is the most commonly used material in automobile brake rotors. It generates heat easily during braking which affects its mechanical properties and the Coefficient of friction varies depending on the type of material used for the brake rotor. Aluminium (Al) based metal matrix composite can be an efficient and effective braking material compared to cast iron and matrix alloy. In the present investigation, A16082 composites were fabricated by stir casting method by varying weight percentage of reinforcements for Sample] (Al 90% + SiC 10%), Sample 2 (Al 90% + SiC 5% + fly ash 5%) and Sample 3 (Al 90% + SiC 5% + basalt 5%). Chemical compositions, micro hardness, wear test and tensile test were performed to study the mechanical behavior of all the test specimens. The surface morphology was studied using microscopic inspection to indicate the distribution of reinforcement particles and bonding between the matrixes. Composites containing hard oxides (like SiC) are preferred for high wear resistance along with increased hardness and high temperature oxidation resistance. The result reveals that wear rates of the composite materials is lower than that of the matrix alloy and friction coefficient was minimum. Also, it improves the micro hardness and tensile strength. The addition of fly ash and basalt decreases the wear and it acquired density almost three times lower than that of gray cast iron. In this investigation, the alternate materials for automobile brake rotors with Al reinforced composites were studied.