Influence of Primary B4C Particles and Secondary Mica Particles on the Wear Performance of Al6061/B4C/Mica Hybrid Composites

The present investigation is carried out on the wear properties of particle-reinforced Al6061/B4C/Mica hybrid composites in comparison with Al6061/B4C composites and Al6061 aluminium-based alloy. The dry sliding wear test is used to evaluate the wear rate and coefficient of friction for the specimen. The pin-on-disc wear tester is used at a load of 10 N, 20 N and 30 N. The specimens are prepared by stir cast method. B4C particles of 70 µm and mica particles of 3–10 µm are used for the experimentation. The worn surfaces of the specimen are studied by using scanning electron microscope. Further, the surface profile is studied by using atomic force microscope images. The analysis shows that, Al6061/B4C/Mica hybrid composites cause a reduction of wear rate up to 36.23%, a coefficient of friction up to 11.73%, average surface roughness (Ra) up to 46.57% in comparison with Al6061/B4C composites. © 2019, Springer Nature Switzerland AG.