Investigation of the effect of age hardening on the mechanical properties of aluminium metal matrix composites reinforced with graphite particulate

The present experimental studies investigate the effect of age hardening on the mechanical properties of graphite-reinforced aluminium composites fabricated by stir-casting routing. The fabricated specimens were subjected to aging at a temperature of 170 °Cand 270 °C for 2 h after the solution heat treatment and a temperature of 500 °C for 1 h followed by water quenching. Both cast and aged specimens were studied for their tensile, ductility, hardness, and fatigue properties as per the ASTM standards and found to be influenced by the % vol of graphite particles and aging temperature. The fractured surfaces were analyzedusing a scanning electron microscope to understand the failure mechanism.