Date of Publication :7th July 2016

Abstract: Silicon carbide exists in about 250 crystalline forms [3]. Alpha silicon carbide (?-SiC) is the most commonly encountered polymorph; it is formed at temperatures greater than 1700 °C and has a hexagonal crystal structure. The high sublimation temperature of SiC (approximately 2700 °C) makes it useful for bearings and furnace parts. Silicon carbide does not melt at any known pressure. Aluminium (Al) alloys are gaining more recognition as a lighter structural material for light weight applications, due to their low density and high stiffness-to-weight ratio. As summarized from the literature Metallic Carbides or Oxides are most commonly used reinforcements in aluminium matrix. Silicon Carbide was used in the current research work as reinforcement for Aluminium matrix, mainly because of its high wear resistance and high hardness applications. Al-SiC Composite was fabricated using cost effective stir casting technique and dry sliding wear testing was performed on a pin on disk type wear testing machine. Optical macrographs and SEM images were taken to study the wear pattern and particle distribution in the cast composite. Results shown that Al-SiC composite material was found to be more wear resistant than pure as cast aluminium with uniform particle distribution. So it can be recommended for wear resistance applications and more experiments can be planned to find out the optimum configuration to be used for fabricating Al-SiC composite materials.

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