Microstructural characterization and evaluation of mechanical properties of silicon nitride reinforced LM 25 composite

This study focuses on the effect of the reinforcement of Si3N4 particles on the microstruc-ture, and mechanical properties of LM25 Al alloy matrix composites fabricated by the stir casting process. The reinforcement content was varied from 4% to 12% in steps of 4%, for a set of three composites. The microstructures and morphology of the developed composites were studied by SEM and EDS. The amount of different elements present in the reinforce-ment, matrix and the three sets of composites is demonstrated using elemental mapping. The result of this investigation revealed that a uniform distribution of Si3N4 particles takes place at all weight percentages of reinforcement in LM 25 alloy, with limited non-uniformity due to clustering of ceramic particles. The mechanical properties were also evaluated and analysed for the fabricated AMCs. A fracture surface mapping was also carried out for the composites.(c) 2020 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier B.V. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).