Improvement in the mechanical properties of Al/SiC nanocomposites fabricated by severe plastic deformation and friction stir processing

Severely deformed aluminum sheets were processed by friction stir processing (FSP) with SiC nanoparticles under different conditions to improve the mechanical properties of both the stir zone and the heat affected zone (HAZ). In the case of using a simple probe and the same rotational direction (RD) of the FSP tool between passes, at least three FSP passes were required to obtain the appropriate distribution of nanoparticles. However, after three FSP passes, fracture occurred outward from the stir zone during transverse tensile tests; thus, the strength of the specimen was significantly lower than that of the severely deformed base material because of the softening phenomenon in the HAZ. To improve the mechanical properties of the HAZ, we investigated the possibility of achieving an appropriate distribution of nanoparticles using fewer FSP passes. The results indicated that using the threaded probe and changing the RD of the FSP tool between the passes effectively shattered the clusters of nanoparticles and led to an acceptable distribution of SiC nanoparticles after two FSP passes. In these cases, fracture occurred at the HAZ with higher strength compared to the specimen processed using three FSP passes with the same RD between the passes and with the simple probe. The fracture behaviors of the processed specimens are discussed in detail.