Micro- and macrostresses in a cold-rolled Al-SiC composite

The method of the neutron diffraction has been widely applied to determine the residual stresses in composite materials. In this work, the neutron diffraction technique is used to determine the stresses in 7075 aluminum alloy reinforced with 27% volume fraction SiC whiskers that was treated by the cold-rolling technique. The strains in Al matrix and in SiC phase have been converted to stresses by applying a stress separation technique. The elastic and the thermal or plastic mismatch stresses due to cold-rolling treatment and manufacture in the Al matrix and in the SiC phase are estimated. The stresses in the Al matrix and in the SiC phase of the first order are different from the stresses of the second order. The stress values of the thermal or plastic are tensile in Al matrix and compressive in SiC reinforcement.