The wear resistance of Al-Si-Re alloys for electrical contact applications

We prepared aluminum-silicon-rare earth (Al-Si-Re) elements alloys for electrical contact applications. Three Si weight percentages (wt.%) - 10%, 20% and 30% - were used, and rare earth (Re) elements were kept at 0.35 wt.%. The spraying forming process was adopted, and high-pressure hot isostatic pressing (HIP) was conducted to obtain the bulk materials from the as-deposited billets. The electrical conductivity of alloys with 10% and 20% Si reached 40% International Annealed Copper Standard (IACS). The hardness of Al-Si alloys significantly increased with Si content and HIP processing times. The hardness of alloy with 30% Si reached similar to 90 HV. Meanwhile, HIP reduced weight loss in the wear resistance by reducing the microcracks and materials removal. The current study proposes an approach to manufacture Al-Si alloys with high electrical conductivity and high wear resistance.