Description of Invention
Aluminum Silicon (Al-Si) alloys are widely used as the main material in automotive engine block applications after cast iron. These alloys were used due to their lightweight and high corrosion resistance. Currently, the automotive industry is seeking a material with low density,excellent physical and mechanical properties as well as low cost. This requirement naturally led to the production of a new material known as composite material. In an attempt to improve the physical and mechanical properties while reducing the density and cost, in this study, the Al-Si alloy (LM6) was reinforced with an industrial waste material known as fly ash particles. A systematic study was performed to study the density, microstructure and tensile properties of the unreinforced LM6 and fabricated AMCs. Density Fabricated AMCs with 6wt.% of fly ash particles achieved the lowest density at 2.58g/cm3. In addition, the tensile test also revealed that the fabricated AMCs with 6wt.% of fly ash particles achieved the highest strength at 167.7MPa with 22.4% enhancement. Based on SEM analysis, the structure of the Si phase was improved. The Si phases were transformed from needle-like and sharp polygon shape to lamellar and globular shape. It is believed that the improvement of tensile properties of fabricated AMCs was attributed to the transformation in its microstructure.