Experimental Determination and Analysis of Fracture Toughness of MMC

Aluminium and its alloys have continued to maintain their mark as the matrix material most in demand for the development of Metal Matrix Composites (MMCs). This is primarily due to the broad spectrum of unique properties it offers at relatively low processing cost. Some of the attractive property combinations of Al based matrix composites are: high specific stiffness and strength, better high temperature properties (in comparison with its monolithic alloy), thermal conductivity, and low thermal expansion. The project is associated with the study of Fracture Toughness and mechanical properties of Aluminium, Zirconium Silicate and Silicon Carbide Metal Matrix Composite (MMC). Here we have used the Aluminium alloy of grade 356 with addition of varying weight percentage composition of Zirconium Silicate and Silicon Carbide particles by stir casting technique. Finite element (FE) simulations for the proposed SENB geometry was carried out using ANSYS software package (v12) to investigate stress distribution around the notch and to validate the experimental results. The mechanical properties were tested under laboratory conditions. The change in physical and mechanical properties was taken in to consideration. For the achievement of the above, an experimental set up was prepared to facilitate the preparation of the required specimen. The experiments were carried out to study the effect of variation of the percentage composition to predict the mechanical properties as well as to measure the micro hardness.