THERMAL EVALUATION OF AL-SIC METAL MATRIX COMPOSITE FABRICATED THROUGH LIQUID METALLURGY PROCESS

The importance of the thermal stability of aluminum alloys and composites used in the manufacturing of automobile engine parts cannot be overemphasized. In this study, the thermal analysis of fabricated aluminum matrix composi tes manufactured by centrifugal casting technique proposed for high-temperature automobile part applications is investigated. The thermogravimetric curve obtained from this study's thermal analysis showed the samples' weight response to temperature increase. At a temperature region below 655°C, the composites' heat flow rate is lower than at the temperature region beyond 655°C. From the DSC curve generated, the sample reinforced with 5 wt.% and 15 �m of the SiC particle (Sample G), is observed to give the most desired thermal behavior at the temperature region beyond 655°C, having the lowest heat flow rate of 0.004 w/g at a maximum experiment temperature. However, the percentage weight loss of all the fabricated samples obtained from the TGA curve is negligible within the experiment's temperature parameters.