Studies on the tribological behaviour of exsitu-synthesized AlMg1SiCu/titanium carbide/molybdenum disulfide hybrid composites

AlMg1SiCu alloy based metallic composites are nowadays extensively employed in automobiles and machinery components. In this study, an attempt has been made to investigate the influence of adding hard and soft micro particulate reinforcements, on the microstructure and the tribological behaviour of AlMg1SiCu hybrid composites. The exsitu synthesized hybrid composites were processed using the conventional melt-stir casting route, by introducing titanium carbide (TiC) micro particles in different levels ranging between 4–12 wt% and molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) micro particles, at varying levels between 1–5 wt% respectively. In the present study, the macro hardness profile was recorded using the Rockwell hardness B-scale. The fabricated composites were subjected to the pin-on-disc wear analysis. Five-level rotatable central composite experimental design was adopted for planning the wear analysis, and the second order mathematical model was developed with an adequacy of above 95%. The microstructure and elemental mapping of the hybrid composites were recorded using SEM, which revealed the uniform dispersion of the reinforcement particulates. The x-ray Diffraction (XRD) results also confirmed the presence of the reinforcement phases. It was observed that, the macro hardness and wear resistance of the hybrid composites, improved significantly with increase in weight fraction of both TiC and MoS2 micro particulate reinforcements.