Journal of Composite Materials

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An Investigation of Al-SiCp Composites Under Thermal Cycling

I. Ozdemir and M. Toparli
Journal of Composite Materials 2003; 37; 1839
DOI: 10.1177/002199803036245
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An Investigation of AlSiCp Composites

Under Thermal Cycling
I. OZDEMIR AND M. TOPARLI*
Department of Metallurgical and Materials Engineering
Faculty of Engineering, Dokuz Eylul University
35100, Bornova, Izmir, Turkey
(Received January 7, 2003)
(Revised May 1, 2003)

ABSTRACT: The effect of thermal cycling on the behavior of the aluminumsilicon

matrix alloy Al-7%Si-0.7%Mg (AlSi7) reinforced with 10% volume SiC particles has
been investigated experimentally and theoretically. Cast ingots of the matrix alloy
and composite samples were extruded at 773 K at an extrusion ratio of 10:1. The
extruded microstructures exhibit a more uniform distribution of the SiC particles. In
this study, for determining the thermal stress and deformation on the composite
materials ABAQUS finite element software package was used. Thermal residual
stresses developed during and after thermal cycling were also investigated. Thermal
cycling tests were performed between 373 and 703 K under a constant tensile load
(150 N) and without external load. The stress distributions in the composite during
heating and cooling were revealed. The axial displacement under constant external
load after one thermal cycling was 0.01672 mm and kept increasing considerably.
The maximum residual stresses were generated at the interfacial region during
thermal cycling. SEM micrographs showed that cracks were present in the composite
structure under repeated action of thermal cycling process (100 cycles).
KEY WORDS: particle-reinforced composites, thermal properties, finite element
analysis, extrusion.

INTRODUCTION
ETAL MATRIX COMPOSITES (MMCs) especially having light metal matrices such as
Al, Mg, Ti etc., are rapidly becoming the strongest candidates as a structural
material for many high-temperature [1], automotive [2], and aerospace applications [3,4].
In MMCs, aluminum based metal matrix composites have attracted considerable
academic and industrial attention [5]. Relatively low ductility of most metal matrix
composites has rendered conventional metal forming processes impractical and low
formability at high temperatures has restricted the use of their commercial applications.

*Author to whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: mustafa.toparli@deu.edu.tr

Journal of COMPOSITE MATERIALS, Vol. 37, No. 20/2003

0021-9983/03/20 183912 $10.00/0
DOI: 10.1177/002199803036245
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So, it is important that their thermal behaviors are well understood and the properties at
elevated temperature need to be investigated. Considerable work has been carried out to
investigate the ductility and behavior of metal matrix composites at different temperatures
under isothermal and thermal cycling conditions [69].
Among various thermal environments, thermal cycling can be considered as one of the
most severe environments. The mismatch of thermal expansion between matrix and
reinforcement due to temperature change results in large internal stresses and mismatch
strain that affect the microstructure and mechanical properties of the composites. It is also
possible that excessive plastic strains are developed [10]. In AlSiCp system, because the
difference of their coefficients of thermal expansion (CTE) values is the factor of about 6,
this difference is sufficient to generate high local stresses during heating and cooling [3].
The matrix deforms plastically to accommodate the smaller volume expansion of the SiC
particles.
The numerical analyses of SiC particles-reinforced aluminum alloys have been
conducted by several researchers [1114]. Geni and Kikuchi [11] studied about the nonuniform distribution of SiC particle volume fraction and the aspect ratio in the matrix.
Meijer et al. [12] investigated on thermal residual stress using unit cell models. They
found that the mechanical properties of the composite strongly depended on the
reinforcement geometry. Tham et al. [13] investigated the influence of processinginduced voids on the deformation behavior of silicon carbide particulate-reinforced
aluminum metal-matrix composites synthesized by the disintegrated melt deposition
technique using axisymmetric finite element model. Also they compared theoretical
with experimental results. Shen et al. [14] discussed about particle shape and thermal
residual stress. These theoretical results show that the stress-strain relationship agree
with the experimental analysis.
The aims of this investigation are to study the stress-strain relationship and thermal
behavior of aluminum composites containing SiC particles, under thermal cycling
conditions by using FEM calculations, and to use this information to produce MMCs with
excellent thermal performance.

MATERIALS AND EXPERIMENTAL DETAILS

The materials used in this work were produced by die casting technique, as described
earlier [15]. The nominal composition of alloy elements in the aluminum alloy matrix
Al-7%Si-0.7Mg (AlSi7) is listed in Table 1. The machined ingots with an average diameter
of 32 mm and a height of 58 mm were extruded at 773 K with an extrusion ratio of 10 : 1
and cooled in air. The porosity content of the samples was evaluated from the difference
between the calculated and experimentally measured density of each sample by using the

Table 1. The materials and their chemical compositions.

Elements
Materials
AlSi7 Matrix
Al-10%SiCp

Si

Fe

Cu

Mn

Mg

Ni

Zn

Ti

Cr

Pb

Sn

Al

6.62
16.84

0.29
0.29

0.01
0.06

0.02
0.028

0.67
0.56

0.01
0.03

0.08
0.05

0.07
0.09

0.01
0.04

0.04
0.01

0.05
0.01

0.01
0.00

Balance
Balance

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An Investigation of AlSiCp Composites Under Thermal Cycling

1841

Archimedean principle. The calculated densities of the samples were determined from the
chemical analysis. The microstructure of the composite in the extruded state was examined
by optical microscopy (Figure 1).
Firstly, mechanical properties of aluminum matrix material were obtained experimentally. For the determination of the material properties at different temperatures, three
samples of each were prepared for tensile tests. All tests were performed on a computerized
AG-50kNG Shimadzu universal testing machine at ambient and high temperatures, using
cylindrical specimens with a diameter of 6 mm and a gauge length of 20 mm (Figure 2). In
addition, the modulus of elasticity was measured by using extensometer attached to the
tensile test machine. The applied strain rate was 4
104 s1 and the ASTM Standard
E21-92 procedures were used to evaluate the results. Data of mechanical properties are
given in Table 2.
Thermal cycling tests were performed in a special machine designed and constructed for
this purpose (Figure 3). The specimens were heated in an electrical resistance movable
furnace and cooled by a forced air current. The heating and cooling rates were used 0.5
and 0.35 K/s respectively. The temperature in the central portion of the specimen was
continuously measured by thermocouple. The total elongation was measured with a
resolution of 0.01 mm. Temperature cycling was between 373 and 703 K and period for
each cycle was 270 s. The applied external load was 150 N. Figure 4 shows the temperature

Figure 1. The microstructure of the composite AlSi7SiC in the as-extruded condition.

Figure 2. The configuration of tensile test specimen.

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Table 2. Mechanical properties of AlSi7 matrix.

Temperature (K)
Modulus of elasticity (GPa)
Poissons ratio
Yield stress (MPa)
Ultimate stress (MPa)

273
71.2
0.33
76
156

373
68.1
0.33
82
124

473
62.2
0.33
82
110

573
42.3
0.33
52
54

703
21.1
0.33
19
22

Movable
Furnace
T2 (oC)

Thermocouple

Cooling Fan
T1 (oC)

Sample

LOAD

Figure 3. Schematic illustration of the thermal cycling test unit used.

Temperature (K)

800
700
600
500
400
300
0

50

100

150
200
Time (s)

250

300

Figure 4. The temperature profile of the sample during the thermal cycling test.

profile of the heating and cooling during the thermal cycling test. As a result, the
deformation of the materials was characterized by measuring the specimens length at a
fixed point. The measured elongation after five cycles was compared with FEM results for
the same test conditions.

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An Investigation of AlSiCp Composites Under Thermal Cycling

1843

FINITE ELEMENT ANALYSIS

Due to complexity and the limit of the computer memory, it was not possible to
determine an exact solution of the SiC reinforcement in the matrix. In this study, a very
simple model is considered and a convenient approximation is conducted for the modeling
of the uniform distribution of SiC particles. We have simulated the AlSiC composite
materials using axisymmetric finite element models and volume percentage of SiC was
fixed to 10%. It is assumed that SiC particles and Al matrix are isotropic and SiC
homogenously distributed. The thermal cycling applied to the composite model, having an
initial temperature of 373 K, was varied from 373 to 703 K and from 703 to 373 K (i.e. one
cycle) and an external load (P ) of 150 N was applied on the upper surface along
longitudinal direction. The elastic-plastic capability of the ABAQUS [16] code was
adopted for the finite element simulation. The specimen was modeled with 2187 fournoded axisymmetric thermally coupled elements (CAX4T element type) as shown in
Figure 5. It was assumed that the composites consist of a regular array of identical
particles distributed in a homogeneous matrix. The SiC particle size was 100 mm and the
maximum mesh size was selected as 10 mm. As a matter of fact that an analysis by Takao
and Taya [17] has shown that if the differences in size and distribution of the
reinforcement are not extreme, then a relatively dilute composite can be modeled using
an average size and spacing without significant loss of accuracy.

Figure 5. The mesh pattern of axisymmetric finite element model.

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Table 3. Thermal properties of the AlSi7 matrix and SiC particles.

AlSi7
Coefficient of thermal expansion,  (1/K)
Thermal conductivity, k (W/m K)
Heat capacity, cp (J/kg K)
Density,  (kg/m3)

SiC
6

23.6
10
200
900
2670

4
106
100
675
3200

It is assumed that if the specimen was cylindrical, it was possible to take the advantage
of the axisymmetric geometry. The Al matrixSiC interface region was small-modeled
using edge-biased type which gives good results owing to the fine mesh application.
The FEM analyses were done using the mechanical properties obtained at different
temperatures for the AlSi7 matrix as given in Table 2. The modulus of elasticity and
Poisson ratio for SiC particles were taken as 450 GPa and 0.17, respectively. These values
and data of the thermal properties of AlSi7 matrix and SiC particles were taken from the
literature [18] and are given in Table 3.
During the deformation of AlSiC metal matrix composite, aluminium alloy is able to
deform plastically while the SiC particles remain elastically. So, it was assumed that SiC
particles were elastic during this analysis. The Von Mises yield criterion is applied for
determining the occurrence of plastic deformation. The equivalent Mises stress is given by
the expression:
s
1  2 2 2  3 2 3  1 2
m
2

where,  1,  2, and  3 are the three principal stresses. Whenever  m reaches the yield
strength, the material begins to plastic deform. The behavior of the aluminum matrix
material was assumed to be due to multilinear kinematic hardening which means that the
real stressstrain curves can be approximated by a series of straight lines. This type of
hardening law allows the Baushinger effect to be represented [19].

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

Figure 1 shows the micrograph of the composite Al-10%SiCp in the extruded condition.
Under the optical microscope, generally a uniform SiCp distribution was observed and
some pores resolvable. Extrusion process increases the mechanical properties by reducing
porosity [20,21] and improving the SiC particle dispersion. The porosity values of the
composite in the as-cast state and after the extrusion are presented in Table 4.
The finite element program was organized to calculate thermal stress and deformation
for one cycle. In order to minimize error, time interval was selected to use the smallest
value. The displacement of the AlSiCp system at the 270 s of the thermal cycling is given
in Figure 6. Maximum axial displacement occurs at the AlSiC particle interface and
continues throughout the AlSi7 matrix alloy which shows a plastic behavior. The value of
displacement was calculated as 0.01672 mm. On the other hand, after one cycle,
displacement of the AlSiCp system without loading was calculated as only 0.00152 mm
(Figure 7). It is clear that in the case of thermal cycling test under load (150 N), the axial

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1845

An Investigation of AlSiCp Composites Under Thermal Cycling

Table 4. The densities and porosity of the matrix alloy and the composites in the
as-cast and extruded states.

Material
Matrix alloy
AlSi7/SiC/10p

Porosity
(%)

Experimental Density
De (g/cm3)

Calculated
Density
Dc (g/cm3)

As-Cast

Extruded

As-Cast

Extruded

2.6917
2.7427

2.6558
2.6162

2.6670
2.7135

1.33
4.61

0.92
1.06

1,6E-05

SiC
AlSi7

1,2E-05

Interface

Displacement, (m)

2,0E-05

8,0E-06
4,0E-06
0,0E+00
0

0,05

0,1

0,15

Distance from the center of SiC particle, (mm)

Figure 6. Displacement (m) of the AlSiCp system at the 270 s of the thermal cycling.

Interface
Int
rface

Displacement , (m)

1,9E-06
1,6E-06
1,3E-06

SiC

1,0E-06

AlSi7

7,0E-07
4,0E-07
1,0E-07
0

0,05

0,1

0,15

Distance from the center of SiC particle, (mm)

Figure 7. Displacement (m) of the AlSiCp system without loading after one cycle.

displacement value increased considerably in comparison to that of the thermal cycling

test without loading. Experimental results confirm this analysis such that the composite
sample exhibited a fairly high elongation to failure (over 80%) after 100 thermal cycles
(Figure 8).

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Figure 8. SEM micrograph of thermally cycled AlSi7/SiC/10p composite (a) and microprobe line profile
(b) of aluminum showing crack in the structure.

100

60

AlSi7

SiC

40

Interface

Stress, (MPa)

80

20
0
0

0,05

0,1

0,15

Distance from the center of SiC particle, (mm)

Figure 9. Von Mises stress (MPa) distribution of the AlSiCp system at the 270 s of the thermal cycling.

Figures 9 and 10 show the distribution of Von Mises stress and maximum principal
stress on the composite material, respectively. As seen in Figure 9, maximum Von Mises
stress value occurs on the interface. On the other side, maximum tensile principal stresses
occur on the aluminum matrix and maximum compressive principal stresses occur on the

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1847

An Investigation of AlSiCp Composites Under Thermal Cycling

50
30

-10

00,05

0,1

0,15
AlSi7

-30
-50

SiC

-70

Interface
Int
rface

Stress, (MPa)

10

-90
-110
-130
Distance from the center of SiC particle, (mm)
Figure 10. Maximum principal stress (MPa) distribution of the AlSiCp system at the 270 s of the thermal
cycling.

150

90

SiC
AlSi7

60

Interface
Int
rface

Stress, (MPa)

120

30
0
0

0,05

0,1

0,15

Distance from the center of SiC particle, (mm)

Figure 11. Residual Von Mises stress (MPa) distribution of the AlSiCp system at the 270 s of the thermal
cycling.

SiC particle as seen in Figure 10. Maximum tensile and compressive principal stresses
value are 46.5 and 123.0 MPa, respectively. Moreover, the residual Von Mises stress
distributions in the composite were calculated by FEM, and the results are illustrated in
Figure 11. It is noted that the maximum stresses were generated at the interfacial region
during cycling because of the temperature gradients inside the specimen and different
thermal expansion coefficients of SiC particle and the AlSi7 matrix. Ho and Saigal [22]
found that thermal residual stresses strongly affect the mechanical behavior of the
composites. Penn et al. [23] revealed that tensile residual stresses, present within MMCs
before the application of external load, have often been regarded as defects or inherent
flaws, and may initiate and amplify some of the early damage, such as microcracking, that
occurs when MMCs are mechanically loaded. For example, tensile matrix residual stresses
produced by thermal cycling can degrade the composite integrity [24]. Therefore, under

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Interface
Int
rface

Strain

0,06

0,04

SiC

0,02

AlSi7

0
0

0,05

0,1

0,15

Distance from the center of SiC particle, (mm)

Figure 12. Equivalent plastic strain distribution of the AlSiCp system at the 270 s of the thermal cycling.

continued regeneration of these stresses through thermal cycling, composite deformed

plastically and microscopic damage accumulation such as cavitation and cracking can be
developed in the matrix as observed experimentally in Figure 8.
Figure 12 shows equivalent plastic strain distribution of the AlSiCp system. Plastic
deformation is observed at Al matrix and SiC particle interface on the aluminum. It can be
found from Figure 12 that the predicted maximum plastic strain amplitude during one
thermal cycling was about 8.17%.

CONCLUSION
SiC particulate reinforced AlSi7 matrix base composites are produced under ordinary
foundry conditions, and cast ingots are hot extruded to improve mechanical properties.
The thermal cycling analysis is studied in the extrusion process experimentally and
theoretically. Temperature cycling was between 373 and 703 K and period for each cycle
was 270 s. Theoretical study was confirmed to only one cycle. After the experimental and
theoretical evaluation, the following points are concluded.
1. After thermal cycling tests, maximum displacement was calculated in the direction of
the applied load at the interface of the AlSi7 matrixSiC particle in the composite
system. The values calculated were 0.01672 and 0.00152 mm with and without loading,
respectively. This result indicated that composite samples are easily deformed to have
large elongations as a result of repeated thermal cycling under load.
2. Maximum tensile principal stress values and maximum compressive principal stress
values were found for the aluminum matrix and SiC particles, respectively. The results
calculated by the finite element method indicated that the stresses in the composite were
not uniform.
3. Maximum residual stresses (99 MPa) were calculated at the interfacial region, which
exceeded the yield point and caused plastic flow in the matrix.
4. Experimentally, the composite sample exhibited a fairly high elongation to failure (over
80%) after repeated thermal cycling (100 cycles). In addition, microscopic damage such
as cracking was observed in the matrix.

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An Investigation of AlSiCp Composites Under Thermal Cycling

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