Fabrication and Characterization of Carbon Fiber Reinforced A365 Alloy Composite

The carbon-fiber(CF) reinforced A365 alloy composite was fabricated by vacuum pressure infiltration with the preform,comprising the CF wrapped in A365-alloy foil.The influence of the CF-content on the interfacial microstructures and mechanical properties was investigated with X-ray diffraction,scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy.The results show that the CF-content had a major impact.To be specific,as the CF-content increased to 10%(wt),the density and tensile-strength changed in an increase-decrease mode,maximizing to 3.1 g/cm³ and 2416 MPa at 5%,respectively,with the compactness over 98%. The Al₄C₃ clusters formed at the interfaces in the infiltration at 750℃,especially when the liquid-Al completely wetted the CF-bundles and filled interfacial gaps at CF-5%.In the CF-5% composite,the observable CF-Al365 interfaces vanished.The rough fractured surfaces,comprising jagged gains,pulled-out CF and dimples,indicated the ductile fracture mechanism.