International Journal of Engineering and Technology

In the present study, an Al 7075 alloy is used as the matrix and varying weight percentage of Silicon Carbide (SiC) and constant weight percentage of Boron Carbide (B4C) as the reinforcing material. The composite is produced using stir casting technique. The composite thus formed is termed as hybrid composite. The samples are prepared for heat treatment process by subjecting to solutionizing temperature of 530oC for 1 hr followed by quenching in water. Further the specimens are subjected to artificial aging for durations of 4, 6 and 8 hr at a temperature of 175°C. The mechanical and tribological properties of composites before and after heat treatment are examined by Vickers hardness test machine and pin-on-disc test machine respectively. The wear rate and friction co-efficient of heat treatment parameters are evaluated based on Taguchi technique. The analysis is further extended to the optimization of test parameters using Design of Experiment (DoE) based on L9 orthogonal array. The developed Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) and the regression equations is obtained through MINITAB R16 are used to investigate the influence of parameters like sliding speed, applied load, sliding time, and percentage of reinforcement on the dry sliding wear and friction co-efficient of the composites. The wear surface morphology and wear mechanism of the pins are investigated using Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) and are correlated them with wear test results. Finally, confirmation tests are carried out to verify the experimental results.