Synthesis and characterisation of graphene-reinforced AA 2014 MMC using squeeze casting method for lightweight aerospace structural applications

• Published in: Materials & design 2023-06, Vol.230, p.111990, Article 111990
• Main Authors: Pazhani, Ashwath, Venkatraman, M., Anthony Xavior, M., Moganraj, Arivarasu, Batako, Andre, Paulsamy, Jeyapandiarajan, Jayaseelan, Joel, Anbalagan, Arivazhagan, Shanthi Bavan, Jayesh
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Al 2014; Graphene nano-powder; Metal matrix MMCs; Squeeze casting; Stir casting; Super lightweight fuel tank (SLWT)
• ISSN: 0264-1275; 1873-4197
• DOI: 10.1016/j.matdes.2023.111990

[Display omitted] •Homogeneous dispersion of nano 2D – Grnp in an aluminium matrix is achieved by reinforcing a synthesized novel mixture with embedded and interlocked 2D – Grnp.•This research focuses on development of isotopic composite material aimed for launch vehicle Super Lightweight fuel Tank (SLWT) Structural Application.•0.5 wt% 2D – Grnp and its homogeneous dispersion facilitated homogeneous nucleation of the stable θ-Al2Cu intermetallic precipitate which resulted in improved mechanical properties compared to the pure alloy.•A successful isotropic composite material is created and three major strengthening mechanisms are responsible for the enhancement in the mechanical properties were (1) precipitation hardening, (2) grain refinement strengthening and (3) dispersion strengthening.•This innovation of synthesizing novel mixture with embedded and interlocked 2D – Grnp and reinforcing them to achieve homogenous dispersion creates a pathway in fabricating large scale isotropic composite materials that can be used in aerospace and space exploration applications as an alternate material for light weighting with improved properties. The need for lightweight materials towards aerospace has increased prominently. This paper focuses on introducing a novel reinforcement mixture of graphene with Al 2014 powder synthesised through ball milling technique. The synthesized powder was utilized as a reinforcement to fabricate Al 2014 based MMCs through squeeze casting technique. The results exhibited that Al 2014 mixture with embedded and interlocked 2D-Grnp (2.517 g/cm3) matched the density of the matrix metal (2.771 g/cm3) that facilitated homogeneous dispersion of 2D-Grnp and solved the dispersion problems during stir casting. As a result, AA 2014 embedded with 2D-Grnp acted as a carrier to homogeneously disperse combined with the squeeze casting process leading to the production of homogeneously reinforced MMC. This can be considered as a potential fabrication route for the launch vehicle super lightweight fuel tank (SLWT) structural application. The final casted plate after T6 heat treatment with 0.5 wt% 2D-Grnp exhibited an improved tensile strength of 361 MPa (52% higher than the monolithic 2014 aluminium alloy) with total elongation of 21% and improved hardness of 119 HRB (45.5 % increase). Furthermore, SEM and TEM results exhibited that squeeze casting led to enhanced interfacial bonding between the 2D-Grnp and Al 2014.