Abstract
The main aims of the present chapter are to: learn synthesis procedure of AA 6061-x wt.% TiO2 nanocomposites (x = 0, 2, 4, 6, 8, 10 and 12 wt.%) by mechanical alloying (MA); investigate structural characterization of manufactured nanocomposite powders using X-ray line profile analysis, scanning electron microscope (SEM) and transmission electron microscope (TEM); examine consolidation method and mechanical behavior in terms of sintered density, Vickers hardness and compressive stress-strain behavior; study the improvement of ductility in nanocomposites; and simulate the mechanical behavior using ANSYS. Here, the synthesized nanocomposites via MA were consolidated using conventional uniaxial die compaction; then, the green compacts were sintered at different temperatures. TEM microstructures of as-milled powder samples showed the matrix crystallite sizes ranging from 45 to 75 nm, which depended on the amount of reinforcement. A remarkable decrease in matrix powder particles size with the function of reinforcement was observed due to the ceramic nano TiO2 particles acted as milling agent. The sintered nanocomposites yielded maximum strength of 1.126 GPa. The study of tri-modeled composite and its mechanical behavior revealed the possibility of achieving improvements in ductility and toughness for nanocomposites. The simulated mechanical behavior results using finite element method were good agreement with experimental results.