Study on wear properties of Aluminium alloy for different mass of SiC particles

Owing to its excellent dimensional consistency, low weight, max strength ratio, cheap cost, and specific strength, aluminium 7075 has a wide range of applications in aircraft fittings, gears, worm wheels, shafts, missiles, and regulating valves. Considering the use aluminium alloy (Al 7075) in the aerospace and defence sectors, its wear qualities must be enhanced further to extend the life of the components used in these industries. Considering its wear resistance capabilities, silicon carbide (SiC) is commonly utilised in the production of wear-resistant blades, saws, surface coatings, and machine tools. The wear characteristics of Al 7075 alloy have been investigated in this study by fortifying it with varied weight percentages (1%, 2%, and 4%) of silicon carbide (SiC) and producing it using the stir casting technique. The experiment was carried out with a Taguchi L27 orthogonal array. A pin-on-disc wear measuring device is used to assess the dry sliding wear properties. SiC concentration, velocity, loading, and sliding length are the process parameters, and the outputs are the friction coefficient (CoF) and the rate of specific wear. The Signal-to-Noise (S/N) ratio was calculated with the help of Taguchi’s analysis to discover the optimum effective combination for minimising friction coefficient and rate of specific wear. According to the results, 4% SiC reinforcement results in a decreased friction coefficient and rate of specific wear under different dynamic conditions. A Scanning Electron Images (SEM) investigation was performed to detect the wear pattern, and it was discovered that the Al7075 strengthened with 4% SiC with a steady input variable shows the least wear. Investigation shows that increasing the weight percentage of SiC enhances the wear resistance of the Al 7075 alloy.