Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of Al 6061/Al2O3/Fly-Ash Composite Fabricated Through Stir Casting

Abstract

The fly-ash produced in thermal power plants is a major pollutant to the air and soil. This paper designs a new composite material with the fly-ash as the reinforcement. For the composite, the AA 6061 aluminum alloy was taken as the matrix, Al2O3 as the primary reinforcement, and fly-ash as the secondary reinforcement. The microstructure and mechanical properties of the proposed composite were measured, and compared with those of previous experiments on AA 6061 alloy. The results show that the proposed composite achieves uniform distribution of Al2O3 and fly-ash in AA 6061 alloy; the mechanical characteristics like tensile strength and hardness were improved after adding Al2O3 and flyash; however, ductility and facture toughness were minimized after the addition. The research findings offer a new way to recycle the fly-ash generated in the thermal power industry.