Characterization and Experimentation of Stir Casted Bio Mesquite Wood Ash (M.W.A.) Reinforced Aluminium (Al6061 T6) Matrix Hybrid Composites for Ship Building Applications

Abstract

This paper has described the experimentation carried out in calculating mechanical, corrosion and wear properties for aluminium 6061 (T6) hybrid composites through conventional stir casing technique. The reinforcements such as Aluminium Oxide (Al₂O₃), Mesquite Wood Ash (M.W.A.), and graphite (C) were incorporated with the Al6061 alloy and stir casted.  The experimental test data has revealed that the reinforced samples have gained decent tensile strength of (219-202 MPa) and impact strength of (22.5-20.25 J) due to the inclusion of rigid, brittle reinforcements. The compressive strength of Al6061-15Al₂O₃-5MWA-5C and Al6061-10Al₂O₃-10MWA-5C samples was increased up to 20-30% than that of bare Al alloy (330 MPa) due to the majority of Al₂O₃ and with MWA powder. The incorporation of hard structured Al₂O₃ with M.W.A. in Al6061-15Al₂O₃-5MWA-5C has promoted higher microhardness value of (202 HV) than the other hybrid samples and bare alloy of (107 HV). From the wear analysis, the inclusion of maximum proportions of Al₂O₃ with self-lubricating graphite powder has promoted better wear resistance for the Al6061-15Al₂O₃-5MWA-5C sample. The Tafel plot has concluded that the incorporation of M.W.A. and graphite in Al6061-20MWA-5C sample has achieved higher corrosion resistance (-0.278 ± 0.005 V) with minimum current density of -1.2 ± 0.012 µA/cm² than the other composites and bare Al alloy of (-0.725 ± 0.020V). Finally, the introduction of mesquite wood ash powder along with synthetic reinforcements has paved way for better wear and corrosion property for the composites with decent mechanical properties.