Open AccessThermal stability and microhardness of Cu-10vol.%Al2O3nanocomposite produced by high energy mechanical milling
Author(s) -
Aamir Mukhtar,
Deliang Zhang,
Charlie Kong,
Paul Munroe
Publication year - 2009
Publication title -
journal of physics. conference series
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.21
H-Index - 85
eISSN - 1742-6596
pISSN - 1742-6588
DOI - 10.1088/1742-6596/144/1/012082
Subject(s) - indentation hardness , annealing (glass) , materials science , nanocomposite , microstructure , thermal stability , metallurgy , composite material , chemical engineering , engineering
Cu-10vol.%Al₂O₃ nanocomposite powders were produced using two high energy milling routes and heat treated at 150, 300, 400 and 500°C for 1 hour, respectively, to determine the thermal stability of the microstructure and the micohardness change of the materials as a function of the annealing temperature. Annealing of the as-milled powders at 150°C caused recovery and recrystallisation that leads to significant decrease in dislocation density and slight decrease of microhardness. Increasing the annealing temperature to 400°C causes slight coarsening of the Cu grains and corresponding slight decrease of microhardness. Further increasing the annealing temperature to 500°C causes significant coarsening of the Cu grains and cause significant decrease in microhardness. The effects of different factors on the thermal stability and micohardness change of the Cu- Al₂O₃ are discussed