Performance of Carbon Black Reinforced Aluminum Composites Fabricated by Accumulative Roll Bonding (ARB) under Preheated Conditions

In this study, carbon black (CB) was evaluated as a low-cost and economically efficient reinforcement for aluminum matrix composites fabricated by accumulative roll bonding (ARB) under preheated conditions at ۳۸۰ °C. The mechanical behavior, microhardness, and electrical resistance of CB/Al sheets were systematically compared with unprocessed aluminum, cold and preheated-ARB aluminum, and graphene oxide reinforced composites (GO/Al). Cold ARB increased the ultimate tensile strength (UTS) of aluminum from ۱۳۶.۹ MPa to ۲۵۹.۴ MPa after five passes, corresponding to an ۸۹.۵% improvement, while elongation decreased from ۲۶.۹% to ۱۱.۵%. Preheating enabled stable processing up to seven passes without edge cracking, although the UTS of unreinforced aluminum decreased to ۱۸۹.۹ MPa in the first pass due to thermal softening. Incorporation of CB in the first preheated ARB pass enhanced the UTS to ۱۹۸.۸ MPa, which is ۴.۷% higher than that of unreinforced preheated ARB aluminum and ۴۵.۲% higher than that of the initial aluminum, confirming the effectiveness of particulate strengthening. However, increasing cumulative strain to higher passes led to gradual degradation in strength and ductility, attributed to particle re-agglomeration. Notably, CB consistently improved microhardness, reaching a maximum increase of ۱۲.۳% at the third pass, which exceeded that of GO/Al composites. Electrical resistance was reduced by ۲۰% in the first pass compared to unreinforced preheated ARB aluminum, while the difference between CB/Al and GO/Al remained below ۱۰% across all processing passes. Overall, although GO/Al exhibits superior mechanical stability at higher strains, CB/Al provides comparable early-stage mechanical and electrical performance with higher local hardness and substantially lower material cost, highlighting carbon black as a promising reinforcement for cost-sensitive and scalable applications.

کلیدواژه ها:

Carbon black ، Aluminum matrix composites ، Accumulative roll bonding ، Mechanical properties ، Electrical resistance