Morphological, mechanical and electrical evolution of copper-coated SiC reinforced Cu matrix composites manufactured by mechanical milling and hot pressing-assisted flake powder metallurgy
Ceramics International, 2026 (SCI-Expanded, Scopus)
- Yayın Türü: Makale / Tam Makale
- Basım Tarihi: 2026
- Doi Numarası: 10.1016/j.ceramint.2026.10.131
- Dergi Adı: Ceramics International
- Derginin Tarandığı İndeksler: Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-EXPANDED), Scopus, Chemical Abstracts Core, Compendex, INSPEC, Academic Search Ultimate (EBSCO), Engineering Source (EBSCO)
- Karadeniz Teknik Üniversitesi Adresli: Evet
Özet
In this study, the effects of reinforcement ratio (5%, 10%, 15%) and copper coating of SiC particles on the microstructure and material properties of Cu matrix SiC composites produced by the mechanical milling-assited method were investigated. In particle size analyses, the d(0.5) value was determined as 230.456 μm for the uncoated Cu_SiC1 sample, while this value decreased to 75.525 μm in the Cu_Cu/SiC1 sample after coating. Similarly, a narrower and more homogeneous size distribution was obtained in all coated systems. According to the Hall flow and apparent density results, the flow rates in uncoated powders varied between 5.37 and 5.81 g/s, while this value increased to 6.06 g/s in coated systems. With copper coating, the apparent density values increased significantly, from 2.53 g/cm3 to 2.93 g/cm3. In terms of mechanical properties, it was determined that increasing SiC content led to an increase in hardness values from 98.60 HB to 114.25 HB, while the highest value was 119.70 HB for Cu coated SiC reinforced sample. According to the electrical conductivity results, the highest values were measured as 75% IACS (Cu_SiC1) and 80.9% IACS (Cu_Cu/SiC1). While conductivity decreased to 44.2% IACS with increasing SiC content, higher conductivity values were maintained in the coated systems. As the SiC content increased from 5% to 15%, the tensile strength values gradually increased, and composites containing copper-coated SiC particles exhibited higher tensile strength values compared to uncoated SiC-reinforced composites due to improved interfacial bonding. In conclusion, coating SiC particles with copper was determined to be an effective method for achieving a more homogeneous microstructure, lower porosity, improved mechanical properties, and enhanced electrical performance in the composite systems.