Fabrication and Analysis of 304 Stainless Steel Boron Carbide Metal Matrix Composite

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International Journal of Mechanical Engineering and Technology (IJMET) Volume 9, Issue 5, May 2018, pp. 33–42, Article ID: IJMET_09_05_005 Available online at http://iaeme.com/Home/issue/IJMET?Volume=9&Issue=5 ISSN Print: 0976-6340 and ISSN Online: 0976-6359

FABRICATION AND ANALYSIS OF 304 STAINLESS STEEL BORON CARBIDE METAL MATRIX COMPOSITE

N. Balakrishnan Principal, The Indian Polytechnic College, Research Scholar, Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, Noorul Islam University, Kumara coil, Kanyakumari, Tamil Nadu, India

Dr. R. Rajesh Principal, Rohini College of Engineering, Kanyakumari, Tamil Nadu, India

ABSTRACTY The applications of metal matrix composites are increasing day by day due to high strength to weight ratio. In the present work 304SS-B4C metal matrix composite is prepared from powder metallurgy processes.15 different combinations of compositions in volume fraction and different various temperatures (600,650 and 700 0C) were chosen. Next we are going to analyze the density of 304SS-B4C metal matrix composite and find the best combination. An attempt has been made to study the characteristics of developed metal matrix composite. Key words: Metal Matrix: Composite: Powder Metallurgy. Cite this Article: N. Balakrishnan and Dr. R. Rajesh, Fabrication and analysis of 304 Stainless Steel Boron carbide metal matrix composite, International Journal of Mechanical Engineering and Technology, 9(5), 2018, pp. 33–42. http://iaeme.com/Home/issue/IJMET?Volume=9&Issue=5

1. INTRODUCTION The greatest advantage of composite materials is strength and stiffness combined with lightness. By choosing an appropriate combination of reinforcement and matrix material, manufacturers can produce properties that exactly fit the requirements for a particular structure for a particular purpose. Light, strong and corrosion-resistant, composite materials are being used in an increasing number of products as more manufactures discover the benefits of these versatile materials. In an advanced society like ours we all depend on composite materials in some aspect of our lives. Modern aviation, both military and civil, is a prime example. It would be much less efficient without composites. In fact, the demands made by that industry for materials that are

http://iaeme.com/Home/journal/IJMET 33 [email protected] Fabrication and analysis of 304 Stainless Steel Boron carbide metal matrix composite both light and strong has been the main force driving the development of composites. It is common now to find wing and tail sections, propellers and rotor blades made from advanced composites, along with much of the internal structure and fittings. The airframes of some smaller aircraft are made entirely from composites, as are the wing, tail and body panels of large commercial aircraft. In thinking about planes, it is worth remembering that composites are less likely than metals (such as aluminum) to break up completely under stress. A small crack in a piece of metal can spread very rapidly with very serious consequences (especially in the case of aircraft). The fibers in a composites act to block the widening of any small crack and to share the stress around. The right composites also stand up well to heat and corrosion. This makes them ideal for use in products that are exposed to extreme environments such as boats, chemical-handling equipment and spacecraft. In general, composite materials are very durable. Another advantage of composite materials is that they provide design flexibility. Composites can be molded into complex shapes –a great asset when producing something like a surfboard or a boat hull. The downside of composites is usually the cost. Although manufacturing processes are often more efficient when composites are used, the raw materials are expensive. Composites will never totally replace traditional materials like steel, but in many cases they are just what we need. And no doubt new uses will be found as the technology evolves. We haven’t yet seen all that composites can do. The austenitic stainless steel is one of the important structural materials and has many applications in industry mainly because of its excellent corrosion resistance [1–5]. 304 stainless steel is a type of austenitic steel widely used in pipes of chemical plants and many other applications which may be subject to cyclic loading conditions. The predictions of fatigue life and crack initiation sites are important aspects of designing the plant structure. Fatigue failure is usually caused by the creation of micro cracks smaller than the grain size, then the growth and coalescence of micro flaws to a dominant crack, followed by stable propagation of the dominant macro crack, and structural instability or complete fracture finally[6].Austenitic stainless steels have been widely used as nuclear structural materials for reactor coolant piping, valve bodies, and vessel internals because of their excellent mechanical properties[7]. Porous metals have been widely investigated and applied due to their distinct permeability, sound and energy absorption properties, heat transfer and mechanical properties [8,9]. Nowadays, with the strict demands of different applications, many new types of porous metals with different geometries and microstructures are produced. The powder metallurgy (P/M) technique is a common method of producing porous metal materials. However, the applications of some P/M materials are limited in engineering for their performance deficiency. For example, sintered powder materials used as filters are too fragile to withstand heavy loads for liquid to pass through [10]. Therefore, the improvement of the mechanical properties is one of the key issues for the scientific and technological applications of porous metal materials. The composite can be produced in many ways but the type and cost of production should well be considered and hence powder metallurgy process has turned to be efficient rather than other methodologies above and beyond improving the properties of the experimented material [11]. In the recent past PM process is supposed to be the focus of R&D worldwide and easily overrides ingot metallurgy route for the sake of synthesizing assorted compositions [12].

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Boron Carbide (B4C) which preserves its hardness up to 9.3 mohs even at elevated temperature is the third hardest ceramic particle next to diamond and CBN [13]. Also B4C care for lower density of 2.52 g/cm3 and its significant rhombohedra crystal structure support for higher melting point [16].

2. METHODOLOGY

Figure 1 Methodology 3. EXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURE

3.1. 304- Stainless steel: The Raw material use to make MMC in this study are Stainless steel 304 and Boron Carbide Stainless Steel 304 SAE 304 stainless steel, also known as A2 stainless steel or 18/8 stainless steel, European norm 1.4301, is the most common stainless steel. 304 Stainless Steel has excellent resistance to a wide range of atmospheric environments and many corrosive media. 304 Stainless Steel is used for a variety of household and industrial applications such as screws, machinery parts, car headers, and food-handling equipment. 304 Stainless Steel is also used in the architectural field for exterior accents such as water and fire features. High corrosion resistance, good visual aspect and good formability favored the use of stainless steels in several engineering fields, not only in mechanical industry but also in the building one .In particular; stainless steel powder metallurgy process has numerous advantages to fabricate small pieces of complex shapes, because it allows energy and material savings as well as dimensional accuracy. Sintered stainless steels have a wide range of applications, mainly related to the automotive industry but also related to biomedical field. Table 1 shows chemical composition of 304- Stainless Steel.

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Table 1 Chemical Composition of Stainless Steel 304 Composition Percentage Ni 9.25 Cr 19.00 Fe 68.595 Si 1.00 Mn 2.00 C .080 P .045 S .030

3.2. Boron Carbide (B4C): Boron carbide, which has a high melting point, outstanding hardness, good mechanical properties, low specific weight, great resistance to chemical agents and high neutron absorption cross-section, is currently used in high-technology industries such as fast-breeders, lightweight armors and high-temperature thermoelectric conversion. Boron Carbide is one of the hardest materials known, ranking third behind diamond and cubic boron nitride. It is the hardest material produced in tonnage quantities. B4C ceramic particulate is a low density material that is very hard, strong and stiff Therefore, the combination of B4C ceramic phase with the metal matrix is extremely interesting.

Figure 2 Raw Materials

3.2. Mixing Mixing of powders is necessary to provide a uniform distribution of powder size and for mixing powders of two or more constituents. Mixing is usually done by some type of mechanical milling, and requires the breakage of agglomerates and the reduction of sizes of the individual crystals. The various composition of volume and weight percentage of B4C, and Stainless steel is shown in Table 2. The mixture was rotated at standard RPM 20 and the time required for mixing is 45 minute.

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Table 2 volume and Weight percentage of various composition of Boron Carbide with 304-stainless steel

Sampl % of Fe FM Cr Ni Si Mn C P S B4C (g) es B4C (g) (g) (g) (g) (g) (g) (g) (g) (g) 1 0 52.5 0 0 14.25 6 0.75 1.5 0.06 0.04 0.02 2 0.2 52.29 0.105 0.105 14.25 6 0.75 1.5 0.06 0.04 0.02 3 0.4 52.08 0.21 0.21 14.25 6 0.75 1.5 0.06 0.04 0.02 4 0.6 51.87 0.315 0.315 14.25 6 0.75 1.5 0.06 0.04 0.02 5 0.8 51.66 0.42 0.42 14.25 6 0.75 1.5 0.06 0.04 0.02 6 1 51.45 0.525 0.525 14.25 6 0.75 1.5 0.06 0.04 0.02 7 1.2 51.24 0.63 0.63 14.25 6 0.75 1.5 0.06 0.04 0.02 8 1.4 51.03 0.735 0.735 14.25 6 0.75 1.5 0.06 0.04 0.02 9 1.6 50.82 0.84 0.84 14.25 6 0.75 1.5 0.06 0.04 0.02 10 1.8 50.61 0.945 0.945 14.25 6 0.75 1.5 0.06 0.04 0.02 11 2 50.4 1.05 1.05 14.25 6 0.75 1.5 0.06 0.04 0.02 12 2.2 50.19 1.155 1.155 14.25 6 0.75 1.5 0.06 0.04 0.02 13 2.4 49.98 1.26 1.26 14.25 6 0.75 1.5 0.06 0.04 0.02 14 2.6 49.77 1.365 1.365 14.25 6 0.75 1.5 0.06 0.04 0.02 15 2.8 49.56 1.47 1.47 14.25 6 0.75 1.5 0.06 0.04 0.02

3.3 Compaction: Mixed powders were poured into graphite die-plunger assemblies and subjected to a uniaxial pressing force in order to create green compacts having about 35% theoretical density. The dies(Fig 4) had an inside diameter of 50.8 mm (2 in), an outside diameter of 88.9 mm (3.5 in), and a thickness of 50.8 mm (2 in). Graphite plungers having a diameter of 50.8 mm (2 in) and a thickness of 25.4 mm (1 in) were used to secure the bottom and the top of the die assembly. The homogeneous mixture of stainless steel 304 and Boron Carbide were placed on a die and compressed with hot pressing and the compacting parameters are shown in Table 3.

Table 3 compacting parameters Pressure Pressing Time Vacuum 69 kPa 30 min .25 bar

Figure 4 die assembly

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3.4. Sintering Sintering is effective when the process reduces the porosity and enhances properties such as strength, electrical conductivity, translucency and thermal conductivity; yet, in other cases, it may be useful to increase its strength but keep its gas absorbency constant as in filters or catalysts. During the firing process, atomic diffusion drives powder surface elimination in different stages, starting from the formation of necks between powders to final elimination of small pores at the end of the process. The die assembly was disconnected and the specimens placed in between the two graphite-capped 6” diameter water-cooled copper electrodes of the apparatus. A total of 15 samples are sintered at 600 0C, 15 samples are sintered at 650 0C and the 15 samples are sintered at 700 0C. Sintering occurs by diffusion of atoms through the microstructure. This diffusion is caused by a gradient of chemical potential – atoms move from an area of higher chemical potential to an area of lower chemical potential. The different paths the atoms take to get from one spot to another are the sintering mechanisms. The six common mechanisms are: Surface diffusion – Diffusion of atoms along the surface of a particle Vapor transport – Evaporation of atoms which condense on a different surface Lattice diffusion from surface – atoms from surface diffuse through lattice Lattice diffusion from grain boundary – atom from grain boundary diffuses through lattice Grain boundary diffusion – atoms diffuse along grain boundary Plastic deformation – dislocation motion causes flow of matter

4. EVALUATION OF MECHANICAL PROPERTY Hardness is a measure of how resistant solid matter is to various kinds of permanent shape change when a force is applied. Hardness is usually defined in terms of the ability of a material to resist scratching abrasion, cutting, indentation, or penetration. It is important to note that the hardness of a metal does not directly relate to the hardenability of the metal. Many methods are now in use for determining the hardness of a material. They are Brinell, Rockwell and Vickers. In the present study, the investigation was done using Rockwell hardness tester. The Rockwell hardness test is based on the indentation of a hard tip, or indenter, into the test piece under the action of two consecutively applied loads – minor (initial /0 and major (final). In order to eliminate zero error and possible surface effects due to roughness or scale, the initial or minor load is first applied and produces an initial indentation. A conical shaped diamond (called a brittle) with 1200 and 0.2 mm radius is used as the indenter or penetrator in the Rockwell test for hard materials. For softer materials, a hardened steel ball 1.5 in diameter is generally used. A number of different scales are used, each scale being suitable for certain classes of material. It should be understood that each scale is entirely arbitrary; the hardness number obtained has relevance to that particular scale only. For polymer, R and M scale are commonly used. After loading, the major load is removed. The Rockwell hardness number is the difference in depths of the indentations made by applying the major and 10 kg minor load, measured after removing the major load. The number 1-1 indicates the penetration of the cone under the minor load, 2-2 indicates the penetration of the major (final) load, and 3-3 indicates the penetration of the cone after major load is reduced again to the value of the minor load.

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The load was applied and maintained for up to 15 seconds and then released, the hardness number then being read off the scale graduated in hardness units to the nearest whole number. The results were tabulated in Table 4 to 6.

Table 4 % of B4C vs. Hardness (Sintering Temp 600 0C) Temperature 600 Positions Sl.No % of B4C Load Hardness 1 2 3 4 5 0 0 150 65 76 79 86 70 77.3 1 0.2 150 65 79 88 86 69 77.4 2 0.4 150 75 74 80 78 82 77.8 3 0.6 150 71 81 82 79 80 78.6 4 0.8 150 78 81 79 79 78 79 5 1 150 84 78 71 82 82 79.4 6 1.2 150 79 74 82 85 80 80 7 1.4 150 75 78 86 78 86 80.6 8 1.6 150 84 79 82 81 79 81 9 1.8 150 75 77 89 80 87 81.6 10 2 150 77 89 85 79 79 81.8 11 2.2 150 84 85 84 79 78 82 12 2.4 150 84 83 87 78 81 82.6 13 2.6 150 82 78 84 84 84 82.4 14 2.8 150 82 84 88 86 83 84.6 15 3 150 80 90 86 86 85 85.4

% of B4C Vs Hardness Hardness

% of B4C

Figure 5 % of B4C vs Hardness (Sintering Temp 600 0C)#

Table 5 % of B4C vs Hardness (Sintering Temp 650 0C) Temperature 650 % of Positions Sl.No Load Hardness B4C 1 2 3 4 5 0 0 150 78 85 86 82 79 81.8 1 0.2 150 78 89 82 80 83 82.4 2 0.4 150 79 90 85 82 83 83.8 3 0.6 150 81 84 86 84 88 84.6 4 0.8 150 80 90 86 86 85 85.4 5 1 150 83 85 90 88 86 86.4

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6 1.2 150 85 89 86 85 88 86.6 7 1.4 150 84 85 89 88 89 87 8 1.6 150 88 85 86 88 89 87.2 9 1.8 150 89 85 88 86 90 87.6 10 2 150 86 90 88 88 88 88 11 2.2 150 86 90 86 90 89 88.2 12 2.4 150 90 89 91 88 86 88.8 13 2.6 150 90 91 89 87 89 89.2 14 2.8 150 90 88 90 89 90 89.4 15 3 150 90 91 90 91 91 90.6

% of B4C Vs Hardness Hardness

% of B4C

Figure 6 % of B4C vs Hardness (Sintering Temp 650 0C)

Table 6 % of B4C vs Hardness (Sintering Temp 700 0C) Temperature 700 Positions Sl.No % of B4C Load Hardness 1 2 3 4 5 0 0 150 85 88 80 84 84 84.5 1 0.2 150 88 89 78 88 84 85.4 2 0.4 150 88 89 86 82 83 85.6 3 0.6 150 83 84 86 88 88 85.8 4 0.8 150 85 88 86 86 85 86 5 1 150 85 85 87 88 86 86.2 6 1.2 150 85 87 86 86 88 86.4 7 1.4 150 87 82 89 88 88 86.8 8 1.6 150 88 85 86 88 89 87.2 9 1.8 150 89 88 88 86 90 88.2 10 2 150 86 90 90 88 88 88.4 11 2.2 150 90 90 86 90 89 89 12 2.4 150 90 89 91 90 86 89.2 13 2.6 150 90 91 89 90 89 89.8 14 2.8 150 90 88 90 89 90 89.4 15 3 150 90 92 90 91 91 90.8

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% of B4C Vs Hardness Hardness

% of B4C

Figure 7 % of B4C vs Hardness (Sintering Temp 700 0C) 5. CONCLUSION: • As per the figure 5,6 and 7 clearly shows that When the Boron Carbide is added to the stainless steel 304 Hardness is significantly increases. • The composites produced at a sintering temperature of 650 c the composites give better hardness 3 % of B4C & Filler material (90.6 HRA) • When the sintering temperature increases above 650 c the hardness does not significantly Increases.

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