Characterization of Graphite-Reinforced

LM30-Aluminium Matrix Composite

Processed through Gravity and Vertical
Centrifugal Casting Processes

S. Senthil Murugan & T. P. D. Rajan

Journal of The Institution of

Engineers (India): Series D
Metallurgical & Materials and Mining
Engineering

ISSN 2250-2122

J. Inst. Eng. India Ser. D

DOI 10.1007/s40033-020-00242-1

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J. Inst. Eng. India Ser. D
https://doi.org/10.1007/s40033-020-00242-1

ORIGINAL CONTRIBUTION

Characterization of Graphite-Reinforced LM30-Aluminium

Matrix Composite Processed through Gravity and Vertical
Centrifugal Casting Processes
S. Senthil Murugan1 . T. P. D. Rajan2

Received: 11 January 2018 / Accepted: 5 November 2020

Ó The Institution of Engineers (India) 2020

Abstract This paper discusses the fabrication of graphite- Keywords Vertical centrifugal casting  LM30 alloy 
reinforced aluminium LM30 (A390) matrix composite Reinforcement  Composite  Graphite 
through gravity die casting and vertical centrifugal casting Functionally graded material (FGM)
processes (VCC). The microstructures and the hardness of
the cast specimen were characterized and presented here.
The functionally graded composite (FGCs) processed Introduction
through VCC showed the gradual transition of graphite and
primary silicon from outer region to core region in Composite materials are being developed using stir casting
microstructures. This was based on the gravity difference process as it enhances the dispersal of reinforcement into
amongst the reinforcement and matrix during centrifugal the metal matrix [1, 2]. The properties of the composites
casting. FGC is one of the potential engineering materials and the microstructures can be varied by the processing
and has many applications in engineering industry. The parameters and the different processing routes. Generally,
microstructure of the gravity cast sample showed no the composites were synthesized by the stir casting process
gradual transitions but showed the uniform distribution of and shaped through the various casting processes [3] like
graphite reinforcement. The hardness of gravity cast sam- gravity die casting, centrifugal casting, squeeze casting,
ples showed a maximum of 130 HB. The hardness of FGC etc. In composite processing, mechanical stirrer with
was measured from the outer periphery to the inner blades creates a vortex flow at certain rpm in the fully
periphery. The results showed that the inner periphery had liquid matrix and mixes the reinforcement particles. In the
low hardness than that of inner periphery. Graphite parti- gravity die casting the liquid metal composite is poured
cles reduced the hardness and increased the lubricating into mould uniformly with the help of gravitational force.
property of the composite. Gravity cast specimen showed The application of composites especially functionally
greater hardness than that of VCC processed FGCs. Gra- graded materials (FGMs) is crucial in aerospace industries.
phite particles had associated mostly with the primary sil- Centrifugal casting is one of the methods for the production
icon particles. Though the primary silicon particles are at of FGMs [4]. In centrifugal casting, the centrifugal force
inner, the graphite particles reduced the hardness. developed by the rotation of the mould is responsible to
shape and feed the molten metal according to the density of
phases [5]. The centrifugal force exerts acceleration, and
this acceleration is more than the acceleration due to
gravity (g). Thus the contact of the molten metal with the
& S. Senthil Murugan wall of the rotating mould is good. For the casting process
[email protected]
improvement, the ultrasound was utilized to vibrate the
1
Department of Mechanical Engineering, Mepco Schlenk mould during the solidification [6] and the research sum-
Engineering College, Sivakasi, Tamil Nadu 626005, India marized the effect of ultrasound on the distribution of
2
Materials Science and Technology Division, NIIST-CSIR, different phases in LM30 casting and the mechanical
Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala 695 019, India property improvement. LM 30 (A390) alloy shows the

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possibility of making in situ composites as the silicon Material and Methods

available acts as the reinforcing phase with awesome
properties needed for automobile application [7]. It is Material
accepted that the development of hybrid composite with
other reinforcement like silicon carbide, alumina, graphite, In this study, LM30 (A390) aluminium alloy, Al-Si hyper-
etc., is possible. Xue kong et al. [8] studied the effect of the eutectic alloy [9], having high silicon was considered as the
reheating process on A390 alloy and identified the change matrix and graphite particles of about 60 lm size were
of microstructure as the temperature increases. The den- added as reinforcement. These alloys can be used for
drite structure of primary aluminium was changed into making the engine blocks because of its higher strength,
spherical and thus improved the mechanical properties of and wear resistance. Table 1 is the chemical composition of
the alloy when the primary and eutectic silicon spher- LM30 aluminium alloy in wt. %. Yi Si [10] stated through
oidized. In this study, the graphite-reinforced LM30 alu- his research that if the addition of ‘Sn’ into LM30 alloy
minium matrix composites were synthesized using a stir increases, then the tensile strength and elongation of LM30
casting process and shaped through gravity die casting and also increase. Graphite (Gr) has a good lubricating prop-
vertical centrifugal casting processes. In the present hybrid erty. The properties of LM30 alloy are given in Table 2,
composite design, the FGCM contained hard primary sili- which are as per MatWeb material property data. The
con to improve the property, and the soft graphite particle elongation of the alloy is very low. The casting charac-
is to act as a solid lubricant. The paper aims to measure the teristics of matrix alloy are awesome like good fluidity, fair
hardness and to analyse the microstructures of the pressure tightness, and fair hot tearing. The literature
composites. agreed that the tensile property of the alloy can be
improved by the solution heat treatment. LM30 alloy is

Table 1 LM30 aluminium alloy composition in wt%

Elements Al Si Fe Cu Mn Mg Ni Zn Sn Ti Pb

wt.% balance 16–18 1.1 max 4–5 0.3 max 0.4–0.7 0.1 max 0.2 max 0.1 max 0.2 max 0.1 max

Table 2 Properties of LM30 aluminium alloy (at room temperature)

Property Tensile (MPa) Yield (MPa) Density (g/cm3) Brinell hardness (HB) Melting temperature (°C) Elongation (%)

Value 180 180 2.73 100–110 587–649 01Max

Fig. 1 a stir casting set-up

used, b fabrication of composite
using stir casting process,

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designed for automobile engine applications, wear resis- (b), according to it, the matrix metal was melted using a
tance applications, air compressor, pulley, brake shoe, and table-top furnace and at a particular temperature, which
pump. was greater than the melting temperature of matrix alloy
(LM30), the preheated (at 300 °C for 2 h.) reinforcement
Methods (graphite) particles were added (5 wt. %) at the rate of one
gm per minute into the liquid matrix at 720 °C while
In the experiment, the aluminium matrix composite was running the stirrer (Fig. 1 (a)) into the liquid matrix to mix
prepared by the liquid metallurgy or stir casting process. the reinforcement with the liquid matrix. Thus, the rein-
Figure 1 (a) shows the image of stir casting set-up used in forcement was chemically bonded with the matrix and
this study. The components consisted of the set-up are also formed composite. In gravity die casting, the prepared
shown in the picture. Stir casting process is shown in Fig. 1 liquid composite was poured into the mould by gravity

Fig. 2 a vertical centrifugal casting process, b VCC machine used for this study, c mould used for gravity casting, d mould used for centrifugal
casting, e 4 types of emery papers for polishing specimens, f gravity as cast, g centrifugal as cast

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Fig. 3 a Brinell hardness tester,

b Brinell hardness testing
principle

Fig. 4 a & b: Microstructures of gravity cast LM30 ? Gr composite

force at 760 °C. In contrast, the composite was poured at for preparing the FGC, in which particles are segregated
780 °C into the VCC mould kept on VCC machine through due to the centrifugal force [7].
pouring cup. Due to the centrifugal force developed by the The prepared castings were cut for the specimen char-
rotation of centrifugal mould, the poured metal was thrown acterization according to the size requirements. For the
into the outer according to the density difference. The microstructure and hardness study, a sample of 20 mm x /
pouring temperature for centrifugal casting was a little bit 20 mm was prepared from the gravity casting, whereas, for
higher than the gravity centrifugal casting. It was decided centrifugal casting, a cuboid like a sample (length 50 mm,
by analysing the factors like heat dissipation and the the width was 20 mm and the height was equal to the
retention onto the mould during pouring, distance between thickness of the centrifugal cast) was prepared from the
the furnace and the casting mould, and the room temper- centrifugal casting as shown in Fig. 2 (g) (S). The prepared
ature. Figure 2 (a) and 2 (b) is the images of the vertical samples were polished with 4 sets of emery papers (Grade:
centrifugal casting process and the machine used in this 100, 220, 400 and 600) (Fig. 2 (f)) and the 0.25-micron
study, respectively. Further, the moulds used for gravity diamond paste using a metal polishing machine. After the
and centrifugal casting are shown in Fig. 2 (c) and 2 (d), proper polishing, the mirror-like samples of both gravity
respectively. The moulds were initially preheated at and centrifugal casting were examined by optical micro-
150 °C for 2 h before the composite pouring. Figure 2 scope (OM) for microstructure study. Here, the Brinell
(e) & (f) is the as casts of LM30 aluminium matrix com- hardness tester was used to study the hardness of the
posite reinforced with graphite synthesized by stir casting composites. In gravity cast samples, the hardness was
set and in turn prepared by the gravity casting method and randomly tested in various regions on the samples; but in
vertical centrifugal casting method, respectively. The centrifugal cast samples, the hardness was measure from
centrifugal casting method is one of the feasible methods outer to the inner region as shown in Fig. 2 (d) along x, y-
direction. The outer (x) and inner/core region (x) of the

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Fig. 5 a-f Microstructures and the flow of graphite and primary silicon from outer (Fig. 2g-x) to inner region (Fig. 2g-y) in LM30-Graphite
composite

centrifugal cast is shown in Fig. 2 (g). The Brinell hard- primary silicon, and the graphite particle. The particle size
ness (HB) measurement was calculated using equation of primary silicon (a grey coloured block in microstructure)
no.1 [11] by the machine (Fig. 3 (a)) based on the indenter varied in the range of 20–120 lm. Generally, the graphite
ball’s indentation shown in Fig. 3 (b). (a dark block in microstructure) particle added was con-

0:5  tacted with the primary silicon. From Figs. 4 (a) and (b),
HB ¼ 2P=D  D  D2  d2 equ ð1Þ the specimen of gravity casting, it was observed that the
particle distribution of graphite and the primary silicon
where P is the test load (kg), D is the diameter of the ball
were almost uniform in the matrix. Graphite addition
(mm), and d is the impression diameter of indentation
refined the eutectic silicon (a scattered narrow grey block)
(mm) (Fig. 3b).
and the alpha aluminium (a white coloured a-Al) in the
matrix. But, the primary silicon instead of being refined, it
had contact with the graphite. Graphite particle was asso-
Results and Discussion
ciated with eutectic silicon particles which may be the
reason for the nucleation of primary silicon particles. The
Figures 4 (a, b) and 5 show the optical microstructures of
dendrite shape of eutectic silicon and primary aluminium
the graphite-reinforced LM30 alloy composite prepared
were not observed in the composite. This is because of the
through stir casting set-up and shaped by gravity and ver-
obstruction given by the graphite particle during solidifi-
tical centrifugal casting processes, respectively. The phases
cation as well as the stirring of graphite into the liquid
are primary aluminium/a-aluminium [12], eutectic silicon,

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Fig. 6 Brinell hardness values

(HB), a regions of hardness (a)
measurement trials (1–5) on
gravity cast samples, b for
gravity cast specimen, c for
centrifugal cast from outer to
inner region

150
(b)
gravity cast-Hardness
140
Brinel Hardness HB

130.6 129.3
130 126

119.6 121
120

110

100
1 2 3 4 5
trials on specimen

140
(c) centrifugal cast-Hardness
130
119 120.1
120 117.2
Brinel Hardness HB

110

100 95.3
90
90

80

70

60
2 4 6 8 10
Distance in 'mm' from outer to inner

metal for the duration of composite processing. The effect primary silicon particles from the outer region (Fig. 5 (a))
of centrifugal force in the vertical centrifugal casting and to the inner region (Fig. 5 (f)) is shown in Fig. 5 (a)–5(f).
the flow of graphite and primary silicon are shown in This is mainly by the action of centrifugal force, which
Fig. 5. Here, the increase in the quantity of graphite and the throws the higher density particles towards the outer

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region. As the density of graphite (2 g/ cm3) is lower Conclusion

compared to LM30 aluminium (2.73 g/cm3), it segregated
towards the inner periphery. It can be proved in such a way In this study, the graphite-reinforced LM30 aluminium
that there is no graphite concentration at the distance of alloy composite was successfully synthesized through the
0 mm (Fig. 5a), 2 mm (Fig. 5b), and 4 mm (Fig. 5c) from stir casting process and shaped through gravity and vertical
the outer edge of the composite sample. But, at a distance centrifugal casting. The microstructure study of gravity
of 6 mm from the edge, a few of graphite particles could be cast showed that the addition of graphite in the LM30 alloy
seen as shown in Fig. 5d and the concentration of graphite increases the refinement of alpha aluminium and silicon
increased towards the inner region or core region and fixed particles. No refinement was seen on primary silicon.
as a maximum at 10 mm distance. Similarly, the concen- Graphite particle was mostly closed with primary silicon
tration of primary silicon was increasing towards the inner particles. The Brinell hardness of the gravity cast showed
region as the density of primary silicon (2.32 g/cm3) was the hardness in the range of 119–130 HB with a maximum
higher than that of graphite and lower than that of LM30 hardness of 130 HB at primary silicon region. But the
alloy. It was noted that the formation of eutectic silicon graphite regions showed low hardness values. There was a
was more at the distance of 6 mm and 8 mm from the outer hindrance by the graphite particle throughout the solidifi-
edge. The graphite particles were available at primary sil- cation and the stirring of the graphite particles with liquid
icon’s’ region; however, graphite was not closed to eutectic LM30 alloy during the synthesis of the composite. The
silicon. microstructures of the centrifugal cast confirmed the per-
The hardness test on the gravity cast sample was carried centage of graphite was increasing from outer to the inner
out on 5 different regions (1–5) randomly as shown in periphery and the highest at the inner. Similarly, the pri-
Fig. 6 (a), and the measured Brinell hardness values are mary silicon concentration was also varying from outer to
plotted in a graph as shown in Fig. 6 (b). From the graph, the inner region as its low density (2.32 g/cm3) than that of
the average hardness of gravity cast samples was 125.3 LM30 aluminium (2.73 g/cm3). Brinell hardness mea-
HB. The graphite accumulated regions showed less hard- surement on centrifugal cast samples proved the gradual
ness. This was because of the soft and lubricant nature of decrease in hardness value from outer to inner as the
graphite particles. Figure 6 (c) is the graph of the Brinell hardness of graphite was low. The hardness values were
hardness measurement on the centrifugal cast samples at 119 HB and 90 HB at the outer and inner periphery,
different distances from its outer edge. Maximum hardness respectively. Thus the functionally graded composites
of 120.1 HB was observed at a distance of 4 mm (Fig. 5c) (FGCs) with the graphite and primarily silicon gradually
from the edge as the primary silicon and eutectic silicon graduated from outer to inner periphery were fabricated
concentration was more compared to that of a distance through the centrifugal casting process. Though the hard
2 mm (Fig. 5b). But the hardness was decreasing from 4 to primary silicon could improve the property at the inner
10 mm distance as graphite particles increase. Though the periphery, the soft graphite concentration associated with
quantum of silicon increased towards the inner region, the primary silicon at the inner region reduced the hardness.
graphite particle bonding to the primary silicon at the
distances 6, 8 and 10 mm reduced the hardness values of
the centrifugally cast matrix composite samples. The Bri-
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