Study on Tensile and Hardness Properties of Aluminium 7075 Alloy Reinforced with Graphite, Mica and E-Glass

The development of metal matrix composites is of major interest in industrial applications due to some important advantages like strength-to-weight ratio, heat resistance and chemical stability. In the present experimental investigation work, aluminium-based hybrid metal matrix composites of various percentage compositions of graphite (1, 3, 5 and 7 wt%), E-glass (1,2,3 and 4 wt%) and mica (2 and 4 wt%). Al7075/graphite/E-glass/mica metal matrix composite fabricated by stir-casting process, and specimens are prepared as per ASTM standards. Experiments were conducted as per L16 orthogonal array. Mechanical properties like tensile strength, hardness and microstructure of metal matrix optimized by S/N ratio and ANOVA. The regression model is executed for both responses, and the most influencing factor is determined by S/N ratio. The results indicate that the graphite filler enhances the tensile strength and hardness properties. The properties of tensile strength and hardness showed improvement for 5 wt% graphite, 4 wt% E-glass and 2 wt% mica.