Thermal cycling of silicon carbide whisker reinforced ZL101A composite

The effects of thermal cycling on the microstructure and properties of the composite were studied. The test results show that with increasing times of the thermal cycling between 15°C and 300°C, the tensile strength of the composite greatly decreases, and the hardness of the composite slightly decreases. It was found by TEM that some new phases exist at the interface after the thermal cycling treatment by 1000 times, and it is considered that this kind of interfacial reaction made the interface bonding strength decreased. The tensile fracture surface of the SiCw/ZL101A composite was observed by SEM, and it was found that there are more pull-out whiskers on the fracture surface of the thermal cycling treatment composite, and this result proves that the interface bonding in the SiCw/ZL101A composite is weakened by the thermal cycling treatment.