In the present work, ball milling followed by conventional and microwave sintering was used to develop AA7075/SiC/ZrC hybrid composites. Microwave sintering was performed on the optimized volume fractioned AA7075/SiC/ZrC hybrid composite. Addition of ZrC particles to the optimized AA7075/SiC composite improved performance up to 2% ZrC level. The microwave sintered S8Z2 (8% SiC + 2% ZrC) composite exhibited ultimate tensile and compressive strengths of 461 and 510 MPa, respectively, and the same composite sintered through a conventional technique showed maximum tensile and compression strengths of 375 and 420 MPa. Microwave sintered composites with an average grain size of 4.99 µm did not lead to secondary phase generation. A Conventionally sintered composite with an average grain size of 8.59 µm has been shown to have an Al₃Zr secondary phase. Restricting grain growth due to quick sintering times, low temperatures, and rapid heating rates promoted grain boundary and dislocation strengthening mechanisms. The generation of the Al₃Zr secondary phase degraded the mechanical properties of the conventionally sintered composite. Microwave sintered composites had low pore levels due to uniform heat distribution and a small allowance for the thermal mismatch. A conventionally sintered S8Z2 composite showed a pore level of 2.89%, while a microwave sintered composite showed a pore level of 1.39%, representing densification through rapid diffusion in microwave processing. Overall, the microwave sintered optimized hybrid composite showed an enhancement of 184.5% and 118% in tensile and compression strengths when compared to the base alloy material.

Graphical Abstract

中文翻译：

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通过微波辅助粉末冶金技术增强 AA7075/SiC/ZrC 杂化复合材料的性能

在目前的工作中，先采用球磨，然后进行常规烧结和微波烧结来开发 AA7075/SiC/ZrC 混合复合材料。对优化的体积分数 AA7075/SiC/ZrC 混合复合材料进行微波烧结。在优化的 AA7075/SiC 复合材料中添加 ZrC 颗粒可将性能提高至 2% ZrC 水平。微波烧结S8Z2（8% SiC + 2% ZrC）复合材料的极限拉伸和压缩强度分别为461和510 MPa，而通过传统技术烧结的相同复合材料的最大拉伸和压缩强度分别为375和420 MPa。平均晶粒尺寸为 4.99 µm 的微波烧结复合材料不会导致第二相生成。平均晶粒尺寸为 8.59 µm 的常规烧结复合材料已显示出具有 Al ₃ Zr 第二相。由于快速烧结时间、低温和快速加热速率而限制晶粒生长，促进了晶界和位错强化机制。 Al ₃ Zr第二相的产生降低了传统烧结复合材料的机械性能。由于热量分布均匀且热失配余量小，微波烧结复合材料的孔隙水平较低。传统烧结的 S8Z2 复合材料的孔隙率为 2.89%，而微波烧结复合材料的孔隙率为 1.39%，这表明微波加工中通过快速扩散实现致密化。总体而言，与基础合金材料相比，微波烧结优化的混合复合材料的拉伸强度和压缩强度分别提高了 184.5% 和 118%。

图形概要