On the Hardness and Elastic Modulus of Phases in SiC-Reinforced Al Composite: Role of La and Ce Addition

The use of silicon carbide particles (SiCp) as reinforcement in aluminium (Al)-based composites (Al/SiCp) can offer high hardness and high stiffness. The rare-earth elements like lanthanum (La) and cerium (Ce) and transition metals like nickel (Ni) and copper (Cu) were added into the matrix to form intermetallic phases; this is one way to improve the mechanical property of the composite at elevated temperatures. The α-Al(15)(Fe,Mn)(3)Si(2), Al(20)(La,Ce)Ti(2), and Al(11)(La,Ce)(3), π-Al(8)FeMg(3)Si(6) phases are formed. Nanoindentation was employed to measure the hardness and elastic modulus of the phases formed in the composite alloys. The rule of mixture was used to predict the modulus of the matrix alloys. The Halpin–Tsai model was applied to calculate the elastic modulus of the particle-reinforced composites. The transition metals (Ni and Cu) and rare-earth elements (La and Ce) determined a 5–15% increase of the elastic modulus of the matrix alloy. The SiC particles increased the elastic modulus of the matrix alloy by 10–15% in composite materials.