Superior Wear Resistance of Al-Si Alloy Composites Fabricated via Cold Spraying

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Reza Jafari, reza.jafari@tuni.fi, Tampere University; Doctoral researcher Eero Helmi, eero.helmi@tuni.fi, Tampere University; Post-doctoral researcher Milad Zohrevand ,milad.zohrevand@tuni.fi, Tampere University; Senior Scientist Mari Honkanen, mari.honkanen@tuni.fi, Tampere Microscopy Center;
Prof. Minnamari Vippola, minnamari.vippola@tuni.fi, Tampere University; Associate Professor Heli Koivuluoto, heli.koivuluoto@tuni.fi, Tampere University;

https://doi.org/10.53192/ITSC2026535

Al–Si alloys have baseline wear resistance owing to their Si-rich microstructure but insufficient in severe tribological conditions. Hard tungsten-carbide (WC) reinforcement can enhance durability, however melting-based routes like stir casting suffer poor wettability and harmful interfacial reactions. Here, WC is embedded into the Al–Si matrix by solid-state cold spraying to overcome these limits. This method eliminates the drawbacks of melting, ensuring better interfacial bonding and structural integrity. Composites were produced with 10 and 50 vol.% WC within the starting feedstock. Both cases showed excellent retention of reinforcement particles within composite (+150 % compared to reinforcement content within the feedstock). The resulting composites demonstrated significantly improved wear resistance, with the best-performing composition achieving up to 20 times lower wear rates under dry sliding conditions. The role of reinforcement content in evolution of microstructure and tribological behavior was examined using FESEM/EDS/EBSD. These analyses revealed that grain refinement and strong interfacial bonding were critical to the enhanced wear performance. Our study highlights the potential of composite fabrication via cold spray technology in advancing Al-Si alloys applications, particularly where wear resistance holds a critical role.

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Erscheinungsdatum

March 2026

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