Effect of Al₂O_3np on the Properties and Microstructure of B₄C_p/Al Composites

Abstract

Aluminum-matrix boron carbide (B₄C_p/Al) is a kind of neutron absorbing material widely used in nuclear spent fuel storage. In order to improve the tensile property of B₄C_p/Al composites, a new type of nano-Al₂O₃ particle (Al₂O_3np) reinforced B₄C_p/Al + Al₂O_3np composites were prepared by powder metallurgy method. The Monte Carlo particle transport program (MCNP) was used to determine the influence of Al₂O_3np on the thermal neutron absorptivity of composites. The universal material testing machine and scanning electron microscope (SEM) were used to study the mechanical properties, microstructure and fracture morphology of B₄C_p/Al composites. The results indicated that the neutron absorption properties of B₄C_p/Al composites were not affected by the addition of nano-Al₂O₃ particles in the range of 1 wt%–15 wt%. The addition of Al₂O_3np can obviously reduce the grain size of B₄C_p/Al matrix metals thus improve the tensile strength of the composites. The addition threshold of Al₂O_3np is about 2.5 wt%. Both B₄C_p and Al₂O_3np change the fracture characteristics of the composites from toughness to brittleness, and the latter is more important.

Keywords

B₄C_p/Al composites / nano-Al₂O₃ particles / properties / microstructure

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