Statistical Analysis and Optimization of Friction Stir Additive Manufacturing Process Variables for Aluminum Silicon Carbide Nanocomposite Using the Response Surface Method

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Department of Mechanical Engineering, Shahid Rajaee Teacher Training University, Tehran, Iran

2 Associate Prof., Department of Mechanical Engineering, Shahid Rajaee Teacher Training University, Tehran, Iran

3 Assistant Prof., Department of Mechanical Engineering, Shahid Rajaee Teacher Training University, Tehran, IranIran

10.22034/ijme.2024.431334.1888

Abstract

In recent years, additive manufacturing has gained significant importance in the field of production. Most of the additive manufacturing technologies for metals involve melting and solidification processes, leading to metallurgical challenges. The friction stir additive manufacturing process is a novel solid-state method that does not face the common metallurgical challenges associated with the traditional melting methods. This process can be used for the production of aluminum-silicon carbide nanocomposites that find many applications in industries such as military, aerospace, automotive, etc. The primary objective of this research is to experimentally analyze the effect of tool rotational speed, tool traverse speed, and number of passes in friction stir additive manufacturing on the microhardness and wear amount of aluminum-silicon carbide nanocomposite manufactured by this method. To this end, the response surface method and Minitab software were used for experimental design, statistical analysis, and optimization of the parameters. Multi-objective optimization settings were selected to increase microhardness and reduce wear. The combinations of optimal values of the parameters were determined to achieve the optimization goals, and the results were validated. The optimization result with 0.87 desirability is obtained with a tool rotational speed of 1000 rpm, a tool traverse speed of 50 mm/min, and one pass. The predicted optimal responses of 104 Vickers for microhardness and 0.013 gr for wear had a small percentage of error compared to the experimental results.

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