An experimental study on the deformation behaviour and fracture mode of recycled aluminium alloy AA6061-reinforced alumina oxide undergoing high-velocity impact

The anisotropic behaviour and the damage evolution of recycled aluminium alloy-reinforced alumina oxide are investigated in this paper using Taylor impact test. The test is performed at various impact velocity ranging from 190 to 360 m/s by firing a cylindrical projectile towards anvil target. The deformation behaviour and the fracture modes are analysed using the digitized footprint of the deformed specimens. The damage initiation and the progression are observed around the impact surface and the surface 0.5 cm from the impact area using the scanning electron microscope. The deformed specimens showed several ductile fracture modes of mushrooming, tensile splitting and petalling. The critical impact velocity is defined below 280 m/s. The specimens showed a strong strain-rate dependency due to the damage evolution that is driven by severe localized plastic-strain deformation. The scanning electron microscope analysis showed the damage mechanism progress via voids initiation, growth and coalescence in the material. The micrograph within the footprint surface shows the presence of alumina oxide particles within the specimen. The microstructure analysis shows a significant refinement of the specimen particle at the surface located 0.5 cm above the impact area. ImageJ software is adopted in this work to measure the average size of voids within this surface. Non-symmetrical (ellipse-shaped) footprint around the footprints showed plastic anisotropic behaviour. The results in this paper provide a better understanding of the deformation behaviour of recycled materials subjected to dynamic loading. This information on mechanical response is crucial before any potential application can be established to substitute the primary sources.