Optimization of Process Parameters of Hot Consolidated Steel Matrix Composites by Taguchi Method

Abstract

Steel matrix composites reinforced with different volume content of TiB2 were fabricated by a powder metallurgy-assisted hot consolidation method. The impact of sintering temperature, dwell time, and reinforcement content on the density and hardness of the composite was studied systematically using the Taguchi method. The significance of the controlling parameters was analyzed by the signal-to--noise ratio and the analysis of variance. The most influential controlling parameter for the relative density was found to be the temperature, followed by reinforcement content and time. The optimal combination was achieved at a sintering temperature of 1100 degrees C, a sintering time of 20 min, and 2 vol.% TiB2 content. Furthermore, the reinforcement content was found to be the most influential factor for improvement of the hardness, followed by temperature and time. These findings can provide a practical guidance for the optimization of the processing effective parameters for the design and fabrication of steel-based composites with the required properties.