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Additive Manufacturing of Aluminum Alloys and Aluminum Matrix Composites

A special issue of Materials (ISSN 1996-1944). This special issue belongs to the section "Metals and Alloys".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (20 October 2023) | Viewed by 18650

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Guest Editor
School of Materials Science and Engineering, Shanghai JiaoTong University, Shanghai 200240, China
Interests: additive manufacturing; biomimetic 3D printed structures
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Guest Editor
Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14850, USA
Interests: additive manufacturing; solid-phase processing; extreme mechanics; tribology
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Guest Editor
Department of Materials Science anf Engineering, KTH Royal Institute of Technology, SE-100 44 Stockholm, Sweden
Interests: alloy development; additive manufacturing; computational thermodynamics and kinetics

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

With significant advantages in specific strength and stiffness, aluminum alloys and aluminum matrix composites have been widely used in transportation, aerospace, and other applications. Additive manufacturing (AM) has great potential for the rapid customization and repairment of parts. At present, various additive manufacturing methods have been developed that could be generally categorized into fusion, solid-state, and binder jetting AM. The heat source in fusion AM includes laser, electron beam, and electric arc. The style of providing the supplementary material in fusion AM includes powder bed, deposited powder, and deposited wire. Solid-state AM generally includes cold spray, ultrasonic AM, and friction AM. Because of the diversity of the manufacturing methods and the unique properties of materials, it is important to have comprehensive and comparative studies on the AM of aluminum alloys and aluminum matrix composites, which could provide a guide for selecting the most suitable AM method for industrial application.

For this Special Issue, we invite our colleagues to submit papers in the areas of additive manufacturing of aluminum alloys and aluminum matrix composites. The topics of interest include but are not limited to fusion and solid-state additive manufacturing processes, advanced characterization, modeling and simulation, optimization of the manufacturing process, topological optimization, in situ observation, monitoring control, post-treatment, and hybrid manufacturing. Review papers and short communications are also of interest to this Special Issue.

Dr. Hongze Wang
Dr. Mostafa Hassani
Dr. Greta Lindwall
Guest Editors

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Keywords

  • additive manufacturing
  • aluminum alloy
  • aluminum composite
  • selective melting
  • powder deposition
  • wire deposition
  • cold spray
  • post-treatment
  • hybrid manufacturing
  • advanced characterization

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Published Papers (11 papers)

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Research

17 pages, 6040 KiB  
Article
Design of Sustainable Aluminium-Based Feedstocks for Composite Extrusion Modelling (CEM)
by José L. Aguilar-García, Eduardo Tabares Lorenzo, Antonia Jimenez-Morales and Elisa M. Ruíz-Navas
Materials 2024, 17(5), 1093; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma17051093 - 27 Feb 2024
Viewed by 925
Abstract
Additive manufacturing (AM) has become one of the most promising manufacturing techniques in recent years due to the geometric design freedom that this technology offers. The main objective of this study is to explore Composite Extrusion Modelling (CEM) with aluminium as an alternative [...] Read more.
Additive manufacturing (AM) has become one of the most promising manufacturing techniques in recent years due to the geometric design freedom that this technology offers. The main objective of this study is to explore Composite Extrusion Modelling (CEM) with aluminium as an alternative processing route for aluminium alloys. This process allows for working with pellets that are deposited directly, layer by layer. The aim of the technique is to obtain aluminium alloy samples for industrial applications with high precision, without defects, and which are processed in an environmentally friendly manner. For this purpose, an initial and preliminary study using powder injection moulding (PIM), necessary for the production of samples, has been carried out. The first challenge was the design of a sustainable aluminium-based feedstock. The powder injection moulding technique was used as a first approach to optimise the properties of the feedstock through a combination of water-soluble polymer, polyethyleneglycol (PEG), and cellulose acetate butyrate (CAB) wich produces low CO2 emissions. To do this, a microstructural characterisation was carried out and the critical solid loading and rheological properties of the feedstocks were studied. Furthermore, the debinding conditions and sintering parameters were adjusted in order to obtain samples with the required density for the following processes and with high geometrical accuracy. In the same way, the printing parameters were optimised for proper material deposition. Full article
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12 pages, 4981 KiB  
Article
Effect of Bi on the Performance of Al-Ga-In Sacrificial Anodes
by Xin Liu, Yufeng Lin, Yu Li and Nian Liu
Materials 2024, 17(4), 811; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma17040811 - 8 Feb 2024
Viewed by 822
Abstract
Cathodic protection is widely used for metal corrosion protection. To improve their performance, it is necessary and urgent to study the influence of metal oxides on the microstructure and performance of aluminum alloy sacrificial anodes. Taking an Al-Ga-In sacrificial anode as the research [...] Read more.
Cathodic protection is widely used for metal corrosion protection. To improve their performance, it is necessary and urgent to study the influence of metal oxides on the microstructure and performance of aluminum alloy sacrificial anodes. Taking an Al-Ga-In sacrificial anode as the research object, the dissolution morphology and current efficiency characteristics were studied by means of electrochemical testing and microstructural observation, and the influence of varying Pb and Bi contents on the performance of an aluminum alloy sacrificial anode was investigated. The test results reveal that: (1) The Al-Ga-In sacrificial anode with 4% Pb and 1% Bi contents exhibits the best sacrificial anode performance. (2) The inclusion of an appropriate Bi element content shifts the open-circuit potential in a negative direction and promotes activation dissolution. Conversely, excessive Bi content leads to uneven dissolution, resulting in the shedding of anode grains and greatly reducing the current efficiency. (3) During the activation dissolution of the aluminum alloy, the second phase preferentially dissolves, and the activation point destroys the oxide film, resulting in the dissolution of the exposed aluminum matrix. Consequently, the concentration of dissolved metal ions is reduced and deposited back on the surface of the anode sample, promoting the continuous dissolution of the anode. Full article
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11 pages, 2582 KiB  
Article
Influence of Aspect Ratio on the Flexural and Buckling Behavior of an Aluminium Sandwich Composite: A Numerical and Experimental Approach
by Ganesh Radhakrishnan, Daniel Breaz, Al Haitham Mohammed Sulaiman Al Hattali, Al Muntaser Nasser Al Yahyai, Al Muntaser Nasser Omar Al Riyami, Al Muatasim Dawood Al Hadhrami and Kadhavoor R. Karthikeyan
Materials 2023, 16(19), 6544; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma16196544 - 3 Oct 2023
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1363
Abstract
In the field of engineering materials, lightweight and ultra-lightweight composites are used in real time to a greater extent, with high-performance targeting for tailor-made systems in aerospace, automotive, and biomedical applications. Sandwich composites are among the most popular lightweight materials used in structural [...] Read more.
In the field of engineering materials, lightweight and ultra-lightweight composites are used in real time to a greater extent, with high-performance targeting for tailor-made systems in aerospace, automotive, and biomedical applications. Sandwich composites are among the most popular lightweight materials used in structural and vehicle-building applications. In the present investigation, one such sandwich composite laminate composed of aluminum face sheets and a high-density polyethylene core was considered to analyze sandwich composites’ flexural and buckling behavior experimentally and numerically. The influence of aspect ratios, such as length to thickness and width to thickness, on the flexural and buckling performance of sandwich composite laminates was explored in the study. Laminates with different widths, namely, 10, 12, and 15 mm, and a uniform thickness and length of 3 mm and 150 mm, respectively, were used for flexural analysis, whereas laminates with widths of 10, 12, and 15 mm and a uniform thickness and length of 3 mm and 350 mm, respectively, were used for buckling analysis. The geometrical influence of the laminates on mechanical performance was studied through performance measures such as critical bending load, flexural stiffness, inter-laminar shear stress, and critical buckling load. A significant influence of aspect ratio on the mechanical behavior of the laminates was observed using both experimental and numerical approaches. Flexural behavior was observed to be better at greater widths, namely, 15 mm, and with a minimum support span of 90 mm due to reduced spring back effects and increased bending resistance. A maximum width of 15 mm allowed for a higher buckling load capacity similar to that of bending resistance. A critical buckling load of 655.8 N seemed to be the maximum and was obtained for the highest aspect ratio, b/t = 5. The soft core and ductile metal face sheets offered combined resistance to both bending and buckling. A lower aspect ratio (span to thickness) rendered these sandwich laminates better in terms of both bending and buckling. Full article
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14 pages, 5444 KiB  
Article
Process Optimization, Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of Wire Arc Additive Manufacturing of Aluminum Alloy by Using DP-GMAW Based on Response Surface Method
by Wenbo Du, Guorui Sun, Yue Li and Chao Chen
Materials 2023, 16(16), 5716; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma16165716 - 21 Aug 2023
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1280
Abstract
Double-pulsed gas metal arc welding (DP-GMAW) is a high-performance welding method with low porosity and high frequency. Periodic shrinkage and expansion of the melt pool during DP-GMAW leads to unusual remelting, and the re-solidification behavior of the weld metal can significantly refine the [...] Read more.
Double-pulsed gas metal arc welding (DP-GMAW) is a high-performance welding method with low porosity and high frequency. Periodic shrinkage and expansion of the melt pool during DP-GMAW leads to unusual remelting, and the re-solidification behavior of the weld metal can significantly refine the weld structure. The advantages of DP-GMAW have been proven. In order to better apply DP-GMAW to aluminum alloy arc additive manufacturing, in this paper, the single-pass deposition layer parameters (double-pulse amplitude, double-pulse frequency and travel speed) of DP-GMAW will be optimized using the response surface method (RSM) with the width, height, and penetration of the deposition layer as the response values to find the superior process parameters applicable to the additive manufacturing of aluminum alloy DP-GMAW. The results show that the aluminum alloy components made by DP-GMAW additive are well formed. Due to the stirring of double-pulse arc and the abnormal remelting and solidification of metal, the microstructures in the middle and top areas show disordered growth. The average ultimate tensile strength of the transverse tensile specimen of the member can reach 175.2 MPa, and the elongation is 10.355%. Full article
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17 pages, 3371 KiB  
Article
Influence of Contour Scan Variation on Surface, Bulk and Mechanical Properties of LPBF-Processed AlSi7Mg0.6
by Theresa Buchenau, Marc Amkreutz, Hauke Bruening and Bernd Mayer
Materials 2023, 16(8), 3169; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma16083169 - 17 Apr 2023
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 1960
Abstract
Metal additive manufacturing technologies have great potential for future use in load-bearing aerospace applications, requiring a deeper understanding of mechanical performance and influencing factors. The objective of this study was to investigate the influence of contour scan variation on surface quality, tensile and [...] Read more.
Metal additive manufacturing technologies have great potential for future use in load-bearing aerospace applications, requiring a deeper understanding of mechanical performance and influencing factors. The objective of this study was to investigate the influence of contour scan variation on surface quality, tensile and fatigue strength for laser powder bed fusion samples made of AlSi7Mg0.6 material and to create high-quality as-built surfaces. The samples were produced with identical bulk and different contour scan parameters to accommodate the investigation of the impact of as-built surface texture on mechanical properties. The bulk quality was evaluated by density measurements according to Archimedes’ principle and tensile testing. The surfaces were investigated using the optical fringe projection method, and surface quality was assessed by the areal surface texture parameters Sa (arithmetic mean height) and Sk (core height, derived from material ratio curve). Fatigue life was tested at different load levels, and the endurance limit was estimated based on a logarithmic-linear relation between number of cycles and stress. All samples were found to have a relative density of more than 99%. Surface conditions distinctive in Sa and Sk were successfully created. The resulting mean values of the ultimate tensile strength σult are between 375 and 405 MPa for 7 different surface conditions. It was confirmed that the influence of contour scan variation on bulk quality is insignificant for the assessed samples. Regarding fatigue, one as-built condition was found to perform as well as surface post-processed parts and better than the as-cast material (compared to literature values). The fatigue strength at the endurance limit for 106 cycles is between 45 and 84 MPa for the three considered surface conditions. Full article
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17 pages, 7119 KiB  
Article
Effect of Fractal Ceramic Structure on Mechanical Properties of Alumina Ceramic–Aluminum Composites
by Xianjun Zeng, Qiang Jing, Jianwei Sun and Jinyong Zhang
Materials 2023, 16(6), 2296; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma16062296 - 13 Mar 2023
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1792
Abstract
In conventional ceramic–metal matrix composites, with the addition of the ceramic phase, although it can significantly improve the performance of the material in one aspect, it tends to weaken some of the excellent properties of the metal matrix as well. In order to [...] Read more.
In conventional ceramic–metal matrix composites, with the addition of the ceramic phase, although it can significantly improve the performance of the material in one aspect, it tends to weaken some of the excellent properties of the metal matrix as well. In order to meet the high toughness and high strength requirements of composites for practical production applications, researchers have searched for possible reinforcing structures from nature. They found that fractal structures, which are widely found in nature, have the potential to improve the mechanical properties of materials. However, it is often not feasible to manufacture these geometric structures using conventional processes. In this study, alumina ceramic fractal structures were prepared by 3D printing technology, and aluminum composites containing fractal ceramic structures were fabricated by spark plasma sintering technology. We have studied the effect of the fractal structure of alumina ceramics on the mechanical properties of composites. The compression strength of samples was measured by a universal testing machine and the torsional properties of samples were measured by a torsional modulus meter. The results show that a fractal structure improves the compressive strength of aluminum/alumina ceramic composites by 10.97% and the torsional properties by 17.45%. The results of the study will provide a new method for improving the mechanical properties of materials. Full article
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9 pages, 3654 KiB  
Article
Modification of Iron-Rich Phase in Al-7Si-3Fe Alloy by Mechanical Vibration during Solidification
by Cuicui Sun, Suqing Zhang, Jixue Zhou, Jianhua Wu, Xinfang Zhang and Xitao Wang
Materials 2023, 16(5), 1963; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma16051963 - 27 Feb 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1308
Abstract
The plate-like iron-rich intermetallic phases in recycled aluminum alloys significantly deteriorate the mechanical properties. In this paper, the effects of mechanical vibration on the microstructure and properties of the Al-7Si-3Fe alloy were systematically investigated. Simultaneously, the modification mechanism of the iron-rich phase was [...] Read more.
The plate-like iron-rich intermetallic phases in recycled aluminum alloys significantly deteriorate the mechanical properties. In this paper, the effects of mechanical vibration on the microstructure and properties of the Al-7Si-3Fe alloy were systematically investigated. Simultaneously, the modification mechanism of the iron-rich phase was also discussed. The results indicated that the mechanical vibration was effective in refining the α-Al phase and modifying the iron-rich phase during solidification. The forcing convection and a high heat transfer inside the melt to the mold interface caused by mechanical vibration inhibited the quasi-peritectic reaction: L + α-Al8Fe2Si → (Al) + β-Al5FeSi and eutectic reaction: L → (Al) + β-Al5FeSi + Si. Thus, the plate-like β-Al5FeSi phases in traditional gravity-casting were replaced by the polygonal bulk-like α-Al8Fe2Si. As a result, the ultimate tensile strength and elongation were increased to 220 MPa and 2.6%, respectively. Full article
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11 pages, 2556 KiB  
Article
Experimental and Numerical Study on the Influence of Stress Concentration on the Flexural Stability of an Aluminium Hollow Tube
by Ganesh Radhakrishnan, Daniel Breaz, Sami Sulaiman Al Khusaibi, Amjad Juma Al Subaihi, Al Azhar Zahir Al Ismaili, AlSalt Malik AlMaani and Kadhavoor R. Karthikeyan
Materials 2023, 16(4), 1492; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma16041492 - 10 Feb 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1366
Abstract
In recent times, particularly in applications used to build various structures for construction purposes or machines, solid sections have been gradually replaced by hollow sections due to their attractive features such as being light weight and having high specific strength. In the present [...] Read more.
In recent times, particularly in applications used to build various structures for construction purposes or machines, solid sections have been gradually replaced by hollow sections due to their attractive features such as being light weight and having high specific strength. In the present investigation, an attempt was made to investigate, in detail, the flexural capability of aluminium hollow tubes (AHTs) with square cross-sections. The objective of the investigation was to study the influence of stress concentration on the flexural behaviour of the hollow tube. The stress concentration factor considered in this investigation was holes of various cross-sections and quantities. Three-point bending tests with concentrated loads were conducted on specimens of a hollow tube with different stress concentrations such as circular holes, multiple circular holes, square holes and perforations. The load was applied manually during the bending test with appropriate increments. The bending test was carried out on specimens with support spans of 110, 130, 170 and 200 mm. The output measures of the study were maximum bending load, deflection and flexural stiffness. The output measures were analysed in detail in order to recommend the type and nature of stress concentration in a hollow tube applied to structural applications to ensure the safest workability. The flexural stability of the tube was analysed by experimental and numerical procedures, and the results were validated using an analytical approach. It was found that the results of all the approaches complement each other with a low significance of error. AHTs with a circular hole, multiple circular holes and perforations were observed to have better flexural stability than other AHTs such as AHTs with square hole and plain AHTs. Full article
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13 pages, 3397 KiB  
Article
Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of Hypereutectic Al-High Si Alloys up to 70 wt.% Si-Content Produced from Pre-Alloyed and Blended Powder via Laser Powder Bed Fusion
by Jan Henning Risse, Matthias Trempa, Florian Huber, Heinz Werner Höppel, Dominic Bartels, Michael Schmidt, Christian Reimann and Jochen Friedrich
Materials 2023, 16(2), 657; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma16020657 - 10 Jan 2023
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2189
Abstract
Hypereutectic Al-high Si alloys are of immense interest for applications in the automotive, space or electronic industries, due their low weight, low thermal expansion, and excellent mechanical and tribological properties. Additionally, their production by laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) technology provides high flexibility [...] Read more.
Hypereutectic Al-high Si alloys are of immense interest for applications in the automotive, space or electronic industries, due their low weight, low thermal expansion, and excellent mechanical and tribological properties. Additionally, their production by laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) technology provides high flexibility in geometrical design and alloy composition. Since, most of the alloy properties could be improved by increasing the Si content, there is much interest in discovering the maximum that could be realized in LBPF Al-high Si alloys, without the appearance of any material failure. For this reason, in this work the production of Al-high Si alloys with extremely high silicon content of up to 70 wt.% was fundamentally investigated with respect to microstructure and mechanical properties. Highly dense (99.3%) and crack-free AlSi50 samples (5 × 5 × 5 mm3), with excellent hardness (225 HV5) and compressive strength (742 MPa), were successfully produced. Further, for the first time, AlSi70 LBPF samples of high density (98.8%) without cracks were demonstrated, using moderate scanning velocities. Simultaneously, the hardness and the compressive strength in the AlSi70 alloys were significantly improved to 350 HV5 and 935 MPa, as a result of the formation of a continuous Si network in the microstructure of the alloy. With respect to the powder source, it was found that the application of powder blends resulted in similar alloy properties as if pre-alloyed powders were used, enabling higher flexibility in prospective application-oriented alloy development. Full article
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21 pages, 11848 KiB  
Article
Influence of the AlSi7Mg0.6 Aluminium Alloy Powder Reuse on the Quality and Mechanical Properties of LPBF Samples
by Irina Smolina, Konrad Gruber, Andrzej Pawlak, Grzegorz Ziółkowski, Emilia Grochowska, Daniela Schob, Karol Kobiela, Robert Roszak, Matthias Ziegenhorn and Tomasz Kurzynowski
Materials 2022, 15(14), 5019; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma15145019 - 19 Jul 2022
Cited by 11 | Viewed by 2354
Abstract
Additive manufacturing (AM) is dynamically developing and finding applications in different industries. The quality of input material is a part of the process and of the final product quality. That is why understanding the influence of powder reuse on the properties of bulk [...] Read more.
Additive manufacturing (AM) is dynamically developing and finding applications in different industries. The quality of input material is a part of the process and of the final product quality. That is why understanding the influence of powder reuse on the properties of bulk specimens is crucial for ensuring the repeatable AM process chain. The presented study investigated the possibility of continuous reuse of AlSi7Mg0.6 powder in the laser powder bed fusion process (LPBF). To date, there is no study of AlSi7Mg0.6 powder reuse in the LPBF process to be found in the literature. This study aims to respond to this gap. The five batches of AlSi7Mg0.6 powder and five bulk LPBF samples series were characterised using different techniques. The following characteristics of powders were analysed: the powder size distribution (PSD), the morphology (scanning electron microscopy—SEM), the flowability (rotating drum analysis), and laser light absorption (spectrophotometry). Bulk samples were characterised for microstructure (SEM), chemical composition (X-ray fluorescence spectrometry—XRF), porosity (computed tomography—CT) and mechanical properties (tensile, hardness). The powder was reused in subsequent processes without adding (recycling/rejuvenation) virgin powder (collective ageing powder reuse strategy). All tested powders (powders P0–P4) and bulk samples (series S0–S3) show repeatable properties, with changes observed within error limits. Samples manufactured within the fifth reuse cycle (series S4) showed some mean value changes of measured characteristics indicating initial degradation. However, these changes also mostly fit within error limits. Therefore, the collective ageing powder reuse strategy is considered to give repeatable LPBF process results and is recommended for the AlSi7Mg0.6 alloy within at least five consecutive LPBF processes. Full article
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19 pages, 9842 KiB  
Article
Numerical Simulation on Thermal Stresses and Solidification Microstructure for Making Fiber-Reinforced Aluminum Matrix Composites
by Chenyang Xing, Reihaneh Etemadi, Krishna M. Pillai, Qian Wang and Bo Wang
Materials 2022, 15(12), 4166; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma15124166 - 12 Jun 2022
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1803
Abstract
The fabrication of fiber-reinforced metal matrix composites (MMCs) mainly consists of two stages: infiltration and solidification, which have a significant influence on the properties of MMCs. The present study is primarily focused on the simulation of the solidification process and the effect of [...] Read more.
The fabrication of fiber-reinforced metal matrix composites (MMCs) mainly consists of two stages: infiltration and solidification, which have a significant influence on the properties of MMCs. The present study is primarily focused on the simulation of the solidification process and the effect of the active cooling of fibers with and without nickel coating for making the continuous carbon fiber-reinforced aluminum matrix composites. The thermomechanical finite element model was established to investigate the effects of different cooling conditions on the temperature profile and thermal stress distributions based on the simplified physical model. The predicted results of the temperature distribution agree well with the results of the references. Additionally, a three-dimensional cellular automata (CA) finite element (FE) model is used to simulate the microstructure evolution of the solidification process by using ProCAST software. The results show that adding a nickel coating can make the heat flux smaller in the melt, which is favorable for preventing debonding at the coating/fiber and alloy interface and obtaining a finer microstructure. In the presence of the nickel coating, the number of grains increases significantly, and the average grain size decreases, which can improve the properties of the resultant composite materials. Meanwhile, the predicting results also show that the interfaces of fiber–coating, fiber–melt, and coating–melt experience higher temperature gradients and thermal stresses. These results will lead to the phenomenon of stress concentration and interface failure. Thus, it was demonstrated that these simulation methods could be helpful for studying the solidification of fiber-reinforced MMCs and reducing the number of trial-and-error experiments. Full article
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