SiC/Cu Composite Prepared by Spontaneous Infiltration of Copper Alloy into Porous SiC Ceramic

A porous SiC ceramic reinforced copper-matrix composite was fabricated by spontaneous infiltration of molten Cu-24at%Si alloy into the reinforcement. The influence of process parameters on the infiltration behavior and microstructure of the as-prepared SiC/Cu composite investigations showed that infiltration temperature had an important influence on the infiltration behavior, and higher infiltration temperature which decreased the viscosity of molten Cu-24Si was beneficial to the penetration. Besides, the degree of infiltration increased with the increase of dwelling time at 1600°C. SiC particles were bonded together by sintering additives to form the porous reinforcement, which can be maintained after spontaneous infiltration. The interfacial bond between SiC and Cu-24Si alloy was tight, and no obvious interfacial reaction layer was observed in the as-prepared composite.