A Statistical Approach for Overcut and Burr Minimization During Drilling of Stir-Casted MgO Reinforced Aluminium Composite

Aluminium hybrid composites are a new generation of metal matrix composites that have the potentials of satisfying the recent demands of advanced engineering applications. These demands are met due to improved mechanical properties, amenability to conventional processing technique and possibility of reducing production cost of aluminium hybrid composites. This paper attempts to develop and characterize the aluminium matrix composite using magnesium as reinforcement and aluminium (5052) as matrix. The development of aluminium metal matrix composites (MMC) reinforced with 10 wt% MgO was accomplished by stir casting process. The surface morphology of the developed composite was studied using scanning electron microscope (SEM) equipped with energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX). X-ray diffraction (XRD) was also carried out to study the phase, texture and grain boundary conditions. Further, response surface methodology was employed to study the effect of drill diameter, speed and depth of cut on output parameters viz. burr height and overcut during the drilling of developed aluminium composite. The result inferred the optimal combination of input parameters for achieving minimum burr height and minimum overcut.