Author(s)

V.S. Aigbodion, S.B. Hassan, E.T. Dauda, R.A. Mohammed

Department of Metallurgical and Materials Engineering,Ahmadu Bello University, Samaru, Zaria, Nigeria.

The thermal ageing behaviour model of Al-Cu-Mg/Bagasse ash particulate composites with 2- 10wt% bagasse ash particles produced by double stir-casting method was developed in terms of weight fraction of bagasse ash, ageing temperature and time. Hardness values measurement was used in determining the ageing behaviour, after solution and age-hardened heat-treatment. The experimental results demonstrate that the bagasse ash was the major parameter in the ageing behaviour, followed by ageing temperature. The hardness values decreased as the ageing time increases, interaction of weight of bagasse ash, ageing time and ageing temperature. Moreover, the optimal combination of the testing parameters could be predicted. The predicted hardness values were found to lie close to that of the experimentally observed ones. The developed mathematical model can be employed for optimization of the process parameters of the ageing behaviour of Al-Cu-Mg/Bagasse ash particulate composites with respect to hardness values.

Al-Cu-Mg alloy, Ageing temperature and time, Analysis of variance, Bagasse Ashand Linear regression

V. Aigbodion, S. Hassan, E. Dauda and R. Mohammed, "The Development of Mathematical Model for the Prediction of Ageing Behaviour for Al-Cu-Mg/Bagasse Ash Particulate Composites," Journal of Minerals and Materials Characterization and Engineering, Vol. 9 No. 10, 2010, pp. 907-917. doi: 10.4236/jmmce.2010.910066.