3D printed aluminum matrix composites with well-defined ordered structures of shear-induced aligned carbon fibers

Abstract

Carbon fiber reinforced aluminum composites with ordered architectures of shear-induced aligned carbon fibers were fabricated by 3D printing. The microstructures of the printed and sintered samples and mechanical properties of the composites were investigated. Carbon fibers and aluminum powder were bonded together with resin. The spatial arrangement of the carbon fibers was fixed in the aluminum matrix by shear-induced alignment in the 3D printing process. As a result, the elongation of the composites with a parallel arrangement of aligned fibers and the impact toughness of the composites with an orthogonal arrangement were 0.82% and 0.41 ​J/cm², respectively, about 0.4 and 0.8 times higher than that of the random arrangement.