In this project, analytical and experimental research will be conducted on centrifugal infiltration of carbon fiber preforms by molten aluminum alloys to form tubes of aluminum-carbon fiber composites. Modeling will be done to derive the optimum surface treatment of fiber preform and infiltration conditions. A few selected experiments will be conducted to centrifugally infiltrate carbon fiber preforms with a selected aluminum alloy and the formed composite tubes will be examined using optical and electron microscopy to check fiber distribution, porosity and bonding. The variables studied will include preform, surface treatment and temperature. Limited testing of tubular composites will be conducted to demonstrate the integrity and advantageous properties of these structures. It has already been demonstrated that fiber preforms can be successfully encapsulated and partially infiltrated by centrifuging molten magnesium alloys and this knowledge base will be applied to this project. This research could lead to an inexpensive process to produce aluminum-carbon fiber composite tubes of large lengths and diameters.
