Mechanical properties and corrosion behavior of a friction stir processed magnesium alloy composite AZ31B–SiC

The optimization of friction stir processing (FSP) parameters of magnesium alloy composite (AZ31B–SiC) based on orthogonal test was researched. The results show that the distribution of silicon carbide (SiC) particles, microhardness, tensile property, and fracture mode are greatly affected by the change in process parameters. The results show that the composite was made with a rotating speed of 750 rev·min−1, a traversing speed of 30 mm·min−1, and a processing time of three; the distribution of SiC particles is even, the microhardness difference of composite is small, the tensile property is better, and the ductile fracture is the main fracture mode. Besides, the existence of SiC and the number of FSP have a certain influence on the corrosion performance of the magnesium alloy composite (AZ31B–SiC), and the corrosion resistance of the FSP sample is obviously better than that of the AZ31B magnesium alloy.