Fabrication of AZ91D/SiCp composites by mechanical milling of magnesium alloy chips and spark plasma sintering in a semi-solid regime

In the present study, the capability of spark plasma sintering (SPS) in a semi-solid regime to produce AZ91D/SiCp composites, prepared by mechanical milling (MM), was investigated. An SPS process was used to densify AZ91D/SiCp composite powders by heating them to a semi-solid temperature of 497°C or 516°C, at a heating rate, holding time and pressure of 50 °C/min, 1 min and 40 MPa, respectively. In preparing the requisite powders, MM was used as...