MMC Geblaat

MR40CH10-Mortensen ARI 24 May 2010 15:28
ANNUAL
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Annu. Rev. Mater. Res. 2010. 40:243–70 Key Words

First published online as a Review in Advance on fiber-reinforced composites, particle-reinforced composites, layered
March 26, 2010
materials, strength, ductility, stiffness
The Annual Review of Materials Research is online at
matsci.annualreviews.org Abstract
This article’s doi: In metal matrix composites, a metal is combined with another, often non-
10.1146/annurev-matsci-070909-104511
metallic, phase to produce a novel material having attractive engineering
Copyright c 2010 by Annual Reviews. attributes of its own. A subject of much research in the 1980s and 1990s, this
All rights reserved
class of materials has, in the past decade, increased significantly in variety.
1531-7331/10/0804-0243$20.00 Copper matrix composites, layered composites, high-conductivity compos-
ites, nanoscale composites, microcellular metals, and bio-derived composites
have been added to a palette that, ten years ago, mostly comprised ceramic
fiber– or particle-reinforced light metals together with some well-established
engineering materials, such as WC-Co cermets. At the same time, research
on composites such as particle-reinforced aluminum, aided by novel tech-
niques such as large-cell 3-D finite element simulation or computed X-ray
microtomography, has served as a potent vehicle for the elucidation of the
mechanics of high-contrast two-phase elastoplastic materials, with implica-
tions that range well beyond metal matrix composites.
243
INTRODUCTION
Metals and alloys are generally produced and shaped in bulk form but can also be intimately com-
MMC: metal matrix bined with another material that serves to improve their performance: The resulting material is a
composite metal matrix composite (MMC). This class of composites encompasses many different materials
that can be distinguished according to their base metal (e.g., aluminum, copper, titanium); ac-
cording to the other, reinforcement, phase (e.g., fibers, particles, whiskers); or according to their
manufacturing process (e.g., powder metallurgy, diffusion bonding, infiltration, stir casting).
Bulk metals and alloys are economical high-performance materials. Why, then, combine these
with another phase, as doing so will always add cost and cause complications (in recycling, notably)?
Among the stronger drivers of MMC technology are the following basic facts.
The first is that the composite approach to materials design makes it possible to go beyond
boundaries drawn in property space by basic attributes of the main materials classes. A classical
example is the specific modulus of metals, defined as elastic modulus E divided by density ρ:
(E/ρ). This parameter is a measure of the performance, in weight-critical deformation-limited

structural applications, of linear elastic components subjected to uniaxial stress. Now, the main
engineering metals and alloys have roughly the same (E/ρ) ≈ 26 MJ kg−1 . So essentially the only
way to exceed this limit in a metallic material is to replace a significant fraction of the metal atoms
with a phase made of atoms that are (a) situated in the top rows of Mendeleev’s periodic table and
(b) strongly bonded to one another. Examples are ceramics such as Al2 O3 , B4 C, or SiC and certain
variants of carbon (e.g., high-modulus carbon fibers or diamond). Figure 1 shows another example
of property boundary transgression made possible by MMC technology.
The second reason why MMCs are interesting has to do with processing: Making a composite
is the only approach by which a significant volume fraction of oxide or carbide can be introduced
into some important metals. Iron is very frequently—and easily—reinforced with a wide array
of carbides, nitrides, or (more rarely) oxides because carbon, nitrogen, and oxygen are soluble
in this molten metal. Liquid aluminum, magnesium, and copper, in contrast, have essentially
no solubility for carbon. Therefore, the only way to introduce a carbide into these metals is by
making a composite; the same holds for aluminum with oxides or nitrides. In other words, MMC
technology holds the key, for aluminum, magnesium, or copper, to much of the wide spectrum of
microstructures and properties available with iron.
A third reason for interest in MMCs has little to do with metals: Some phases, ceramics in
particular, have far better properties in finely divided form. Notably, micrometer-sized ceramic
fibers or ceramic particles can be much stronger than bulk ceramics. Additionally, small, single-
crystalline ceramic particles can be excellent conductors of heat. Carbon, too, can in finely divided
form be very strong, stiff, and a good conductor of heat (as diamond, for example). Taking advan-
tage of this in macroscopic materials therefore calls for the incorporation of such finely divided
nonmetallic phases (as fibers, platelets, films, or particles) within a composite material, the ma-
trix of which can advantageously be made of metal. Indeed, metals conduct better, are stronger,
tougher, and more environmentally resistant than polymers—and of course are much tougher
than ceramics.
These basic considerations have driven sustained research on MMCs, initiated several decades
ago by pioneering research such as the important contributions of Anthony Kelly and coworkers
(e.g., 6). Research on the subject reached a high level of intensity in the late 1980s and early 1990s
and continues today, albeit in a wider array of more distinct directions and hence less visibly.
MMCs have also entered the “real world” of engineering applications, in several forms ranging
from a few well-established engineering materials (such as WC-Co hard metal) to newer niche
materials; References 1–3 give recent surveys.
244 Mortensen · Llorca

Metals
Ceramics
Diamond composites (Cu matrix, Al matrix, and Ag matrix)
20
Diamond
Thermal conductivity at room temperature (W cm–1 K–1)
18
16
0.2 mm
14
12
cBN
cB Area of interest
10
8
6
Cu Ag
SiC
4
Al
2 Al-SiC and Cu-Mo
0
0 Si 5 GaAs 10 15 20 25
Coefficient of thermal expansion at room temperature (ppm K–1)
Figure 1
Electronic substrates hold electronic circuits in place and keep them cool. Electronic substrate materials
must therefore conduct heat well and have a coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) close to that of
semiconductors used in electronic circuitry, in the range from roughly 3 ppm K−1 to 7 ppm K−1 . Some
metals (e.g., copper or silver) and some ceramics (e.g., SiC or selected forms of carbon) are good conductors
of heat; however, their CTE falls on either side of the desired range. Because the CTE of metals tends to be
too high and that of ceramics too low, a mixture of the two provides the ideal material for this application—
one of the success stories of MMC technology (1–4). Aluminum/SiC composites produced by infiltration are
now well-established high-performance composites for electronic substrate applications; their property
range is indicated in the figure. Carbon materials, however, offer far higher conductivities than does SiC.
Over the past decade the price of synthetic diamond, an excellent conductor of heat, has decreased to levels
that make diamond particles viable engineering materials. A new generation of MMCs combining
aluminum, copper, or silver matrices with diamond particles and featuring an engineered interface has thus
emerged, with appropriate CTE values and thermal conductivities approaching 1000 W m−1 K−1 , i.e., 2.5
times that of pure copper. Figure adapted from recent work by L. Weber and R. Tavangar at EPFL
(Lausanne, Switzerland) (5).
Thus, the topic of MMCs is wide-ranging; recent reviews of the subject are in References 2 and
7. If we look at progress accomplished during this early twenty-first century, what first strikes the
eye is that the subject has “defocused” significantly to become both broader and less visible as a
subtopic in materials science and engineering. There are fewer conferences specifically devoted to
MMCs, but a rapid look at data from bibliometric search engines indicates that the yearly number
of articles published on the subject has remained roughly steady during this past decade.
The subject has diversified in two directions. The first direction is driven by the invention of
interesting new MMCs; microcellular metals (composites too) and bulk metallic glass composites
www.annualreviews.org • Metal Matrix Composites 245

are examples. The other direction has grown out of the realization that these materials serve as
wonderful vehicles for the exploration of the physics or the micromechanics of nonlinear multi-
phase materials in general. MMCs have thus been the subject of much recent research that has
viewed these as near-ideal model materials, a role that MMCs have served well for many years
[going back to one of the earliest papers on the subject (8)].
We give in what follows a glimpse at some selected areas of recent progress in both of these two
directions. The next section describes new materials and advances in processing, whereas recent
progress in micromechanics driven by MMC research is presented in the section entitled Mech-
anisms of Deformation and Fracture. Discussion of MMC research can also be found elsewhere
in this volume (9).
PROCESSING AND MATERIALS

The past ten years have seen a significant enlargement in the palette of reinforcements that are
combined with metal. New particles have appeared, starting with fine-scale submicrometer (or
nano-) particles. These tend to be intrinsically strong while also bringing Orowan hardening
or grain refinement to the metallic matrix. The difficulty with nanosized reinforcements is in
processing: Nanoparticles are much harder to incorporate or to distribute uniformly within metal.
Capillary forces, often important in MMC processing, are much higher with nanoparticles (because
these forces scale with the inverse of the reinforcement size) (10). The same holds for carbon
nanofibers or carbon nanotubes, another newer reinforcement with potential for the reinforcement
of metals.
Despite the challenges posed in processing, some laboratories and companies have managed to
successfully incorporate nanoparticles or nanofibers into metal and to produce engineering-quality
(i.e., nonporous) MMCs with attractive properties by pressure infiltration (11, 12), by stir casting
(13), by electrodeposition (14), or by powder metallurgy (15). Another, relatively well-established,
pathway to the production of nanoscale MMC structures is by attrition, generally involving ball
milling followed by consolidation. Reference 16 notably reports a cryomilled aluminum-based
MMC having a partly nanoscale microstructure that exhibits, after extrusion and annealing, a
compressive yield stress above 1 GPa along the extrusion direction. Other methods that have
been recently developed to this end are more chemical in nature; these are in situ methods,
exemplified by internal oxidation (17). Here, nanoscale reinforcements are created by internal
reaction between precursor materials that are finely combined within the composite; Reference
18 gives a recent review of in situ MMC processing.
A few laboratories have explored variations in the intrinsic microstructural quality, rather than
the scale, of the reinforcement, questioning the wisdom of using low-cost crushed (comminuted)
abrasive grade ceramics for the reinforcement of metals, as is generally done. Comminuted particles
contain many internal defects, including cracks or sharp corners along their surfaces. Angularity
produces sites of elevated stress concentration within the composite when it is stressed, causing
in turn an acceleration of damage accumulation within the material, which sharply reduces its
ductility. Rounding comminuted particles to eliminate such sites of stress concentration has led to
significant improvements in composite ductility (19, 20). Spectacular improvements in composite
properties can be further obtained if one uses particles produced by other methods, with few
internal defects and no sharp angles; a (rare) example of this is Sumitomo’s SumicorundumTM
particles (http://www.sumitomochem.co.jp/english/research/develop_basic.html).
The wisdom of keeping the volume fractions of ceramic particles below roughly 30%, as
is usually done to minimize their deleterious influence on composite ductility, has also been
questioned. Indeed, the benefit of adding ceramic to metal is, for many properties, nonlinear:

100 μm
m
6m
Figure 2
Combining metal and ceramic need not produce a brittle material, provided that the ingredients and the
processing are of high quality. This is illustrated with a four-point bend bar of a composite combining
roughly 50% alumina with 50% aluminum. From current research at EPFL (Lausanne, Switzerland) by
A. Hauert, A. Rossoll, and A. Mortensen (21).
Adding 25% alumina particles to aluminum will raise the modulus by 50%, from 70 GPa to
100 GPa, whereas 60% alumina will yield a 2.5-fold increase to 180 GPa in an isotropic material
having a density near that of aluminum. Defect-free composites of this class can be relatively
ductile despite a high (≈50%) ceramic content (see Figure 2). If, in addition, high-quality alumina
particles are used, both the ultimate tensile strength and the fracture toughness can reach values
matching those of engineering aluminum alloys (22–25). These results, together with their analysis
(see next section), show that the potential held by strong ceramic particles for the reinforcement
of metal remains essentially untapped.
Much innovative recent work has also focused on ceramic reinforcements having three-
dimensionally percolating architectures. This is an area that has grown significantly over the
past decade, largely under the impulse of a parallel thrust in microcellular ceramics research (26).
Once infiltrated with metal, open-pore microcellular ceramics become interpenetrating phase
composites (IPCs), defined as composites in which both phases (metal and ceramic in the present
instance) are three-dimensionally percolating (27). As a result of these advances, IPC-MMCs IPC: interpenetrating
are now much more frequently produced and explored than they were ten years ago. Note- phase composite
worthy in this regard are the unique structures that are produced by infiltration with metal of

Growing ice crystals become,

after infiltration, the (light) metal phase in the composite
y
1 mm
x x
Suspension of ceramic particles in water becomes, after drying

and sintering, the (dark) ceramic in the composite
Figure 3
Metal matrix composites from freeze-cast ceramic preforms. (Left) Ice crystals are made to grow directionally
in a slurry of water containing a high volume fraction of fine ceramic particles. Particle pushing by the
growing ice crystals concentrates the ceramic into thin walls. After freeze drying and sintering, a porous
ceramic preform is obtained; the domain distribution and the spacing of lamellae are functions of slurry
solidification parameters. (Right) A cross section through a freeze-cast alumina–reinforced Al-12Si composite
produced by squeeze casting the metal into pores of the ceramic preform, viewed perpendicular to the
freezing direction in one single domain of a polydomain sample. Micrograph kindly provided by S. Roy and
A. Wanner of the University of Karlsruhe, Germany (29).
freeze-cast ceramics (Figure 3) (28, 29), biomorphic ceramics obtained from pyrolized wood
(Figure 4) (30–32), or ceramic preforms produced by three-dimensional printing (33).
Together with the exploration of radically new reinforcement architectures, the past decade
has seen a greater emphasis on the exploration of MMCs for functional applications. Experience
has shown that many applications of MMCs are motivated by their ability to conduct electricity
or heat: Electronic substrates, electrical contactors, and brushes are examples of applications in
which MMCs excel. Such properties have motivated the exploration of new MMCs for functional
applications, such as novel carbon-reinforced metals for high thermal conductivity (Figure 1) or
novel composite superconductors (Figure 5) (34).
New functional MMCs have also emerged from the current drive toward greater energy effi-
ciency. A notable example is that of solid-oxide fuel cell anode materials, most frequently a porous
composite combining nickel with yttria-stabilized zirconia (35–37). These are generally produced
by blending, densifying, and cofiring mixtures of NiO and zirconia, followed by reduction of
the NiO; the ensuing (25%) shrinkage of NiO creates the pore network. Cell performance is
highly dependent on the microstructure, and hence on the processing, of these complex anode
metal/ceramic/gas composites. One can thus expect these to remain a focus of intense research
activity in the years to come.
The current drive toward energy research should motivate the exploration of new MMCs; a
somewhat exotic example is phase change materials (PCMs). These materials can serve in ther-
PCM: phase change mal management by absorbing or releasing heat as they melt or solidify, respectively (38). A
material classical PCM is paraffin, the melting point of which is near ambient temperature (the melting-
point temperature varies with the precise paraffin formulation). The efficiency of PCMs is often

MR40CH10-Mortensen
Annu. Rev. Mater. Res. 2010.40:243-270. Downloaded from www.annualreviews.org ARI 24 May 2010 15:28
Figure 4
Computed X-ray microtomography composite view of three orthogonal sections of an Al/SiC composite
produced by pressure infiltration with an Al-13Si-9Mg alloy of a three-dimensional SiC honeycomb-like
structure made by reaction with Si of pyrolized beech wood. The bounding box measures approximately
750 μm per side; the voxel size is 1.46 μm. In the (X-ray attenuation–based) color scale used, the Al-filled
pores appear blue, the SiC appears yellow or black, and residual porosity appears red or black. Image kindly
provided by T.E. Wilkes and K.T. Faber of Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois; for details consult
Reference 30.
restricted by their capacity to transport heat to/from the melting/solidification front, that is, by
their low heat conductivity. As a result, some of the best PCMs are composites combining the
phase-changing material (say, paraffin) with another, more conductive phase (generally a metal).
The resulting MMC-PCM can be made by infiltrating pores of an open-cell microcellular metal
with the molten PCM.
Microcellular metals, often called metal foams, are also MMCs. Research on highly porous
metals has grown in recent years to become a major thrust in metallurgy, covered by dedicated
conferences and books (and is now too broad to be covered in any detail within the present article)
(39, 40; http://www.metfoam2009.sav.sk/index.php?ID=1859&pg=13).

100 μm
50 μm
c b
Figure 5
Cross-polarized light micrograph of a composite consisting of MgB2 continuous fibers within a Mg matrix
(a). The 190-μm-diameter MgB2 fibers are created by a reaction of 140-μm B fibers with liquid Mg under
thermal cycling conditions (ten 600–900◦ C cycles over 3 h). The inset shows a higher-magnification view of
a similarly reacted fiber (eleven 650–900◦ C cycles over 4.5 h) highlighting (b) the MgB2 grains and (c) the
W-B core of the fiber. Image kindly provided by J.D. DeFouw and D.C. Dunand of Northwestern
University, Evanston, Illinois (34).
MMC research has also expanded in recent years by incorporation of the approach into other
current areas of metallurgical research: Many major innovations in metallurgical research have
branched into novel MMC research. Bulk metallic glasses (BMGs) are inherently very brittle
materials; the MMC approach has proven to be a potent pathway toward addressing this limita-
tion. Siegrist & Löffler (41), for example, have shown recently that if soft particles are combined
with a BMG matrix, significant improvements in BMG (compressive) ductility can be achieved
at minimal loss in yield stress. In related work, novel metals available in powder form, such as
aluminum-based BMG (42) or quasicrystals (43), have been explored as reinforcements for alu-
minum. Novel metallurgical processes, such as severe plastic deformation or friction stir welding,
have also been adapted toward the processing of MMCs, notably as methods toward improving
the spatial uniformity of reinforcement distribution (44–47).
Current interest in layered structures has motivated research on MMC multilayers at both the
micro- and nanoscale. Figure 6 shows a metal/metal microlaminate material combining ductile
austenitic and brittle martensitic steel grades. In such composites, the more ductile metal stabilizes
the more brittle metal against tensile failure. As a result, as-quenched martensite can be “coached”
to deform by more than 20% in tension without breaking. Through use of this approach, with
appropriately strong interfaces, sufficiently small layer thicknesses, and optimized heat treatment,
a steel sheet having an ultimate tensile strength of 1.35 GPa with a tensile fracture elongation of
28% was demonstrated at the University of Tokyo (48). Nanoscale laminates (Figure 7) can also
exhibit interesting properties; these materials serve notably as vehicles for research on plasticity
size effects or the role of interfaces in the deformation and fracture of fine-scale materials more
generally (49, 50).
As for fiber-reinforced metals, recent engineering progress has been in large part driven
BMG: bulk metallic by 3M’s innovations in high-quality ceramic fibers suitable for the reinforcement of metals.
glass Work during the past decade has notably introduced a continuous wire of aluminum rein-
forced by Nextel 610TM alumina fibers designed for the overhead transmission of electrical

MR40CH10-Mortensen
200 μm
Figure 6
Multilayered steel composite combining strongly bonded sheets of austenitic SS304 (0.04C-0.53Si-0.92Mn-
8.07Ni-18.19Cr; lighter phase in the micrograph) and martensitic SS420J2 (0.34C-0.49Si-0.57Mn-0.12Ni-
13.21Cr) steel. The composite is produced by stacking 25 layers of 1-mm-thick surface-ground steel sheets,
sealing the stack by welding, preheating in inert gas, and hot rolling to a final thickness of approximately 3
mm. After annealing and air cooling, the laminate is further thinned by cold rolling to a thickness of 1.0 mm.
This particular composite exhibits a yield stress of 450 MPa, an ultimate tensile strength of 1250 MPa, and
20% elongation at fracture. Micrograph kindly provided by S. Nambu and T. Koseki of the University of
Tokyo, Japan (48).
power (shown in Figure 8) (http://solutions.3m.com/wps/portal/3M/en_US/Energy-

Advanced/Materials/Industry_Solutions/MMC/).
The past decade has seen progress in our understanding of the fundamentals that underlie
MMC processing. Noteworthy are advances in our understanding of in situ processes (18), of the
wetting of ceramics by metals (good overviews of this topic can be found in References 51 and
52), of transport phenomena that intervene in processes such as infiltration (53, 54), and of the
link between deformation processing and particle clustering in solid-state MMC processing (see
next section).
Finally, we have seen impressive and far-reaching advances in microstructural characterization.
These developments have proven particularly well suited for MMCs because of the high contrast
(both physical and mechanical) that can exist between phases in these materials. Advances in X-ray
and neutron diffraction characterization of materials have thus largely benefited MMC research
(55, 56), as has the advent of methods for the characterization of material microstructures in
three dimensions, including computed X-ray microtomography (Figures 4 and 9) (30, 57–59)
and automated serial sectioning (Figure 10) (60).
MECHANISMS OF DEFORMATION AND FRACTURE

From the structural viewpoint, a main limitation to the industrial application of MMCs has been
the embrittlement associated with the addition, to the metal, of brittle ceramic reinforcements. The
physical phenomena that control this behavior occur at the micrometer scale and above in MMCs.

a
1
Pt
500 nm
2
1 2
Al/SiC multilayers
Si substrate
1 μm
500 nm
b Maximum princi- S22 (MPa)

pal stress (MPa)
+2.000e+02
+5.000e+02 +1.833e+02
+4.167e+02 +1.667e+02
+3.333e+02 +1.500e+02
+2.500e+02 +1.333e+02
+1.667e+02 +1.167e+02
+8.333e+01 +1.000e+02
+1.526e–05 +8.333e+01
–8.333e+01 +6.667e+01
–1.667e+02 +5.000e+01
–2.500e+02 +3.333e+01
–3.333e+02 +1.667e+01
–4.167e+02 Multilayers/ +0.000e+00
–5.000e+02 2
Si interface
Figure 7
(a) Nanolayered composite of aluminum and SiC produced by magnetron sputtering onto a silicon substrate,
tested by nanoindentation. The nominal thickness of each of the alternating Al and SiC layers is 50 nm. The
Al layers are polycrystalline with a columnar grain structure, and the SiC material is amorphous. The picture
on the left shows a scanning electron microscope image of a cross section of the postindented composite
prepared by the focused ion beam technique. A part of the Berkovich indentation mark behind the sectioned
surface is visible. One can see that a symmetric pattern of damage was caused by the indentation, comprising
shear fracture of (1) the SiC layers and (2) mid-level voids. Further below, cracking near the multilayers/
substrate interface has also occurred. (b) The color contour plots show the results from a finite element
analysis of nanoindentation on the multilayered structure. The model features axial symmetry about the left
vertical boundary. The material system is identical to that used in the experiment. The left figure shows the
distribution of normal stress along the vertical (indentation) direction. Directly underneath the indentation,
the stress field is predominately compressive. The contour legend was adjusted to bring out the fact that
there is a region, below and slightly outside the indentation edge, that is under significant tensile stress. This
region largely corresponds to the damage zone observed in the experiment as highlighted. The right contour
plot of maximum principal stress further indicates a particularly highly stressed region near the interface
between the Al/SiC multilayers and the Si substrate, which can also explain the observation of interface
cracks. Adapted from figure kindly provided by N. Chawla of Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona, and
Y.L. Shen of the University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, New Mexico (50).

3M™ aluminum fiber core

Figure 8
3M’s unidirectional Nextel 610TM nanocrystalline alumina fiber–reinforced pure-aluminum composite has,
along the fiber direction, roughly one-third the conductivity of copper in combination with a tensile strength
of roughly 1.5 GPa and a density near 3 g cm−3 (http://solutions.3m.com/wps/portal/3M/en_US/
Energy-Advanced/Materials/Industry_Solutions/MMC/). When used instead of steel as the
high-strength core of electrical power transmission cables (inset), the composite provides an attractive
solution to power transmission, for example, in environmentally sensitive river crossings such as that
depicted in this figure. The composite features low sag and improved conductance and allows new tower
construction to be avoided while boosting transmission capacity. Photographs courtesy of 3M Corporate
Communications, St. Paul, Minnesota.
As mentioned above, these phenomena can now be observed and quantified accurately using
novel three-dimensional microstructural characterization techniques. In addition, deformation
and failure processes within MMCs can now be simulated using several novel tools and methods,
including discrete dislocation (DD) dynamics, large-scale finite element (FE) simulation, and
nonlinear homogenization theory. Driven by this combination of strong engineering motivation
and novel methods, research on the nonlinear deformation and fracture of MMCs has led to
significant advances in this general area during the past decade.
Particle-Reinforced Composites
The dispersion of stiff ceramic particles or fibers within a ductile metallic matrix leads to an in-
crease in flow stress of the metal by load transfer across a strong interface from the matrix to the
reinforcement. Constraint imposed by the ceramic reinforcements on matrix plastic deformation DD: discrete
induces large tensile hydrostatic stresses in the matrix. This enhances the load carried by the rein- dislocation
forcements and hence the composite flow stress but also triggers the early development of internal FE: finite element
damage in the form of particle fracture, interface decohesion, and/or matrix void growth (61–64).

Pure-aluminum matrix Harder aluminum alloy matrix
Lower strain
level
Higher strain
level
0.3 mm
Figure 9
X-ray microtomographic in-situ observation of the evolution of damage at different strain levels in a model
composite material made of aluminum-based matrices reinforced with 4 vol% of ZrO2 /SiO2 . The figure
shows tomographic slices extracted parallel to the tensile axis (vertical), at various levels of stress, increasing
from top to bottom. (Left column) Damage in the model composite material made of a pure-aluminum matrix
is mainly by decohesion along the particle/matrix interface. (Right column) The same material as in the left
column, but with a harder aluminum alloy matrix. The damage mechanism changes to particle fracture. In
both cases, initiation, growth, and coalescence of damage can be captured. Images kindly provided by
E. Maire and V. Carmona, MATEIS Laboratory, INSA Lyon, France (57).

MR40CH10-Mortensen
Figure 10
Three-dimensional finite element model corresponding to a region 200 × 140 × 60 μm wide based on the
actual microstructure of a composite of 6061 reinforced by 27 vol% SiC particles. The model contains
approximately 1000 SiC particles. The three-dimensional microstructure of this powder metallurgy–
processed material was generated via automated (robotic) serial sectioning and optical imaging, using the
Robo-Met.3DTM device (60). The red feature is an extended region of higher-than-average equivalent
plastic strain generated by applying a 2.5% tensile strain parallel to the long dimension, showing that the
macroscopic deformation band is modified by the presence of the local heterogeneities in the spatial
arrangements of the particles. Image kindly provided by J. Spowart of the Air Force Research Laboratory,
Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio.
The challenge to find how the microstructure of these materials can be tailored to improve their
ductility and toughness has been addressed through a combination of simulation and experiment.
Realistic quantitative predictions of the mechanical response of particle-reinforced compos-
ites can be obtained via computational micromechanics. The composite behavior is analyzed
through the FE simulation of a three-dimensional representative volume element (RVE) of the
microstructure. The RVE size has to exceed a critical value to ensure that the simulation results
are independent of both the RVE size and the spatial distribution of the reinforcements within
the RVE. This strategy has been widely used to explore the effect of reinforcement volume frac-
tion, spatial distribution, and shape on deformation and damage mechanisms of such composites
(65–72). This approach is illustrated in Figure 11a, which shows a cubic RVE containing a non-
homogeneous distribution of ceramic spheres dispersed in an aluminum matrix. Upon tensile
deformation, the ceramic particles constrain matrix plastic deformation within the cluster, which
increases hydrostatic stresses in both the matrix and the particles (Figure 11b). These large stresses
in turn promote interface decohesion (Figure 11c) as well as particle fracture (66) and/or matrix
ductile failure by void growth (67).
Such damage mechanisms reduce the strain hardening capacity of the material. This reduction
in turn precipitates the onset of plastic instability, which often controls the tensile ductility of
these materials (73, 74), to low strain values (<4%). Numerical predictions of the effect of particle
clustering on the tensile properties of these materials have been corroborated by experimental
results, which show significant improvements in ductility if the particle distribution is homoge-
nized through friction stir processing, high-pressure torsion, or equal-channel angular pressing
(44–47). In addition, techniques such as automated serial section and X-ray microtomography
provide detailed information on the relationship between the nucleation or growth of damage and
RVE: representative
specific features of the three-dimensional microstructure (57–60, 75–79). In particular, the whole volume element
process of damage nucleation by either particle fracture or interface decohesion, followed by void

a b
GPa
1.0
0.8
0.6
0.4
0.2
0.0
Figure 11
Three-dimensional finite element simulation of the effect of particle clustering on the deformation and
damage micromechanisms in a model composite made of 15 vol% of ceramics spheres embedded in an
aluminum matrix (71). (a) Sphere spatial distribution within the cubic representative volume element (RVE)
of the microstructure. Notice that the microstructure is periodic and that spheres are truncated where they
intersect the cube faces and reappear on the opposite sides of the cube. The spheres are grouped in clusters
having a higher local volume fraction of reinforcements (one of these is highlighted in dark blue). (b) Contour
plot of the maximum principal stress in the ceramic particles when the composite has been subjected to a
tensile strain of 5%. Very large tensile stresses develop in particles within the clusters. (c) Development of
damage by interface decohesion (marked with black arrows on a two-dimensional cut through a large RVE).
Decohesion is localized between particles situated very close to each other within the clusters and oriented
along the loading direction. Interfacial fracture relieved large stress concentrations generated at the interface
by this particle spatial distribution. The blue arrows in panels b and c indicate the direction of tensile loading.
From research at the Polytechnic University of Madrid, Spain, by J. Segurado, C. González, and J. Llorca.
growth and coalescence through the matrix, can now be followed directly within the material
(see Figure 9).
These advances in experimental characterization have been accompanied by new developments
in linear and nonlinear homogenization models. Linear homogenization is a proven methodology
to determine the effective properties of composite materials as a function of the phase properties
and their spatial distribution. For instance, accurate approximations to the elastic constants of

particle-reinforced isotropic composites were obtained by Torquato (80) by truncating after third-
order terms an exact expansion series for the effective stiffness tensor, the first few terms of
the series being given as a function of statistical correlation parameters that describe the phase
arrangement (81). Extension to the plastic regime was not, however, immediate, and the accuracy
of the predictions was limited by the localization of strain during plastic deformation and by the
limitations of the incremental methods (either tangent or secant) used to linearize the nonlinear
problem (82–84). Large stress and strain gradients develop during the elastoplastic deformation
of composites, especially with elastic particles embedded in a soft matrix. The plastic behavior of
the matrix is determined by a reference equivalent stress computed in the classic homogenization
models from the volumetric average of the matrix stress tensor. The appropriate equivalent stress
is, however, significantly lower than the phase average of the equivalent stress, and hence the
composite yield and flow stresses are overestimated using the classic homogenization approach.
This problem has since been overcome by the so-called modified secant approximation, shown to
be equivalent to a variational estimate by Ponte Castañeda (85, 86) and amenable to simplification
into relatively user-friendly expressions (87). In this approach, the reference equivalent stress
in the matrix is determined from the volumetric average of the second-order moment of the
stress tensor in this phase instead of the usual first-order moment (or average), an approximation
that takes into account the effect of the field fluctuations (strain localization). The accuracy of
this new homogenization model was demonstrated by comparisons with quasi-exact numerical
results obtained through computational micromechanics (88, 89), and new versions of the tangent
approach also yielded good results (90, 91) (Figure 12).
These nonlinear homogenization approaches have served to develop physically based phe-
nomenological models that include the effect of damage nucleation and growth (by either particle
fracture or interface decohesion), addressing damage percolation as well (83, 92, 93, 96). These
a b
200 250
Spherical Ellipsoidal
particles Tensile particles
Tensile/shear stress (MPa)
200
150
Tensile stress (MPa)
Matrix 150
100 Matrix
Shear 100
50
50
0 0
0 0.01 0.02 0.03 0.04 0.05 0 0.01 0.02 0.03 0.04 0.05
Tensile/shear strain Tensile strain
Figure 12
Predicted stress-strain curve for an aluminum matrix composite reinforced with 25 vol% stiff ceramic
particles. (a) Tensile ( purple) and shear ( green) deformation of a composite reinforced with spherical
particles. (b) Tensile deformation parallel (black) and perpendicular (blue) to the ellipsoidal reinforcements in
a composite with aligned ellipsoidal reinforcements with an aspect ratio of 3. The solid circles correspond to
quasi-exact numerical results obtained from computational micromechanics by averaging the results
obtained in 12 different particle realizations. The continuous lines denote the homogenization results
provided by improved secant (spheres) and incremental (ellipsoids) methods (89, 91).

models can be divided in two groups. The first is applicable to composites having a low particle
volume fraction (<30%) or having soft and ductile matrices, whose tensile ductility is controlled
by the onset of plastic instability. In these composites the Considere criterion predicts the tensile
failure strain well. Simulations of the tensile deformation of such composites take into account
the progressive reduction of the composite strain hardening rate due to damage and include the
effect of stress redistribution among the particles due to damage, using hypotheses consistent with
homogenization approaches that support the model (22, 73, 74, 83, 92–94). A different case is
that of composites with high particle volume fraction (≥40%) and hard matrices: Fracture is then
often triggered before the onset of plastic instability by an abrupt percolation of damage across the
material. This phenomenon starts from a cluster of broken particles, which grows unstably above
a certain stress. Treating both of these failure modes leads to the prediction of a ductile-to-brittle
a b
45%
80
20%
60
σ (MPa)
45%
40 5%
20%
5%
20
[010] 0.4 μm
0
0 0.5 1 1.5 2
[100] ε11 (‰)
0.05
0.00 deff
τ/μAl
–0.05
–0.10
d
0 1 2 3 4
104 x/b

transition in tensile failure mode as the reinforcement volume fraction and/or the matrix strength
increase, which has been reported experimentally (24, 93, 95) and is captured by a recent model
(96).
The analyses presented above predict an effect of the particle size on the tensile strength and
the ductility because smaller particles tend to be stronger. This in turn diminishes the extent
of particle fracture during composite deformation and increases the hardening rate in tension.
Prior to the onset of particle fracture, however, for a given elastoplastic matrix, predictions of
the composite initial flow stress and hardening rate are insensitive to particle size, if all else is
constant. These predictions differ from experimental findings (97–100), which show an increase
in the yield stress and hardening rate as the particle size decreases, particularly for interparticle
distances below 10 μm.
This plasticity size effect has been rationalized in terms of the strain gradients that appear
in the matrix as a result of deformation incompatibility between the plastic matrix and the stiff
ceramic particles. For a given geometry of plastic flow, finer microstructures (shorter interparticle
spacing) lead to greater strain gradients in the matrix, both during composite deformation and,
before this, due to differential matrix/reinforcement thermal contraction during cooldown from
processing temperatures. Higher gradients in turn produce a greater density of geometrically

necessary dislocations, which harden the metal. The effect has been known for some time (100);
however, its analysis has progressed significantly in recent years. Detailed models of the effect of
interparticle distance of the flow stress of composites have been carried out using DD simulations
(101–103). Figure 13 gives results from a fully three-dimensional coupled DD-FE simulation
of dislocation flow between narrowly spaced parallel ceramic fibers. The increase in flow stress
and work hardening rate as the interparticle distance decreases essentially takes, in the fine-scale
structures of this simulation, the form of a classical Orowan bowing mechanism. In addition,
the accumulation of dislocations at the particle interface during plastic flow creates an internal
stress larger than the resolved applied stress and of opposite sign near the interface, reducing the
effective interparticle distance for matrix plastic flow from d to deff (Figure 13c). This phenomenon
causes further hardening by what is, in effect, a source-shortening mechanism. In recent years
←−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−
Figure 13
Coupled dislocation dynamics–finite element (DD-FE) simulations of the effect of interparticle distance on
the flow stress of a continuously reinforced Al-Al2 O3 composite deformed perpendicularly to the fibers.
(a) Simulated dislocation microstructure projected on the (001) plane of the aluminum matrix, which is
perpendicular to the axis of the fibers. The volume fraction of fibers is 45%. Longitudinal strain ε33 =
0.16% applied along the vertical direction in the figure ([010] direction for the aluminum). Note the
accumulation of dislocations at the interfaces and in the channels with smallest width. (b) Size effect in
transverse stress-strain curves for different reinforcement volume fractions (5%, 10%, and 45%); straining is
along the same direction as in panel a. The elementary simulation cells have the same size and contain the
same initial dislocation density. The solid red lines show the size effect predicted by the coupled discrete-
continuum model. The dashed blue lines represent continuum FE predictions using, for the aluminum
matrix, a stress-strain response fitted to a coupled DD-FE simulation of the single crystal. (c) Resolved shear
stress profile (τ , normalized by the shear modulus of aluminum, μAl ) across the aluminum matrix in the
composite with the highest reinforcement volume fraction (45%) and the smallest spacing between fibers (in
units of x/b, where b is the Burgers vector) for the most active slip system in the matrix. The deformation
conditions are the same as in panel a. The dashed black line is a profile extracted from simulation data, and
the solid black line is the corresponding regression curve. The accumulation of dislocations at the interfaces
induces a resistive internal stress larger than the resolved applied stress, which reduces the channel width d to
an effective value deff . Figure kindly provided by L. Kubin of the CNRS-ONERA, Chatillon, France, and
adapted with permission from Elsevier Science; full publication of this work is in Reference 102.

a b
No particle MPa With particle fracture
fracture 1250
1100
950
800
600
450 No particle fracture
300
150
1 1.2
0.3
2 With particle fracture Antishielding
1.1
Particles have 1.0
kI(AISiC) / kI(cp)
fractured
0.9
0.8
0.7 Applied stress

of 7 MPa
0.6
No particle fracture Applied stress
0.5 of 14 MPa
Shielding
0.4
0 40 80 120 160
Crack growth direction
Projected crack length, a (μm)
Figure 14
Two-dimensional finite element simulation of crack growth in a microstructure produced on the basis of micrographs of a SiC
particle–reinforced aluminum composite. (a) Color contours of the stress state in a two-dimensional image of a microstructure (top
panel: without particle fracture; bottom panel: with particle fracture). Several particles have cracked away from the crack tip. (b) The
predicted crack profiles. As has been observed experimentally, when the particles crack, the crack profile is quite linear, with the crack
propagating through the particles. When the particles do not crack, crack deflection is more pronounced. The bottom plot of panel b
shows the local stress intensity factor calculated at various points in the microstructure. This is plotted as a ratio of the mode I stress
intensity for the actual microstructure, kI (AlSiC), normalized by that of a homogeneous model with circular particles (with the crack
not interacting with the particles), kI (cp). Thus, a value of less than 1 indicates crack shielding (a decrease in the driving force for crack
growth), whereas a value greater than 1 indicates antishielding (an increase in the driving force for crack growth). Drawn from figure
kindly provided by N. Chawla of Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona (108).
investigators have tackled plasticity size effects, using approaches based on higher-order continuum
micromechanics formulations incorporating one or more length scales to account for the role of
strain gradients or compliant interfaces on the matrix flow behavior (104, 105).
Fracture mechanisms have also been the subject of continued investigation. The influence of
the particle distribution has been quantified and modeled in three dimensions, showing a strong
influence on damage accumulation within these materials (Figure 10) (60, 106, 107). Micromech-
anisms governing the fracture toughness of these materials have also received attention in recent
years in simulation (Figure 14) (108) and also in experiment, where progress has notably been
driven by the advent of quantitative fractographic analysis tools (109, 110). High fracture tough-
nesses have been demonstrated in gas-infiltrated Al-Al2 O3 composites containing a high volume
fraction (approximately 50%) of ceramic particles. When reinforced with strong polygonal Al2 O3
particles, these composites present strength/toughness combinations that rival those of engineer-
ing aluminum alloys. The surprisingly high toughness of these composites comes about by the
synergistic contribution to the fracture energy of several factors, namely, the increase in elastic
modulus (which is 2.5 times that of the unreinforced alloy), the formation of a large plastic zone
around the crack tip, and high bridging stresses between crack surfaces carried by the metal liga-
ments as a result of the small interparticle distance and high local stress triaxiality (23–25, 110, 111).

Finally, current interest in Cu-C composites as heat sinks in microelectronics has led to new
analytical and numerical models to predict their thermal conductivity. New developments include
the influence of the polyhedral reinforcement geometry and spatial distribution as well as the
GLS: global load
influence of the crystalline orientation and of the electron/phonon interfacial conduction barrier sharing
(112–114).
LLS: local load
sharing
Fiber-Reinforced Composites SCF: stress

concentration factor
In continuous parallel fiber-reinforced composites, progressive fiber fracture controls the longi-
tudinal tensile strength. Two extreme situations can be found. Under global load sharing (GLS)
conditions, the effect of the local stress concentration around the broken fibers is negligible: Load
shed by fractured fibers is redistributed equally among the intact fibers in the remaining cross-
sectional area of the composite at that location. The stress-strain curve then exhibits a smooth
maximum, which arises from the competition between (a) hardening induced by matrix and fiber
deformation and (b) softening caused by fiber fragmentation. Under these assumptions, elegant
analytical solutions (115–118) and numerical models (119) have been developed to predict the
composite strength, accounting for matrix/fiber load transfer and fiber fracture statistics.
GLS, however, represents an idealization because it ignores damage localization. Evidence of
damage localization in MMCs is provided by in situ monitoring of damage using X-ray synchrotron
radiation in a Ti/SiC composite tested in tension (120): Fiber fracture is localized near the fracture
surface, whereas most of the sample remains free of damage. In addition, GLS predicts failure
when the tangent modulus reaches zero and does not account for size effects; both predictions are
opposed to available experimental results in most fiber-reinforced MMCs (121–123).
Experimental evidence indicates that local stress concentrations around broken fibers tend to
localize damage, leading to fracture at lower strengths by the unstable expansion of a cluster of
broken reinforcements (120–123). This behavior can be captured by local load sharing (LLS)
models, which rely on a stress concentration function (SCF) describing the redistribution of
load around a broken fiber, which governs the neighboring fiber fracture probability (124–127).
Although elegant solution approaches exist, LLS models tend to be more complex and often rely
on numerical simulations to compute the composite strength. Model predictions are sensitive to
the precise values of the SCF, which in turn depends on the actual fiber arrangement as well as
the interface and matrix properties. Accurate values for the SCF were obtained in specific MMC
systems using detailed FE simulations of the stress field around a broken fiber. These findings
were in turn used in rigorous experimental validations of LLS predictors of MMC strength (122,
124, 128, 129).
From the modeling viewpoint, a more complex problem is to determine the strength of fiber-
reinforced MMCs in the presence of a hole or a sharp notch. Two main failure mechanisms have
been reported, depending on matrix and interface properties and on thermal residual stresses
(130–132). With a ductile matrix having a high flow stress and good fiber/matrix bonding, failure
takes place by the propagation of a mode I crack from the notch root perpendicular to the fibers
at moderate toughness levels. Composites with a weak, brittle matrix and/or a poor fiber/matrix
bond exhibit a strong tendency toward mode II crack propagation along the fiber direction. Such
splitting initiates and propagates at relatively high values of the applied stress intensity factor,
leading to a low notch sensitivity for this class of composites.
Simulation of the behavior of notched specimens was initially carried out for SiC
monofilament–reinforced titanium within the framework of cohesive crack models, as matrix
plastic deformation is localized in a thin strip in front of the notch. There, fibers fracture and
are eventually pulled out from the matrix (131, 132). More recently, novel multiscale simulation

P
a b
h 25oC
800 a0/D = 0.35
P M M
3PL/2 BD2 (MPa)

Q Q 600
D
a0
P/2 P/2 400

L
h
x 200
Homogenized material
Matrix
ly
Fibers
lx
y 0
0 50 100 150 200 250 300
CMOD (μm)
a0 D – a0 Simulation
Experiments
d
c
GPa
0.10
0.08 4.0
0.06 3.0
0.04 2.0
0.02 1.0
0.00 0.0
–1.0
Figure 15
Multiscale modeling of fracture in SiC fiber–reinforced Ti.6A-4V matrix composites. (a) Schematic of the three-point bend test
comprising a notched beam showing the central region of length h used in the numerical simulations, together with the detailed
microstructure in the central region of the notched beam ( planar view and lateral view). Matrix, fibers, and homogenized material are
shown in different shades of gray. (b) Comparison of simulated and experimental P-CMOD (load–crack mouth opening displacement)
curves for the notched beam tested at 20◦ C. The initial notch length a0 was given by a0 /D = 0.35, where D = beam height. The load
P on the ordinate of the plot was normalized by the beam dimensions (L = beam length between outer load application points, B =
beam width, and D = beam height). (c) Contour plot of the accumulated plastic strain in the matrix at maximum load in the composite
beam tested at 20◦ C. The black line shows the initial notch tip. (d) Idem for the longitudinal stress in the fibers. From research at the
Polytechnic University of Madrid and IMDEA-Materials by C. González & J. Llorca (135).

strategies based on embedded cell models in three dimensions were used to predict the toughness
and notch sensitivity of fiber-reinforced MMCs (133). The representation of the material in front
of the notch tip—where damage is concentrated-–includes the actual fiber/matrix topology in
the composite, whereas the rest of the solid is modeled as a linear thermoelastic, transversally
isotropic homogeneous solid (Figure 15a). Damage and fracture micromechanisms that control
fracture (namely, plastic deformation of the matrix, brittle fiber fracture, and fiber/matrix fric-
tional sliding) are all included in the simulation. Fiber fracture is modeled by introducing interface
elements randomly placed along the fibers and with random strengths to simulate fiber fracture
realistically. It is assumed that the interface strength is negligible and that the fiber/matrix in-
teraction is controlled by friction. Micromechanical parameters governing the behavior of fibers,
matrix, and interfaces are independently measured. The mechanical response of the test beams in
three-point bending is then computed using the FE method, leading to results that are in good
agreement with experimental data, at both the microscopic level and the macroscopic level and
from room temperature up to 400◦ C (Figure 15b,c) (134, 135). These results demonstrate the po-
tential of coupled multiscale three-dimensional simulation for predicting the fracture behavior of
MMCs.
Other than fiber-reinforced titanium composites, recent research has addressed alumina fiber–
reinforced aluminium. Damage micromechanisms in tension (136) and fatigue (137), matrix hard-
ening mechanisms (138), and the properties of complex composite architectures (139, 140) have
been investigated.
CONCLUSION
Thus, a highly diverse picture of MMCs emerges from this brief overview of current research
on this materials class. First, the materials are more numerous than was the case ten years ago
(although the same probably cannot be said of processes). Second, the toolkit available to the ma-
terials scientist for the elucidation of structure/property relations in these interesting high-phase
contrast materials has expanded significantly in both experimental and analytical tools together
with underlying theory. Third, the range of explored properties has also expanded to include, for
example, a greater focus on thermal conductivity, a property for which MMCs are now among
the top-performing bulk materials.
We expect this trend toward breadth and diversity to continue. Many new, interesting materials
are bound to be composites that combine a metal with another phase. As one example, MMCs,
full of metal/dielectric interfaces as these materials are, may one day enter the field of optical
materials research. PCMs, mentioned above, are another class of emerging materials likely to be
composites with a metallic matrix. MMCs are a class of materials with a rich, albeit complicated,
future.
SUMMARY POINTS
1. MMC research has branched into many new directions, and the range of materials it
encompasses has expanded significantly.
2. Several new classes of MMCs have gained importance and have been studied in detail
in the past ten years, including interpenetrating phase composites, biomorphic ceramic-
reinforced metals, bulk metallic glass composites, nanoscale composites, layered metals,
and microcellular metals.

3. Research on MMCs for structural applications has progressed along two main direc-
tions: (a) the exploration of new composites expanding the property range of MMCs and
(b) the elucidation of structure/property relations in particulate and fiber MMCs.
4. Research on MMCs for functional applications has seen significant progress on materials
designed for thermal management.
5. MMC research has been, and remains, an important vehicle in nonlinear micromechanics
and three-dimensional microstructural characterization.
6. Our understanding of damage and fracture mechanisms in ceramic-reinforced metals,
both fibrous and particulate, now enables the accurate prediction of their performance
and the definition of strategies for their optimization.
7. The potential offered by strong ceramic particles for the reinforcement of metals is very
high and remains untapped.

FUTURE ISSUES
1. With an increased drive toward energy saving, research on MMCs for structural appli-
cations will surely gain new momentum, given the weight savings these materials offer
in several critical applications. The accuracy of the modeling tools in establishing the
connection between microstructure and properties will be very useful in developing new
materials with optimal properties.
2. For the same reason, many new composites combining a metal with another phase, often
one of ceramic, will likely emerge for applications in the management, storage, and
generation of energy as well as in novel functional applications.
3. A revitalization of research on the fundamentals of MMC processing, over and above the
invention of new systems, would be opportune.
DISCLOSURE STATEMENT
The authors are not aware of any affiliations, memberships, funding, or financial holdings that
might be perceived as affecting the objectivity of this review.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
A.M. gratefully acknowledges support of his research on the subject at EPFL from core laboratory
funding and from the Swiss National Science Foundation (project number 200020-107556), at
MIT from the Office of Naval Research and the U.S. National Science Foundation, and in both
institutions from several industrial sponsors. J.L. acknowledges support from the Comunidad
de Madrid (program ESTRUMAT), the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation (project
MAT2009-14396), and several industrial sponsors.

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MR40CH10-Mortensen ARI 24 May 2010 15:28

Annu. Rev. Mater. Res. 2010. 40:243–70 Key Words

(E/ρ). This parameter is a measure of the performance, in weight-critical deformation-limited

244 Mortensen · Llorca

www.annualreviews.org • Metal Matrix Composites 245

PROCESSING AND MATERIALS

246 Mortensen · Llorca

www.annualreviews.org • Metal Matrix Composites 247

Growing ice crystals become,

Suspension of ceramic particles in water becomes, after drying

248 Mortensen · Llorca

www.annualreviews.org • Metal Matrix Composites 249

250 Mortensen · Llorca

power (shown in Figure 8) (http://solutions.3m.com/wps/portal/3M/en_US/Energy-

MECHANISMS OF DEFORMATION AND FRACTURE

www.annualreviews.org • Metal Matrix Composites 251

b Maximum princi- S22 (MPa)

252 Mortensen · Llorca

3M™ aluminum fiber core

www.annualreviews.org • Metal Matrix Composites 253

Pure-aluminum matrix Harder aluminum alloy matrix

254 Mortensen · Llorca

www.annualreviews.org • Metal Matrix Composites 255

256 Mortensen · Llorca

www.annualreviews.org • Metal Matrix Composites 257

258 Mortensen · Llorca

processing temperatures. Higher gradients in turn produce a greater density of geometrically

www.annualreviews.org • Metal Matrix Composites 259

Particles have 1.0

0.7 Applied stress

260 Mortensen · Llorca

Fiber-Reinforced Composites SCF: stress

www.annualreviews.org • Metal Matrix Composites 261

3PL/2 BD2 (MPa)

P/2 P/2 400

262 Mortensen · Llorca

www.annualreviews.org • Metal Matrix Composites 263

high and remains untapped.

264 Mortensen · Llorca

www.annualreviews.org • Metal Matrix Composites 265

phase composites with three-dimensional periodic architecture. Scr. Mater. 49:861–66

266 Mortensen · Llorca

automated serial sectioning. JOM 58:29–33

www.annualreviews.org • Metal Matrix Composites 267

268 Mortensen · Llorca

www.annualreviews.org • Metal Matrix Composites 269

in continuous ﬁber reinforced MMCs by acoustic emission. Scr. Mater. 59:842–45

270 Mortensen · Llorca

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