Fracture and Structural Integrity e-ISSN 1971-8993 Open access
Integrity of materials and structures Vol. 20, No. 75 (2026)

Effect of pearlite nanoclay reinforcements on the mechanical and tribological behaviour of AA7076 metal nanocomposites

Author and affiliation details
  • G. U. Raju School of Mechanical Engineering, KLE Technological University, Hubballi, India ORCID iD0000-0003-0234-1055
  • Vinod Kumar V. Meti Department of Automation & Robotics, KLE Technological University, Hubballi, India ORCID iD0000-0001-5692-9693
  • Amitkumar R. Nadugeri School of Mechanical Engineering, KLE Technological University, Hubballi, India
  • I.G. Siddhalingeshwar School of Mechanical Engineering, KLE Technological University, Hubballi, India
  • M. A. Umarfarooq Corresponding author Center for Material Science, Karpagam Academy of Higher Education, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, India. Department of Mechanical Engineering Karpagam Academy of Higher Education, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, India. ORCID iD0000-0002-9369-7913 umarfarooq.ma@gmail.com
  • N.R. Banapurmath Centre of Excellence in Material Science, School of Mechanical Engineering, KLE Technological University, Hubballi-580031, India
  • Ashok M. Sajjan Centre of Excellence in Material Science, School of Mechanical Engineering, KLE Technological University, Hubballi-580031, India ORCID iD0000-0003-1251-8803
  • B. H. Maruthi Prashanth Department of Mechanical Engineering, AGM Rural College of Engineering and Technology, Varur, Hubballi, Karnataka - 581 207, India ORCID iD0000-0003-3100-5288
DOI
10.3221/IGF-ESIS.75.20
Pages
281-296
Published
Licence
CC BY 4.0
Published inVol. 20, No. 75 (2026)Go to the issue

Abstract

Aluminium alloy composites are extensively utilised in the aerospace, automobile, and marine industries due to their lightweight structure and high strength-to-density ratio. However, there remains significant potential to further improve these composites for advanced applications by enhancing their strength-to-weight ratio, corrosion resistance, wear resistance, and temperature performance. This study investigates the mechanical and tribological properties of AA7076 alloy reinforced with varying concentrations (1.0 and 1.5 wt.%) of perlite nanoclay. These composites were synthesized using a motorised stir casting process and characterised through tensile, wear, and hardness tests. Results showed that 1.5 wt. % perlite nanoclay composite exhibited the most significant improvements, with hardness, tensile strength, and wear resistance increasing by 32%, 38%, and 59%, respectively, compared to the base AA7076 alloy. Finite element simulations in ANSYS Workbench predicted tensile strengths in close agreement (within 5 – 8%) with experimental results, validating the strengthening effects of nanoclay. The enhancements are attributed to the homogeneous dispersion of nanoclay particles, strong interfacial bonding, and their role in restricting dislocation motion. These findings establish perlite nanoclay as a cost-effective and sustainable reinforcement for aluminium alloy, well-suited for demanding applications in automotive, aerospace, and marine industries, offering a promising combination of lightweight design and superior performance.

Keywords

Article history

  1. ReceivedUntil the next stage: 68 days
  2. Revision requestedUntil the next stage: 49 days
  3. RevisedUntil the next stage: 10 days
  4. AcceptedUntil the next stage: 2 days
  5. Published

How to cite

APA

Raju, G. U., Meti, V. K. V., Nadugeri, A. R., Siddhalingeshwar, I., Umarfarooq, M. A., Banapurmath, N., Sajjan, A. M., & Prashanth, B. H. M. (2025). Effect of pearlite nanoclay reinforcements on the mechanical and tribological behaviour of AA7076 metal nanocomposites. Fracture and Structural Integrity, 20(75), 281–296. https://doi.org/10.3221/IGF-ESIS.75.20

IEEE

G. U. Raju et al., “Effect of pearlite nanoclay reinforcements on the mechanical and tribological behaviour of AA7076 metal nanocomposites,” Fracture and Structural Integrity, vol. 20, no. 75, pp. 281–296, 2025, doi: 10.3221/IGF-ESIS.75.20.

MLA

Raju, G. U., et al. “Effect of pearlite nanoclay reinforcements on the mechanical and tribological behaviour of AA7076 metal nanocomposites.” Fracture and Structural Integrity, vol. 20, no. 75, 2025, pp. 281–296. https://doi.org/10.3221/IGF-ESIS.75.20.

Chicago

Raju, G. U., Vinod Kumar V. Meti, Amitkumar R. Nadugeri, I.G. Siddhalingeshwar, M. A. Umarfarooq, N.R. Banapurmath, Ashok M. Sajjan, and B. H. Maruthi Prashanth. 2025. “Effect of pearlite nanoclay reinforcements on the mechanical and tribological behaviour of AA7076 metal nanocomposites.” Fracture and Structural Integrity 20 (75): 281–296. https://doi.org/10.3221/IGF-ESIS.75.20.

Harvard

Raju, G.U., Meti, V.K.V., Nadugeri, A.R., Siddhalingeshwar, I., Umarfarooq, M.A., Banapurmath, N., Sajjan, A.M. and Prashanth, B.H.M. (2025) ‘Effect of pearlite nanoclay reinforcements on the mechanical and tribological behaviour of AA7076 metal nanocomposites’, Fracture and Structural Integrity, 20(75), pp. 281–296. doi: 10.3221/IGF-ESIS.75.20.

Vancouver

Raju GU, Meti VKV, Nadugeri AR, Siddhalingeshwar I, Umarfarooq MA, Banapurmath N, et al. Effect of pearlite nanoclay reinforcements on the mechanical and tribological behaviour of AA7076 metal nanocomposites. Fracture and Structural Integrity. 2025;20(75):281-296. doi:10.3221/IGF-ESIS.75.20

BibTeX

@article{raju2025, author = {Raju, G. U. and Meti, Vinod Kumar V. and Nadugeri, Amitkumar R. and Siddhalingeshwar, I.G. and Umarfarooq, M. A. and Banapurmath, N.R. and Sajjan, Ashok M. and Prashanth, B. H. Maruthi}, title = {Effect of pearlite nanoclay reinforcements on the mechanical and tribological behaviour of AA7076 metal nanocomposites}, journal = {Fracture and Structural Integrity}, year = {2025}, volume = {20}, number = {75}, pages = {281--296}, doi = {10.3221/IGF-ESIS.75.20}, url = {https://doi.org/10.3221/IGF-ESIS.75.20}, issn = {1971-8993} }

RIS

TY - JOUR AU - Raju, G. U. AU - Meti, Vinod Kumar V. AU - Nadugeri, Amitkumar R. AU - Siddhalingeshwar, I.G. AU - Umarfarooq, M. A. AU - Banapurmath, N.R. AU - Sajjan, Ashok M. AU - Prashanth, B. H. Maruthi TI - Effect of pearlite nanoclay reinforcements on the mechanical and tribological behaviour of AA7076 metal nanocomposites JO - Fracture and Structural Integrity T2 - Fracture and Structural Integrity PY - 2025 DA - 2025/11/06 VL - 20 IS - 75 SP - 281 EP - 296 DO - 10.3221/IGF-ESIS.75.20 UR - https://doi.org/10.3221/IGF-ESIS.75.20 SN - 1971-8993 ER -

Licence

Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International

May be shared and adapted, provided appropriate credit is given. Copyright © 2025 G. U. Raju, Vinod Kumar V. Meti, Amitkumar R. Nadugeri, I.G. Siddhalingeshwar, M. A. Umarfarooq, N.R. Banapurmath, Ashok M. Sajjan, B. H. Maruthi Prashanth.

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