Composite materials are new materials composed of two or more materials with different properties through physical or chemical methods. The advantage is that the performance of various materials can complement each other, making the comprehensive performance of composite materials superior to that of various component materials and meeting different application requirements. Composite materials can be divided into Metal matrix composite and non Metal matrix composite according to the matrix materials. Common metal based alloys include titanium, magnesium, aluminum, copper, etc; Non metallic substrates include rubber, ceramics, graphite, carbon, synthetic resins, etc. Reinforcement materials mainly include glass fiber, carbon fiber, boron fiber, aramid fiber, silicon carbide fiber, asbestos fiber, whiskers, metal wire, and hard fine particles. Composite materials are widely used in aerospace, national defense, transportation, sports and other fields due to their excellent comprehensive performance, especially their designability,.

    Due to the wide range of applications of composite materials, the hardness and grinding characteristics of materials vary greatly, and the preparation plans for metallographic inspection samples are relatively diverse, making it impossible to achieve a unified sample preparation standard. In addition, during the preparation process of composite material metallographic samples, the phenomenon of protrusion is relatively easy to occur, and the control of protrusion is a difficulty.

    After long-term application practice, QMAXIS sample preparation experts summarized common methods of metal matrix, polymer matrix and ceramic matrix composite and shared them with friends for reference.

    Metal matrix composite&mdash& Flash; The four step sampling procedure is as follows:

    Polymer based composite materials&flash& Flash; The four step sampling procedure is as follows:

   Ceramic matrix composite&mdash& Flash; The four step sampling procedure is as follows:

    Throughout the entire sample preparation process, QMAXIS metallographic consumables are readily available. In order to effectively avoid surface roughness of the sample, polishing time should be minimized as much as possible, and short hair polishing cloth such as ChemoCloth polishing cloth should be used. If necessary, diamond polishing paste can also be used for polishing.

    For the cutting and sampling of composite materials, QMAXIS metallographic equipment recommends using precision cutting machines and diamond ultra-thin cutting blades for cutting, as this will result in less damage. It is ideal to use epoxy resin with low vacuum pouring temperature for sample embedding.

    The four step method for preparing metallographic samples of several composite materials mentioned above is a commonly used method in our laboratory. In practical work, there may be differences based on the composition of the composite layer, testing purpose, and personal preparation experience and habits. If you need detailed information or have any difficult questions that require the support of QMAXIS application engineers, please feel free to contact us. You are also welcome to personally experience QMAXIS metallographic equipment and QMAXIS metallographic consumables in QMAXIS's laboratory.