Anisotropy in Young’s Modulus of Cold Rolled Cu-15 mass%Cr Composites

Young’s modulus measurement was casrried out in a cold-rolled Cu-15 mass%Cr in situ composite including fine elongated Cr fibers in the Cu matrix parallel to the rolling direction. The measurement was made for different orientations in order to reveal its orientation dependency (anisotropy). The free-free beam vibration method was used for precise measurement. In the as-rolled composite, the modulus decreased with increasing the angle between the fiber direction (rolling direction) and tensile axis (θ). The Young’s modulus of the composite decreased as increasing θ and reached the minimum at about 45°, and then increased with θ to the maximum at 90°. Applied micro-mechanistic analysis considering the orientation effect of the fibrous reinforcement was successful in demonstrating the θ dependence exhibiting the minimum at about 45°. Contribution of the anisotropic Young’s modulus of the Cu matrix resulting from the rolling texture should be taken into account to understand more fully the characteristic Young’s modulus anisotropy of the present composite.