Development and Characterization of Polyester–Titanium Functionally Graded Materials

Abstract

The present study focuses on the fabrication and experimental investigation of polyester-based titanium functionally graded materials (FGMs). Titanium powder was produced by a conventional filing process using a 50 mm diameter titanium rod mounted on a lathe machine. The filing operation was performed at a rotational speed of 650 rpm using a coarse file. The resulting powder was subsequently demagnetized to eliminate iron particles and other unwanted ferromagnetic contaminants. The powder was then sieved to obtain titanium particles with a desired particle size of approximately 300 μm. Polyester-based FGMs containing 2.5 g, 5 g, and 10 g of titanium by weight were fabricated using the sedimentation technique. The fabricated FGMs were initially examined using liquid penetrant non-destructive testing to assess their surface integrity. Further characterization was carried out in terms of density, hardness, and microstructural features using optical microscopy. The experimental results obtained from these investigations were compared and analyzed to evaluate the influence of titanium content on the properties of the fabricated polyester–titanium FGMs.