The influence of oxidation treatment on the thermal conductivity

electrical conductivity and strength of the high volume fraction silicon carbide particle reinforced ZL101 aluminum matrix composites was investigated by thermal property test

DSC analysis and SEM. The results indicate that the microstructure of SiC

p

/ZL101 composites prepared by pressure infiltration method is dense and the reinforced particles are uniformly dispersed in aluminum matrix. The volume fraction of SiC particles in raw and oxidized SiC

p

/ZL101 composites reach 56.2% and 63.8%

respectively. The O element in the primary SiC

p

/ZL101 composites is concentrated in the local area of the aluminum matrix

which is mainly distributed around the SiC

p

particles in the oxidized one. Particle oxidation treatment can improve the thermal conductivity（increased by 15.6%）

and reduce the thermal expansion coefficient（decreased by 14.4%） of SiC

p

/ZL101 composites

which

however

can also sharply reduce the conductivity and strength of SiC

p

/ZL101 composites

decreased by 60.7% and 16.2%

respectively. The failure modes of SiC

p

/ZL101 aluminum matrix composites under bending are dominated by cleavage fracture of SiC

p

and ductile fracture of aluminum matrix.