Synergistic Effect of Heat Treatment and Graphene/ZrO ₂ Addition on the Mechanical and Tribological Properties of Al7075‐Based Hybrid Composites

This research aims to improve the microstructure, mechanical, and tribological behavior of Al7075 aluminum alloy by different ratios of zirconia (ZrO 2 , 1, 3, 6, and 9 wt%) and graphene nanoplatelets (GNPs, 0.1, 0.3, and 0.5 wt%) reinforcement. Al7075‐ZrO 2 and Al7075‐ZrO 2 ‐GNPs composites are produced by a combination of powder metallurgy followed by induction‐assisted hot uniaxial pressing techniques. The effect of reinforcement ratio and induction‐assisted hot pressing on the density, compressive strength, hardness, wear rate, mass loss, and friction coefficient of Al7075‐based composites is evaluated. As a result of the mechanical and tribological investigations, the highest apparent density (2.74 g cm −3 ), compressive strength (450 ± 4 MPa), hardness (169 ± 2 HV), lowest mass loss (0.0014 g), and wear rate (1.0219 × 10 −4 mm 3 (Nm) −1 ) are determined for sintered and induction‐assisted hot‐pressed Al7075‐6%ZrO 2 ‐0.1%GNPs hybrid composites. Consequently, the combination of reinforcement elements and the induction‐assisted hot uniaxial pressing procedure increases the hardness and compressive strength by 17.4% and 57.9%, respectively, while decreasing the mass loss and wear rate by 30% and 33.83%.