A Review on CF/Al Composites: Coating, Forming Process, and Reinforcement Mechanism

Carbon fiber‐reinforced aluminum matrix (CF/Al) composites combine the excellent properties of carbon fibers (CFs) and Al matrices, including high specific strength and stiffness, good thermal conductivity, good fatigue resistance, and excellent thermal stability over a wide temperature range. These properties give CF/Al composites great versatility and application potential in aerospace, high‐end equipment, electronics, and energy. However, CFs have poor wettability with Al matrices, resulting in low interfacial bonding strength. Poor wettability can cause interfacial chemical reactions and form brittle Al 4 C 3 , which creates interfacial defects and greatly reduces the overall performance of the composites. Therefore, understanding the evolution of interfacial defects and the strengthening mechanisms is important for improving the performance of CF/Al composites. This review summarizes the classification and typical preparation methods of CF surface coatings in recent years. It focuses on the fabrication processes, current research status, and challenges of CF/Al composites. The main strengthening mechanisms, such as load transfer, dislocation strengthening, grain refinement, and second‐phase precipitation strengthening, are systematically analyzed. In addition, the future development trends of CF/Al composites are discussed.