Abstract

Light metal matrix nanocomposites (LMMNCs) are advanced materials, in which nanosized ceramic particles are reinforced
in aluminum/magnesium matrices. In conventional metal matrix composites (MMCs), the incorporation of micron-sized
reinforcements usually contributes to the high hardness and ultimate strength when compared to the unreinforced base material.
However, most of these composites do not show plastic deformation (little or no yield) and exhibit a drastic reduction in
ductility. This poses a major limitation for MMCs to be used in real-time applications. To overcome this drawback, composites
with nanoscale reinforcements are being developed. From research studies, it has been established that LMMNCs are better
materials as they show improved strength as well as high ductility resulting in enhanced toughness. However, for improvement
in properties to occur, the nano-reinforcements should be distributed uniformly in the matrix, without any clustering or
agglomeration. Hence, the greatest challenge in obtaining high-performance nanocomposites and realizing their application
potential invariably lies in obtaining uniform distribution of nanoparticles. In this paper, the state-of-the-art processing methods
employed in the advancement LMMNCs and the challenges encountered are presented.