Solid-State Synthesis of SiC Particle-Reinforced AZ91D Composites: Microstructure and Reinforcement Mechanisms
Round 1
Reviewer 1 Report
Comments and Suggestions for Authors
A major revision needs for this manuscript based on some issues. Other comments could be found as follows,
1) Abbreviations must be defined at first mentioning, such as HV, UTS, YS, etc.
2) The average data in the abstract need the standard deviation.
3) Please check the keywords that they must be found in the abstract or the title.
4) The novelty must be highlighted in the introduction, compared to the literature review.
5) All process parameters need references, such as 2 hrs, 200 rpm, 410 C, 30 min, etc.
6) The etchant needs a reference.
7) All mechanical tests need the used standard. What was the repeatability of testing?
8) What are M-1 to M-4 samples? They must be defined in a table.
9) The discussion is generally poor. Obtained results must be compared to other results of other articles, especially for TEM images.
10) There is no dimple on the fracture surface in Figure 8. Maybe, they are pores.
11) What is the change in fracture mechanism, when the percentage of reinforcing changed? Must be discussed in details.
12) What was the fracture behavior of the material? What was the change when reinforcing was added to the base material?
13) The conclusions must be started with a general sentence about the topic.
14) The number of references could be extended for a better discussion, by the published articles in 2017-2024.
15) It is not clear what is the novelty of this manuscript compared to the following link.
*https://scholar.google.com/scholar?hl=en&as_sdt=0%2C5&q=Solid-State+Synthesis+of+SiCp-Reinforced+AZ91D+Composites%3A+Microstructure+and+Reinforcement+Mechanisms&btnG=
16) The following articles could be used for a better discussion on the analysis of the fracture surfaces.
*https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=AZ91+fracture+surface&hl=en&as_sdt=0%2C5&as_ylo=2022&as_yhi=
Author Response
Dear Reviewers:
Thank you for your comments concerning our manuscript entitled “Solid-State Synthesis of SiCp-Reinforced AZ91D Composites: Microstructure and Reinforcement Mechanisms”. (Manuscript ID: metals-2925036). Those comments are all valuable and very helpful for revising and improving our paper. We have studied comments carefully and have made correction which we hope meet with approval. Revised portion are marked in red in the paper. Please find the detailed responses below and the corresponding revisions/corrections highlighted/in track changes in the re-submitted files.
Once again, thank you very much for your comments and suggestions.
All my best wishes!
Sincerely
Xiaobing Zhou
March 25, 2024
Author Response File: 
Author Response.pdf
Reviewer 2 Report
Comments and Suggestions for Authors
This paper discusses the solid-state synthesis of SiC/AZ91D composites, focusing on mechanical properties, microstructure, and strengthening mechanisms. The manuscript lacks organization in structure and content. Also, there are many grammatical mistakes throughout the paper that must be reviewed. Overall, further discussion should be included.
- (Abstract line 19) Invalid sentence removal and correction required.
- (Abstract) The abstract should include more details about the results and conclusions obtained.
- (Introduction) Further information on solid-phase synthesis should be cited.
- (2. Materials and Methods) The methodology is not written enough.
- (Materials) Please provide more detailed information about SiC particles.
- (Figure 1,2,4,6) Detailed explanations and considerations of the results should be provided.
- (XRD results) Further comparative analysis and discussion of the XRD results of SiC particles and composites should be included.
- (Figure 3) The SiC particles exhibit a linear distribution instead of a uniform distribution, requiring further explanation.
- (Figure 3) I don't see the grain size figure in the inset in Figure 3, it needs to be corrected.
- (Figure 4) The SEM results show no SiC particles based on the particle fraction. Enhance the clarity of the picture by managing the light and shadow.
- (Figure 6,7) I can't see the error bar well in the AZ91D result, so please correct it.
Comments on the Quality of English Language
Overall, extensive English corrections are needed.
Author Response
Dear Reviewers:
Thank you for your comments on our article entitled “Solid-State Synthesis of SiCp-Reinforced AZ91D Composites: Microstructure and Reinforcement Mechanisms” (Manuscript ID: metals-2925036). These comments are all valuable and helpful for improving our article. According to the reviewers’ comments, we have made extensive modifications to our manuscript and supplemented extra data to make our results convincing. In this revised version, changes to our manuscript were all highlighted within the document by using red-colored text. Please find the detailed responses below and the corresponding revisions/corrections highlighted/in track changes in the re-submitted files.
Thank you again for your positive comments and valuable suggestions to improve the quality of our manuscript.
All my best wishes!
Sincerely
Xiaobing Zhou
March 25, 2024
Author Response File: Author Response.pdf
Round 2
Reviewer 1 Report
Comments and Suggestions for Authors
1) From the last comment, the novelty must be more-and-more highlighted in the introduction.
2) The mentioned link was used by not fully addressed, especially for the fracture analysis and cleavage marks. Use the following link for a better discussion,
*https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=AZ91+fracture+surface&hl=en&as_sdt=0%2C5&as_ylo=2022&as_yhi=
3) Comments 11 and 12 were not fully addressed in the main text. Answering is not only enough and the descriptions and comparing the obtained results to other results of other articles must be added.
**11. What is the change in fracture mechanism, when the percentage of reinforcing changed? Must be discussed in detail.
***12. What was the fracture behavior of the material? What was the change when reinforcing was added to the base material?
4) Only one reference was added for the process parameters, which is in the last part of the paragraph. It is not enough and all variables need references.
5) All features must be added to the SEM images, such as cleavages, tear ridges, micro-cracks, etc.
Author Response
Dear Reviewer:
Thank you very much for taking the time to review our manuscript entitled " Solid-State Synthesis of SiCp-Reinforced AZ91D Composites: Microstructure and Reinforcement Mechanisms" (Manuscript ID: metals-2925036) again. These comments are very professional and helpful for the revision and improvement of our paper. We have carefully studied and discussed these comments and revised them. Please see the detailed responses below, as well as the corresponding elements of the revisions highlighted in the resubmission.
All my best wishes!
Sincerely
Xiaobing Zhou
March 29, 2024
Author Response File: Author Response.pdf
Reviewer 2 Report
Comments and Suggestions for Authors
The authors responded and corrected the article based on comments appropriately.
Comments on the Quality of English Language
Minor revision required.
Author Response
Dear Reviewer:
We would like to thank you very much for taking the time to review our manuscript entitled "Solid-state synthesis of SiCp-reinforced AZ91D composites: microstructure and reinforcement mechanisms" (manuscript no. metals-2925036) again and for giving us such valuable feedback. We are deeply honored by your recognition and support, and express our sincere respect for the professionalism and rigor you have demonstrated during the review process. Your professional suggestions not only pointed out the deficiencies in our study, but also provided us with directions for improvement. These suggestions are invaluable to us and will have a profound impact on our future research work.
We are very much looking forward to more academic exchanges and cooperation with you. We believe that with your guidance and help, we will make more progress in our research work.
Thank you again for your hard work and valuable comments!
All my best wishes!
Sincerely
Xiaobing Zhou
March 29, 2024
Round 3
Reviewer 1 Report
Comments and Suggestions for Authors
Almost done!
Author Response
Dear Reviewer:
Thank you very much for reviewing our manuscript entitled “Solid-State Synthesis of SiCp-Reinforced AZ91D Composites: Microstructure and Reinforcement Mechanisms” (Manuscript ID: metals-2925036) on your busy schedule and for giving us such professional feedback. We are deeply honored by your attention and support, and we recognize our shortcomings from your review. We would like to express our sincere respect for your professionalism and rigor in the review process. The directions and suggestions for improvement provided by you have enabled us to better focus on the core of our research and enhance the quality of our research.
We look forward to continuing our efforts in the future and receiving your guidance and support again.
Thank you again for your selfless dedication and professional review!
All my best wishes!
Sincerely
Xiaobing Zhou
April 4, 2024
