To investigate the thermal stability of a shot-peened specimen and ensure the reliability operation under high temperatures, CNT/Al-Cu-Mg composites were treated by shot peening (SP) and the isothermal aging treatment. The heating temperatures were 100, 150, 200, and 250 °C. Changes in surface residual stress and the distribution along the depth were investigated. The microstructure changes were analyzed by XRD and observed by TEM. Changes in mechanical properties were characterized by microhardness. The results show that the compressive residual stress (CRS) release and the microstructure changes mainly occurred at the initial stage of heating treatment. After 128 min of isothermal aging treatment at 250 °C, the surface CRS released 91.9% and the maximum CRS released 80.9%, the surface domain size increased by 222%, and the microstrain and microhardness decreased by 49% and 27.3%, respectively. The reinforcement effect introduced by SP basically disappeared. A large number of second-phase particles, such as CNT, Al₂Cu, and Al₄C₃, were anchored at grain boundaries, hindering dislocation movement and enhancing the thermal stability of the material. Isothermal aging treatment at 100 °C and 150 °C for a duration of 32 min is a reliable circumstance for maintaining SP reinforcement.

Carbon fiber-reinforced thermoplastic composites (CFRTPs) have attracted increasing attention in aerospace, transportation, marine engineering, and other advanced manufacturing fields owing to their high specific mechanical properties, impact resistance, weldability, reprocessibility, and potential recyclability. However, the high melt viscosity of thermoplastic matrices, the permeability limitations associated with different reinforcement architectures, and the chemical inertness of carbon fiber surfaces continue to restrict resin impregnation, interfacial bonding, defect control, and forming stability. This review systematically summarizes recent advances in CFRTP manufacturing from the perspective of material-derived processing challenges and interface engineering. First, representative thermoplastic matrix systems and reinforcement architectures are discussed, with emphasis on their effects on processability, crystallization behavior, resin flow, and load transfer. Subsequently, six major forming processes, including hot stamping, injection molding, pultrusion, filament winding, automated fiber placement, and additive manufacturing, are critically compared in terms of processing principles, typical defects, technical limitations, and application boundaries. Particular attention is given to process-induced quality issues such as voids, wrinkling, springback, fiber breakage, warpage, insufficient consolidation, and weak interlayer bonding. Finally, interface engineering strategies, including chemical surface modification, interfacial structural design, and functional interlayer design, are reviewed as practical routes to improve wetting, shorten impregnation pathways, and enhance fiber–matrix load transfer in high-viscosity thermoplastic systems. This review highlights that CFRTP manufacturing should be understood as a coupled materials–processing–interface problem rather than a single forming operation. Future development is discussed with emphasis on reproducible manufacturing, processability-oriented materials, scalable interface engineering, predictive modeling, and standardized structural validation.

Ni-W-Y₂O₃ composite coatings were electrodeposited from a sulfate citrate electrolyte incorporating Y₂O₃ particles of three different sizes: 50 nm, 1 μm, and 2 μm. This study systematically investigates the impact of Y₂O₃ particle size on the microstructure, microhardness, corrosion resistance, and wear resistance of the composite coatings. The incorporation of Y₂O₃ particles leads to notable grain refinement, with the crystallite size decreasing from 31.8 nm for the pure Ni W coating to 17.3 nm, 19.0 nm, and 20.1 nm for the C-50 nm, C-1 μm, and C-2 μm coatings, respectively. Correspondingly, the microhardness increases from 540.2 HV for the unreinforced coating to 732.5 HV, 641.0 HV, and 629.5 HV for the C-50 nm, C-1 μm, and C-2 μm coatings, respectively. In terms of corrosion resistance, the C-50 nm coating exhibits the best performance in both acidic and neutral media, with the lowest corrosion current density of 3.72 μA/cm² in 10 wt.% H₂SO₄ and 3.53 μA/cm² in 3.5 wt.% NaCl. In contrast, micron-sized particles show limited improvement in acidic media and even degrade the corrosion resistance in neutral NaCl solution, where the corrosion current density increases to 7.68 μA/cm² and 7.74 μA/cm² for the C-1 μm and C-2 μm coatings, respectively. The wear resistance of the composite coatings is significantly enhanced by the incorporation of Y₂O₃ particles, with the wear rate decreasing from 17.75 × 10⁻⁶ mm³ N⁻¹ m⁻¹ for the pure Ni-W coating to 5.65 × 10⁻⁶ mm³ N⁻¹ m⁻¹ for the C-50 nm coating. The presence of Y₂O₃ particles transitions the wear mechanism from predominantly adhesive wear to a combination of adhesive and abrasive wear. These results demonstrate that the particle size of Y₂O₃ plays a critical role in determining the microstructure and overall performance of Ni-W-Y₂O₃ composite coatings, with nano-sized particles offering the most significant improvements.