Friction and wear thresholds of alumina-chromium steel pairs sliding at high speeds under dry and wet conditions

Friction and wear of alumina sliding against two chromium steels and against itself under dry and wet conditions are reported. Tests were performed using a pin-on-disc device. Loads and speeds, respectively, ranged from 5 to 300 N and 3 to 10.7 m/s. The evolution of the friction coefficient and wear rates point to the existence of a load threshold correlated with the sudden degradation of the ceramic under both wet and dry conditions. Below the threshold, the ceramic remains undamaged while steels exhibit a moderate wear rate. Worn surfaces show thickening metallic transfer on the ceramic and abrasion grooves on steels. Above the threshold, the ceramic damage is induced by grain boundaries failure which leads to a coarse roughness and the release of abrasive particles. The circulation of the latter increases the steel wear and reduces the metallic transfer thickness on the ceramic. Water in the contact zone significantly lowers the threshold value and the friction coefficient value. The mechanical, thermal and chemical effects of load, speed and water are discussed with regard to damage undergone by the sliding bodies. A particular emphasis is focused on the calculation of average and maximum temperatures occuring in the contact area in relation to ceramic grain boundary damage.     

Tribological behaviour of colloidally processed sialon ceramics sliding against steel under dry conditions

Advanced structural ceramics are presently used in several tribological applications such as precision instrument bearings, water pumps, automotive engine parts and cutting tools inserts. In the present work, the tribological behaviours of colloidally processed and pressureless sintered sialon ceramics with different phases ( and ) have been studied, aiming at increasing the industrial applications of sialon ceramics. The friction and wear behaviour of sialon ceramics against steel DIN-Ck45K were investigated using a pin-on-disk tribometer under dry conditions. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and energy dispersion spectroscopy (EDS) were used to analyse the worn surfaces of the sialon ceramics. Under the conditions used, sialon ceramics exhibited a typical mild wear (10^-6 mm³ N^-1 m^-1) and the dominant wear mechanisms present were adhesive and abrasion. The results confirmed that colloidal processing and pressureless sintering are effective methods to prepare wear resistant sialon ceramic components.     

Wear behavior of SiC particulate reinforced aluminum composites sliding against steel balls under dry and lubricated conditions

Wear behavior of Al–Si alloys reinforced with SiC particulate has been investigated under dry and lubricated reciprocating sliding conditions using a ball-on-block wear test method. It was shown that in the dry sliding wear of the composite/steel ball system, the wear mechanism of the composite was predominantly adhesive. With further sliding motion, delamination and abrasive wear occurred as a result of fracture and debonding of the SiC particles. Under lubricated conditions, the wear rate of the composite was drastically reduced due to the presence of the lubricant, and a boundary lubrication condition existed and dominated the normal wear process. The debonding of the SiC particles from the matrix of the composite was a predominant factor in determining the wear loss of the composite in the boundary lubrication sliding process. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Wear of spray deposited Al–6Cu–Mn alloy under dry sliding conditions

The dry sliding wear of spray deposited Al–6Cu–Mn alloy was studied as a function of applied load in the range of 5–400 N. The variation of wear rate with applied load was obtained, from which four regions can be observed. On the basis of observations and analyses on the worn surface, the worn subsurface, the wear debris and friction coefficient, wear mechanism in different regions has been identified. Two wear regimes, i.e. mild and severe wear, were displayed in the entire applied load range. The transition from mild to severe wear occurred at a critical load. Mild wear involves three regions in the wear rate vs. load variation, and the wear in each region was controlled by different wear mechanism. With increasing load, the dominant wear mechanism in the period of mild wear displays successively oxidative wear, delamination and subsurface-cracking assisted adhesive wear. Severe wear was operated by the adhesive wear mechanism and the wear debris was formed by the shear fracture of subsurface material of the pin. The transition from mild to severe wear depended on the strength of the material of the pin adjacent to the contact surface and the strain-induced shear stress created by applied load.     

The effect of silicon content and morphology on the wear of aluminium-silicon alloys under dry and lubricated sliding conditions

Improvement in the efficiency of the internal combustion engine has resulted in the increased usage of aluminium alloys and, in particular, aluminium-silicon as a substitute for cast iron. Despite the wide use of such materials in tribological environments little knowledge is available on the wear resistance of aluminium-silicon alloys. This paper investigates the wear performance of a range of binary aluminium-silicon alloys produced by a novel melt-spray technique. In addition, samples of the 11wt% silicon alloy were produced by conventional casting methods to elucidate the influence of silicon morphology on wear resistance. Pin-on-ring wear tests were carried out under dry and boundary-lubricated conditions. Surface analysis showed a similar wear mechanism under both conditions, these being: (1) oxidative and (2) metallic wear. Under boundary-lubricated conditions the load at which the transition to metallic wear occurred was increased. Raising the silicon content of the alloy was reflected in an increase in both wear resistance and transition load. Under dry sliding conditions the wear rate of the 11wt% alloy increased with a reduction in the silicon particle size, whereas under boundary-lubricated conditions the reverse was observed and the sand-cast alloy exhibited superior performance.     

Wear of aligned silicon nitride under dry sliding conditions

The wear behaviour of textured silicon nitride (Si₃N₄) ceramics with aligned microstructures was analyzed under abrasive wear conditions. Dry reciprocating self-mated ball-on-flat wear tests were performed to study the influence of different microstructural plane/orientation combinations on the Si₃N₄ tribological behaviour. Textured materials showed superior wear resistance than non-textured reference Si₃N₄ for the whole range of loads and contact pressures, 5–50 N and 1.7–3.6 GPa, respectively, with an increase of about 70% for the maximum applied load. Within textured materials, the plane perpendicular to the extruding direction exhibited a 50% higher wear resistance (4 × 10^?5 mm³ N^?1 m^?1) than the parallel plane where the elongated grains were aligned. The severe wear process involved debonding, fracture and debris formation mechanisms. The progress of this sequence depended on the particular microstructure of each plane/orientation combination. A relationship between abrasive wear resistance and selected microstructural parameters has been established.     

The wear of wrought aluminium alloys under dry sliding conditions

The sliding wear response of several wrought aluminium alloys (2124, 3004, 5056 and 6092) against a high purity alumina (99.9%) counterface was investigated, at a fixed sliding speed of 1 m/s and a load range of 23–140 N. The counterface was chosen so as to minimise the chemically driven aspects of adhesive wear. Severe wear was observed at all loads, with specific wear rates ranging from 0.37×10⁻⁴ to 2.37×10⁻⁴ mm³/N m. In all cases a mechanically mixed layer (MML) was formed, principally from severely work hardened aluminium alloy, but also including fine alumina particles. The thickness and morphology of the layer depended strongly on alloy composition, but the specific wear rate did not depend on the MML properties in a simple manner. The surface work hardening characteristics differed between alloys, but as with the MML, there was no simple relationship between surface work hardening characteristics and specific wear rate. The main correlation was found between the normalised wear rate and normalised pressure, which implies that the hardness of the starting aluminium alloy is the critical variable.     

Modelling sliding wear: From dry to wet environments

Corrosive species in various forms exist widely in the environment and can significantly affect wear behaviour of materials, usually accelerating wear. Under conditions where the environments are seemingly non-deleterious in terms of corrosivity, some species from the environment can still affect the tribological behaviour of materials. It is thus extremely important to recognise the roles of reactive species in affecting the tribological processes and to understand the processes of tribo-corrosion interactions. In this paper, the mechanisms of wear debris generation and the roles of reactive species in the generation of wear debris during sliding wear in gaseous or aqueous environments are discussed. The effect of environment on the development of wear-protective layers is described. Based on the proposed mechanisms, mathematical models for sliding wear in both dry and aqueous environments are outlined, and the validity of the models is assessed against experimental data in sliding conditions.     

Friction and wear of highly stressed thermoplastic bearings under dry sliding conditions

The friction and wear behavior of sliding bearings made from high temperature thermoplastics was investigated to determine the possibility of dry sliding applications. A test apparatus for plain bearing testing was designed and built to enable load, speed, and temperature to be controlled and temperature, friction and wear to be continuously monitored.Bulk material bearings (polyaryletherketone-based composites and neat polybenzimidazole) and metal-thermoplastic compound bearings with a sliding layer of polyetheretherketone were investigated. Their suitability for dry sliding bearing applications was assessed using the values of friction coefficient, wear rate and friction induced temperature.In general, the operating performance is mainly influenced by the operating conditions and the precise construction of the bearing. A fiber reinforcement of the thermoplastic matrix is necessary at high loads, whereas it is unnecessary at low loads. A further increase of the operational limits is made possible by improving the heat conduction from the contact area, as comparison with results of pin-on-disk investigations indicates. The materials tested provide operation of dry sliding bearings to temperatures over 200°C.     

Tribological behaviour of carbide-free bainitic steel under dry rolling/sliding conditions

The dry rolling/sliding wear behaviour of Si alloyed carbide free bainitic steel austempered at different temperatures and sliding distances has been evaluated. 60SiCr7 spring steel samples were austempered in a salt bath maintained at 250, 300 and 350 °C respectively for 1 h. Rolling with 5% sliding wear tests were performed using self mated discs for three different test cycles, namely 6000, 18,000 and 30,000 cycles. The aim was to study the wear performance of the 60SiCr7 steel with a carbide-free microstructure containing different amounts of retained austenite. An in-depth microstructural characterization has been carried out before and after the wear tests in order to link the wear behaviour to the microstructure of each sample. The wear resistance has been expressed by means of the specific wear calculated from the mass loss after the tests. The worn surfaces were analysed by scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction. Microhardness profiles were also obtained in order to analyse strain-hardening effects beneath the contact surfaces. The results indicate that the material with highest hardness—the one austempered at 250 °C—exhibited the lowest wear rate in every case. It was also observed that the hardness increment and thickness of the hardened layer increases with increasing the austempering temperature and number of test cycles. Finally, the results appear to indicate that the initial roughness of the samples has no major effect in the wear rate of the samples above 2500 cycles. The higher wear performance of the sample austempered at 250 °C has been attributed to its superior mechanical properties provided by its finer microstructure. It has been evidenced that all samples undergo the TRIP phenomenon since, after wear; no retained austenite could be detected by XRD.     

Effect of rubber on tribological behaviors of polyamide 66 under dry and water lubricated sliding

The friction and wear behaviors of polyamide 66 (PA 66) and rubber-filled PA 66 (PA 66/SEBS-g-MA) composites were investigated on a block-on-wheel model friction and wear tester under dry sliding and water lubricating conditions. In order to further understand the wear mechanisms, the worn surfaces and scraps of samples were analyzed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and differential scanning calorimeter (DSC). The experimental results indicated that the wear mass loss and the friction coefficient of PA 66 decreased with the addition of rubber particles. The friction coefficients of PA 66 and PA 66/SEBS-g-MA composites under water lubricating condition are lower than those under dry sliding condition, but the wear mass losses are higher than those under dry sliding condition. The main wear mechanisms under dry sliding condition are the plastic deformation and mechanical microploughing. Whereas the main wear mechanisms under water lubricating condition are the mechanical microploughing and abrasive wear.     

Friction and wear properties of Kevlar pulp reinforced epoxy composites under dry sliding condition

In this work, the friction and wear properties of Kevlar pulp reinforced epoxy composites against GCr15 steel under dry sliding condition were evaluated on a reciprocating ball-on-block UMT-2MT tribometer. The effects of Kevlar pulp content on tribological properties of the composites were investigated. The worn surface morphologies of neat epoxy and its composites were examined by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and the wear mechanisms discussed. The results show that the incorporation of Kevlar pulp into epoxy contributed to improve the friction and wear behavior considerably. The maximum wear reduction was obtained when the content of Kevlar pulp is 40 vol%. The friction coefficient of epoxy and its composites increased with load while increase in the sliding frequency induced a reverse effect. Fatigue wear and scuffing were notable for the neat epoxy. The fatigue cracks were greatly abated when the filler content was 40 vol%. The wear grooves appeared on the worn surface at higher filler content.     

Evaluating and predicting durability of bonded solid lubricant coatings under fretting conditions

Fretting wear is a common failure at contact surfaces of tight assemblies in industries, such as those of transport, power transmission and nuclear power station. Using friction reduction coatings is one of the most effective methods to palliate fretting failure. However, in view of numerous available coatings, it is still a tough task to evaluate them and to select the optimum one for a given application. In this paper, based on the investigation of fretting behaviors of three bonded solid lubricant coatings, an initial maximal dissipated energy density (Ed_0 max ini) approach and a local Archard factor (K_A0) approach were suggested to evaluate and predict coating durability. The lifetime of each coating under different values of test parameters can be fitted by one master curve. The master curves of a coating may be used to predict the coating lifetime only by running a new test for few cycles under relevant test conditions. For a given test condition, the durability of coatings can be easily evaluated by comparing their K_A0 master curves. Ed_0 max ini master curves include comprehensive tribological performance, which is helpful for coating selection.     

Tribological behavior of Al–Si–SiCp composites/automobile brake pad system under dry sliding conditions

Tribological behavior of stir-cast Al–Si/SiC_p composites against automobile brake pad material was studied using Pin-on-Disc tribo-tester. The Al-metal matrix composite (Al-MMC) material was used as disc, whereas the brake pad material forms the pin. It has been found that both wear rate and friction coefficient vary with both applied normal load and sliding speed. With increase in the applied normal load, the wear rate was observed to increase whereas the friction coefficient decreases. However, both the wear rate and friction coefficients were observed to vary proportionally with the sliding speed. During the wear tests, formation of a tribo-layer was observed, presence of which can affect the wear behavior, apart from acting as a source of wear debris. Tribo-layer formed over the worn disc surfaces was found to be heterogeneous in nature. Morphology and topography of worn surfaces and debris were studied using scanning electron microscope (SEM). Chemical composition of different wear products was obtained using electron probe micro analyzer (EPMA) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) techniques. Possible wear mechanisms operative in Al-MMC—brake pad tribo-couple have been discussed.     

Friction and wear of carbon steel near T1-transition under dry sliding

The wear phenomenon of metals under dry sliding is, generally, divided into two modes of severe and mild wear. A discontinuous transition between the wear modes often takes place in a certain load range. The T₁-transition is usually observed at lower levels of load or sliding velocity. There is a great difference in wear rate between severe and mild wear. This indicates that the occurrence of severe wear should be avoided, especially in the field of machine design to prevent energy loss, occurrence of noise and vibration, and life reduction of machines and their components. Therefore, it is important for machine designers to know the relationship between friction and wear and the difference in properties of the wear surfaces in the two wear modes. In this study, wear tests of 0.35% C steel in contact with itself under constant load were conducted in moist air at various contact loads under dry sliding. The friction and wear were measured continuously throughout each test. After the tests, the relationship between friction and wear and the difference in properties of the wear surfaces were investigated in each wear mode. From the results, the upper and lower critical loads (P_acr and P_Acr) appeared between severe and mild wear. The phenomenon of zero wear has been newly found in the early period at very low loads. The zero wear continued for a long sliding distance and then changes to mild wear. The critical load between zero wear and mild wear is defined as P_zerowear. The load was changed once in a step-wise manner from low to high levels in process of test. Since the rubbing history under mild wear condition at the low load in the first stage affected the properties of wear surface, the wear mode at the high load in the second stage changed from ‘mild wear’ to ‘quasi-mild wear’ having a low rate. From the relationship between sliding distance necessary for the appearance of quasi-mild wear and contact load in the first stage, the boundary curve between severe wear and quasi-mild wear in the second stage is hyperbolic. This curve gradually approaches P_zerowear with decreasing contact load. Thus, P_zerowear is one of the important critical loads for elucidating the test results under varying load.     

Tribological investigation of commercially sintered steels under dry sliding conditions against austenitic steel

In this study the wear and friction of uncoated sintered steels, their relationship with microstructure and toughness when tested against austenitic steel were investigated. The metallographic investigation and the quantitative testing are interrelated in such a way that one can explain the other, and together they explain the wear behaviour of the sintered parts. The paper identifies the main wear mechanisms in this particular type of testing for the investigated materials. For the same materials, the paper also proves in quantitative terms (for the first time) the correlation between material fracture toughness and its wear behaviour - a correlation demonstrated before for other materials by theoretical studies.     

Tribological studies of coated pistons sliding against cylinder liners under laboratory test conditions

The presence of coatings and surface topography play an important role in the tribological performance of sliding components. Depending on the coating used, it is possible to reduce friction and/or reduce wear. However, although there may be low friction and wear‐resistant coatings suitable for use in pistons, some coatings may hinder the tribological performance by changing the lubrication regime or by preventing additives from their intended function through chemical mechanisms. In this work, piston skirt segments extracted from a commercial aluminium alloy piston were coated with a diamond‐like carbon (DLC) coating, a graphite–resin coating or a nickel–polytetrafluoroethylene (Ni–PTFE) coating and were tribologically tested using a reciprocating laboratory test rig against commercial grey cast iron liner segments. The tribological tests used commercial synthetic motor oil at a temperature of 120 °C with a 20 mm stroke length at a reciprocating frequency of 2 Hz. Results showed that the graphite–resin coating, although it may serve as a good break‐in coating, wears rapidly. The Ni–PTFE coating showed friction reduction, whereas the DLC coating wore off quickly due to its small thickness. Furthermore, the higher hardness of the DLC coating relative to the cast iron liner surface led to pronounced changes on the liner counterface by polishing. In contrast with the uncoated piston skirt segments, all of the coatings prevented the formation of a visible tribochemical film on the cast iron surface. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Functional behaviour of PVD coatings under sliding and rolling stress conditions

Whereas wear-resistant PVD coatings are well established in the field of metalcutting, and the functional and tribological behaviour of these coatings is well known under such conditions, PVD coatings are used only occasionally in mechanical engineering. The reason for this seems to be the lack of information concerning the functional behaviour of these coatings in closed tribosystems. To evaluate new areas of application together with optimised coating compounds, model wear tests were performed under sliding, rolling and slip-rolling stress conditions. In addition, the test parameters, such as sliding speed, load, ambient temperature, and number of revolutions were varied, as were the coating compounds and their thicknesses. The results obtained show that friction and wear of PVD coatings are both strongly influenced by the kind of stress and the test parameters themselves. Coatings that perform well under certain test conditions can break down quickly under some other stress conditions. TiN coatings, for example, which display low friction and wear under sliding friction, fail under rolling conditions very shortly afterwards.     

Temperature maps for pin-on-disk configuration in dry sliding

Bulk and flash temperature maps are obtained by using a method incorporating an improved model for the individual real contact area. It is shown that the proposed method generates results which favourably compare with the experimental data available in the literature.     

Wear behaviour of forging steels with different microstructure during dry sliding

Sliding wear behaviour of two types medium carbon microalloyed steels containing various microstructures was investigated on a 320 mesh SiC paper at a sliding speed of 0.33 m/s with a load of 6 N and sliding duration of 4 min under dry sliding conditions (the sliding distance, 80 m). The experimental results showed that the different microstructures cause a great influence on the wear resistance performance of the steels. Water quenched samples with martensite structure have the highest hardness and wear resistance performance. That is because, water cooled samples contained higher amount of carbon in the solid solution. On the other hand, air or sand cooling from forging temperature results in a decrement of hardness and wear resistance in steel-1 and steel-2. However, air cooled samples showed slightly higher wear resistance than sand cooled samples due to finer grain sizes and the larger pearlite and/or precipitation contributions.