FEM analysis of erosive wear

Surface damage caused by the impact of dispersed particles in gas or liquid flow is called “erosion”. Much attention has been paid to this phenomenon as one of the most serious problems to be solved, particularly concerning pipe-bends or valves in pneumatic conveying systems. But the phenomena of erosive wear are so complicated and vary depending on the factors of not only the kinds of material, hardness, shapes, sizes and mechanical properties of the particles, but also of blasting angles and velocity.

For the purpose of this study, mild steel was prepared and erosion wear tests were carried out. Steel grits were impacted against target materials at different incident angles. The results showed that the wear losses varied markedly as a function of the impact angles, and that the maximum wear occurred at specific angles. Maximum wear occurred at 20–30° for mild steel, and 60° for ductile iron. This impact angle dependence of wear was simulated by Tabor’s theory and FEM which could analyze the plastic deformation of alloy surface as a result of a single particle impact. In the case of both mild steel and ductile cast iron, it was found that the impact angles play a very important and valid role in the corrosion process.