Tribological Properties and Thermal Stability of Various Types of Polyimide Films

Thermal exposure experiments at 315° and 350°C were conducted on seven different types of polyimide film to determine which was the most thermally stable and adherent. The polyimides were ranked according to the rate of which they lost weight and how well they adhered to the metallic substrate. Friction and wear experiments were conducted at 25°C (room temperature) on films bonded to 440C HT stainless steel. Friction, film wear rates, wear mechanists, and transfer films of the seven films were investigated and compared. The polyimides were found to fall into two groups as far as friction and wear properties were concerned. Group I had lower friction but an order of magnitude higher film wear rate than did group II. The wear mechanism was predominately adhesive, but the size of the wear particles was larger for group I polyimides.