Development of a Wear Test Apparatus for Screening Bearing-Flange Materials in Computer Tape Drives

An accelerated-wear test apparatus was developed to screen bearing-flange materials. During the test, tape edges rub against two flat test specimens (which are easy to fabricate). The clamping arrangement of the specimens provides the same contact with the tape during repeated tests. The tape is loaded against the sample by deadweight loading, which ensures constant loading, irrespective of tape guiding. Acceleration in wear is obtained by increasing the load at the interface of the tape and the test specimen. Wear tests were conducted on several metals, ceramics and cermets, coatings, and surface treatments. We find that ceramics and cermets have the lowest wear.