Friction and dry sliding wear behaviour of cermets

The friction and wear behaviour of cermets/steel rubbing pairs were investigated. Friction and wear tests were carried out using three different crèmets on the base of tungsten, titanium and chromium carbides under dry sliding conditions against steel disk (0.45% C). Sliding wear tests were carried out using modified block-on-ring equipment at a sliding speed of 2.2 m/s and normal load 40 N.It is shown that wear resistance and coefficient of friction depend on the type and chemical composition of the cermets. The WC–Co cermets have the highest wear resistance. The wear rate of WC–Co and TiC–NiMo cermets increased with increasing binder content in the cermets. The wear of Cr₃C₂–Ni cermets is more complicated and depends on the composition of cermets. The wear of WC–Co cermets is caused mainly by preferential removal of the cobalt binder, followed by fracture of the intergranular boundaries and fragmentation of the carbide grains. The main wear mechanism in the TiC–NiMo cermets is polishing (micro-abrasion) and adhesion, resulting in a low wear rate. The main wear mechanism of Cr₃C₂–Ni cermets involves thermal cracking and fatigue-related crushing of large carbide grains and carbide framework and also adhesion.     

Three-body abrasive wear of TiC–NiMo cermets

The mechanism of three-body abrasive wear of TiC-base cermets was studied. The wear rate of a series of cermets with different percentage of NiMo binder phase (20–60 wt%) was studied. Silica sand was used as an abrasive. The wear rate of the cermets decreases with the increase of TiC and Mo content, which corresponds to the increase in the bulk hardness. The post-run wear tracks of the worn blocks were analyzed with SEM. The material is removed by several processes such as extrusion and removal of the binder and also fractures of the carbide grains and the carbide network.     

Two-body dry abrasive wear of cermets

The present paper concerns the two-body dry abrasive wear phenomenon of a series of cermets on the base of titanium and chromium carbides with different composition, using a “block on abrasive grinding wheel” test machine. WC–Co hardmetals were used as reference material. Abrasive wear resistance of WC-base hardmetals is superior to that of TiC- and Cr₃C₂-base cermets. The wear coefficient of the cermets reduces with the increase of carbide content in the composites. The volume wear decreases with the increase in bulk hardness. At the first period volume wear of cermets increases linearly with the sliding distance up to the first 100 m; after that the alumina grits become blunt. Scanning electron microscopy examination of the wear tracks in the worn blocks suggests that abrasive wear mechanisms of different cermets are similar and occur through surface elastic-plastic and plastic deformation (grooving). The fracturing of bigger carbide grains and carbide framework the formation of sub-surface cracks by a fatigue process under repeated abrasion is followed by loss of small volumes of the material.     

Experimental setup for testing and mapping of high temperature abrasion and oxidation synergy

Performance and lifetime of engineering materials at high temperature are affected by degradation of a material under wear and corrosion to a great extent. To assess the material performance at high temperature, the most detrimental processes and their interactions should be known and understood for materials selection and design of new advanced materials. The present study introduces an experimental setup for testing and mapping of high temperature abrasion taking into consideration the process of oxidation. A new design of a test rig has been developed at Tallinn University of Technology to provide synergy study of wear and oxidation and to improve the effectiveness of control and monitoring the mechanisms of materials failure at room and high temperatures (up to 1000 °C). Methodology for assessment and mapping of the effects of abrasion and corrosion on materials performance are presented along with some results obtained for high temperature abrasion of titanium carbide- and chromium carbide-based cermets as well as for steel.     

Effect of Magnetic Oxidation and Surface Carbon Distribution on Friction and Wear Characteristics of 45 Steel under the DC Magnetic Field

Abstract

The sliding dry friction behaviors and wear properties of normalized 45 steel and annealed 45 steel under different magnetic field intensities were experimentally studied using a self-made HY-100 pin–disc friction and wear tester. The influence of a magnetic field on the friction and wear of 45 steel were also investigated by analyzing the microscopic friction surface and subsurface using a 3D shape analyzer and metallographic microscope. The experimental results show that the friction coefficient of the normalized 45 steel was greater than that of the annealed 45 steel under magnetic field. In addition, the results illustrate that the external magnetic field can effectively improve the wear performance of carbon steel. The wear rate of normalized 45 steel was lower than that of annealed 45 steel. The wear performance of normalized 45 steel was more significantly improved compared to annealed 45 steel with a magnetic field. Energy spectrum analysis indicated that the effect of the magnetic field on the degree of friction and oxidative wear of the normalized 45 steel was weaker than that of the annealed 45 steel, and the ratio of oxygen to iron and the oxidation area on the friction surface of the normalized 45 steel were smaller. It is believed that as an oxidation protectant, carbon reduces the oxidation wear of 45 steel. The carbon on the normalized 45 steel surface was uniformly distributed and the protective effect of friction surface was better. Therefore, the oxidation wear and oxide shedding were reduced and the wear performance was improved.     

Mechanical and tribological behavior of nanostructured copper–alumina cermets obtained by Pulsed Electric Current Sintering

Nanostructured Cu–Al₂O₃ powders obtained by the reduction of CuO with Al in a high energy ball mill were successfully consolidated by Pulsed Electric Current Sintering (PECS). The effect of the composition and microstructure of these PECS Cu–Al₂O₃ cermets on their strength was investigated. The friction and wear behavior of these cermets were studied under reciprocating sliding against corundum at 23 °C and 50% RH, and compared to the behavior of coarse grained PECS sintered pure copper. The effect of grain size on the coefficient of friction was masked by the formation of a surface tribolayer. The wear depth recorded on Cu–Al₂O₃ is lesser than half the one on coarse grained copper. Surface and subsurface deformation studied through FIB cross-sections showed that delamination and oxidative wear were active on Cu and Cu–Al₂O₃ cermets respectively under the current sliding test conditions. PECS Cu–Al₂O₃ cermets showed a good thermal stability even at 600 °C.     

Sliding wear of TiC–NiMo cermets

The friction and wear properties of TiC–NiMo/steel rubbing pairs were investigated under dry condition. The sliding wear tests were carried out on the testing device at a velocity of 2.2 m/s and a load of 40 N. The volume wear increases with increase of the sliding distance as predicted by Archard’s equation. The wear coefficient of the cermets reduces with the increase of TiC and Mo content in the composite. The study has shown that the coefficient of friction was approximately the same for all the samples. The main wear mechanism in the TiC–NiMo cermets was micro-abrasion (polishing) and adhesive wear. At the initial stages of wear, adhesive wear characteristics featured by mild scratching and plastic smearing were observed on the worn surface, but at the later stages, contact fatigue failure of a relatively thick surface layer takes place.     

Two body dry abrasive wear of TiC–NiMo cermets

Abstract

The present paper covers the two body dry abrasive wear of a series of titanium carbide base cermets with different amounts of NiMo binder phases (20–60 wt-%) using a 'block on abrasive grinding wheel' test machine. The wear coefficient of the cermets decreases with increasing TiC and Mo contents in the composite, which corresponds to an increase in bulk hardness. The volume loss increases with the increases in the sliding distance and the applied normal load, as predicted by the Rabinowitcz equation. The post-run wear tracks of the worn blocks were analysed by SEM to determine the wear mechanisms. The material is actually removed by several processes which scale the process of groove formation, including the formation of subsurface cracks by a fatigue process under repeated abrasion.     

Some aspects of solid particle erosion of cermets

The erosive wear resistance of cermets with different composition, structure and properties has been investigated. It was shown that the erosive wear resistance of cermets can not be estimated only by hardness, characterizing resistance to penetration. The differences in wear resistance between cermet materials with equal hardness levels can be attributed to differences in their resistance to fracture and fracture toughness. The mechanism of erosion depends first on testing conditions. The present paper discusses some features of the material removal process during particle-wall collision. Systematic studies of the influence of the impact variables on the collision process have been carried out.     

Amorphous diamond coating of tungsten carbide and titanium carbonitride for erosive slurry pump component service

Tungsten carbide spray coatings have become well established for resisting abrasion and erosion in pumps used in conventional oil production and in oil sands operations. To achieve additional benefits from the extreme wear resistance of tungsten carbide its use is being extended to solid forms for some critical components. Slightly harder titanium carbonitride-based cermets have much lower density and coefficient of thermal expansion and for these reasons are being considered as an alternative to tungsten carbide. PVD amorphous diamond coating also has potential to further increase the service life of selected pump parts fabricated from solid cermets. Micro-abrasion testing and single scratch and nano-indentation evaluation have been carried out on non-coated and PVD amorphous diamond coated WC-4.8% TaC–4.5% TiC/6% Co–1% Cr and TiCN-17% WC/8% Mo materials. Data obtained illustrate that the tungsten–carbide based product has superior wear properties to the titanium carbonitride material and that PVD amorphous diamond coating of both cermets enhanced wear resistance significantly and displayed potential for successful service application.     

Effect of temperature and load on three-body abrasion of cermets and steel

The effect of temperature and load on three-body abrasion resistance has been examined for stainless steel, Cr₃C₂-Ni cermet, plain WC-Co hardmetal and yttria stabilized zirconia doped WC-based composites. Series of tests at various tribo-conditions were performed on a recently developed device. Coefficient of friction and materials response to abrasive actions have been analyzed and positive effect of zirconia addition on materials wear resistance has been shown. The low wear rates of ZrO₂ containing cermets are due to lower susceptibility of zirconia to transgranular crack propagation, smaller mean free path between ceramic grains and formation of lubricating glazed silica-rich layer.     

The influence of surface oxidation on the wear resistance of cast iron

This paper reports a study of the influence of surface oxidation on the wear resistance of ductile iron, grey iron and vermicular iron during dry sliding friction. The mechanisms of wear are also reported. This study shows that the effect of surface oxidation (formed under normal atmospheric conditions) on the wear rate depends on the complex functions of graphite morphology and matrix structure. Generally the presence of surface oxidation decreases the wear rate of grey iron but increases the wear rate of ductile iron and vermicular iron when the cast iron has high hardness. This trend is reversed for low hardness cast iron.     

The relevance of wear-mechanism maps to mild-oxidational wear

The presence of oxygen in the environment in which a steel sliding system operates will promote a mild form of wear with wear debris consisting mainly of iron oxides. Of the oxidation-dominated mechanisms, mild-oxidational wear (the prefix describes the extent of oxidation and not the wear rate) has been most extensively investigated. In this paper, examples will be used to show that the wear-mechanism map for the unlubricated sliding of steels can adequately predict the occurrence of mild-oxidational wear and the trend of wear rates as well as describe the resultant features on the worn surfaces. It is also shown that this map is relevant to delamination wear and to test geometries other than the pin-on-disk configuration. It is suggested that the more-recently constructed wear maps for aluminium and magnesium alloys could similarly be used to predict the wear characteristics of these alloys during sliding.     

Mechanical properties and features of erosion of cermets

The erosive wear resistance of cermets with different composition, structure and properties has been investigated. It has been shown that cermets erosive wear resistance cannot be estimated only by hardness, characterised by resistance to penetration. The differences in wear resistance between cermet materials with equal hardness level can be attributed to differences in their resistance to fracture. The present paper discusses some features of the material removal process during the particle–wall collision. Solid particle erosion tests on eight materials have been performed using silicon carbide and silica abrasive particles within a range of erodent size of 0.1–0.3 mm, impact angles from 30 to 90° and particle velocity from 30 to 80 m s⁻¹. In order to clarify the details of the impact, the process of interaction of solid particles with cermet targets was studied using a laser Doppler anemometer (LDA) measuring technique. Systematic studies of the influence of the impact variables on the collision process have been carried out.     

Research on oxidation wear mechanism of the cast steels

The uni-directional pin-on-disk wear tests were performed in elevated-temperature air at 400 °C for the Cr–Mo–V cast steels with different compositions. Morphology, composition and structure of worn surfaces, oxidation films and matrix were examined using SEM, EDS, XRD and TEM. The relations between oxidation wear rate and matrix were studied. The mechanism of wear was clarified. Under elevated-temperature air at 400 °C, typical oxidation wear was presented in the cast steels. Oxidation of worn surface and fatigue delamination of oxide film proceed alternatively during sliding. As there are not coarse second phases in steel, oxide film is main factor in determining wear rate, which conforms to Quinn's oxidation wear theory. In this case, delamination of oxide film was found to take place inside oxide film or at interface of matrix and oxide film. This is classified as mild oxidation wear with lower wear rate. As coarse second phases exist in steel, the wear rate is strongly dependant on microstructures of matrix. In this case, oxide film delaminates from the inside of matrix under oxide film. This is classified as severe wear with high wear rate.     

不同方法表面改性碳纤维增强热塑性聚酰亚胺复合材料的摩擦磨损性能

采用硝酸氧化改性和涂层复合改性法分别对碳纤维(CF)进行了表面处理,并制备了CF增强热塑性聚酰亚胺(TPI)复合材料;对CF的表面形貌进行了观察,研究了表面改性方法对复合材料摩擦磨损性能的影响,并利用扫描电子显微镜观察了磨损表面形貌。结果表明:硝酸氧化改性增大了CF的表面粗糙度,随处理时间的延长粗糙度增大;经涂层复合改性后,CF表面包覆了一层聚酰亚胺(PI),保护了CF并提高了其与基体界面的结合强度;经表面改性后的CF增强TPI复合材料的摩擦磨损性能均得到提高,以涂层复合改性的效果最好;硝酸氧化改性后的CF在摩擦过程中易断裂,复合材料的磨损形貌以磨粒磨损为主,而涂层复合改性后的CF断裂得到抑制,与基体结合更为牢固,磨损表面较为平整。     

A discussion of oxidation, oxide thickness and oxide transfer in wear

Wear is defined as a set of processes of which adhesion, transfer, abrasion, fatigue and oxidation may be some of the constituent processes; these effect transformations of matter from one state to another. The final transformation in wear is attrition in which free debris particles are formed.

Oxidation in the wear of metals is discussed, in particular for circumstances in which an oxide layer thick enough for the oxidation rate to be inversely dependent on oxide thickness is formed i.e. the standard relationship (outside the wear situation) between the oxide thickness and elapsed time is parabolic.

It is shown that the basic factors determining the wear process are the mechanical characteristics of the oxide layer and that the oxidation process, while important, is a secondary influence.

Theoretical considerations show that the oxidation temperature may be lower than the contact temperature, even for oxidation nominally at the contact regions. Also, an oxidation rate in wear may decrease with increasing oxidation temperature, as is sometimes observed in practice. This may be due to an increase in the thickness to which the oxide layer can grow in wear, when the oxidation temperature increases.     

A comparative study of tribological behavior of microarc oxidation and hard-anodized coatings

Microarc oxidation (MAO), a novel coating technique capable of depositing dense, hard ceramic composite coatings on aluminium and its alloys, has the potential to replace conventional hazardous anodizing techniques. However, the emergence of such a scenario depends strongly on the properties and performance of MAO coatings in comparison to hard-anodized coatings. In order to facilitate such a comparative investigation, a 6061 T6 aluminium alloy was employed as the substrate and the coatings were deposited through microarc oxidation (MAO) and hard anodizing techniques. The tribological performance of the coatings was evaluated using dry-sand abrasive wheel tests at different normal loads and solid-particle erosion wear tests at different particle velocities and impact angles by employing silica as erodent. The hard-anodized coatings reduced the abrasive wear rate of 6061 Al alloy by a factor of 2, while the MAO coatings reduced the wear rate by a factor of 12-30. Under erosion conditions, the overall wear rate of MAO coatings is identical to that of bare alloy, whereas the hard-anodized coatings exhibit 10 times higher erosion rate.     

AlN含量对Ti(C,N)基金属陶瓷组织和性能的影响

研究了AlN添加量(0,1%,2%,3%,质量分数)对Ti(C,N)基金属陶瓷硬度、抗弯强度以及抗氧化性能的影响。结果表明:不同AlN添加量下的金属陶瓷主要由Ti(C,N)、Ni3Al和镍相组成;随着AlN添加量增加,金属陶瓷的硬度增大,抗弯强度先增大后减小,AlN添加量为2%时达到峰值;与未添加AlN相比,添加2%AlN金属陶瓷的氧化质量增加较慢,氧化膜结构更致密,抗氧化性能更好。     

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.