Fundamental studies on the brake friction of resin-based friction materials

The effects of various factors on brake friction were studied on the braking of a cast iron disk by small brake specimens made of resin, resin-asbestos composites and three-component composites. When the disk temperature rises, the resin-based composites containing asbestos and high melting point additive exhibit considerably lower friction during braking following high friction in the initial braking stage. The initial high friction is attributed to the deformation resistance of the resin in the composite. Low friction is attributed to the lubricating action of resin decomposition products in the neighbourhood of the filler raised to a high temperature by frictional heating. Increase of friction toward the end of braking is mainly due to increase of the true contact area as the frictional speed decreases. Variation of the average frictional coefficient during braking with load and the initial speed is generally small. There is no correlation between the mechanical properties and the brake frictional behaviour of resin-based composites.