Debris control in dry wear testing

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In a conventional wear test, debris accumulated from the repeated sliding of the wear pin over the same track dominates the nature of the interaction between the pin and the countersurface. Brush materials to remove the wear debris have been investigated so that more basic interactions between the pin and the countersurface can take place. The most successful brush was made from layers of Kimwipe (Kimberly-Clark of Canada Ltd.) laboratory tissue formed into a disc 8 cm in diameter and 2 cm thick. The Kimwipe disc was rotated under a load of 15 N at a frequency of 1 Hz across the wear track on the countersurface. The appearances and wear rates of steel 1040 and Admiralty brass pins worn in the presence and absence of debris were very different. Pins worn in the absence of debris readily assumed the characteristics of the pins worn in the presence of debris when debris was allowed to accumulate on the wear track. The mode of wear in debris-free conditions is not known at present, but this mode is worthy of further consideration. Worn surfaces are relatively flat and can appear metallic or covered with a light coat of oxide. Wear rates of oxide-coated pins can be either faster or considerably slower than those of uncoated pins. However, under all conditions debris-free wear involves considerably less subsurface metal flow than that involved when debris is present.