Experimental Investigation on Adhesive Wear Behavior of Al–Si6Cu/Ni Coated SiC Composite Under Unlubricated Condition

Abstract

This paper studies the dry sliding wear behavior of Al–Si6Cu/Ni coated SiC metal matrix composite fabricated using stir casting technique. The SiC reinforcement particles coated with Ni by electroless coating were incorporated at 10-wt% into the metal matrix. The wear behavior was studied on unlubricated pin-on-disc tribometer based on design of experiments modelled using Response Surface Methodology for various sliding parameters such as applied load, sliding velocity and sliding distance. The minimum wear rate condition and optimum condition of the parameters were detected from the developed model. The analysis of variance showed the influence of each parameter on wear rate. The confirmation experiments were done to ensure the validity of the developed regression model. The worn-out surface morphologies of the metal composite were studied using scanning electron microscope analysis. From the experimental results it was found that the parameter which influenced the wear behavior was applied load followed by sliding velocity and distance. The confirmatory experiments confirmed the RSM’s design as precise statistical model in developing regression results with less error. The surface plot of wear characteristics showed that irrespective of the conditions of sliding velocity and distance the wear rate increased on increasing the load. The wear rate exhibited a non linear relationship with sliding velocity and distance. The scanning electron microscopy revealed that higher material deformation was observed at higher load resulting in severe wear of the composite material.