Frictional stability of pure and internally lubricated polyamides on a meso‐scale tribotester

Abstract

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to verify, experimentally, the sliding stability of cast polyamide samples under dry sliding in contact with different steel counterface roughnesses. The effect of catalyser (sodium or magnesium) and addition of internal oil or solid lubricants is investigated and a classification for coefficients of friction in relation to the polyamide intrinsic mechanical properties is discussed.Design/methodology/approachA new tribotester is designed for meso‐scale testing according to the elastic loading region of polymers. The reliability of the tribotester is verified by preliminary determination of the stick‐slip characteristics. Sliding tests for polyamide are done at 1.15‐5.15 N normal load and 0.125‐20 mm/s sliding velocity on steel counterfaces with roughness Ra=4 and 1.6 μm.FindingsPure polyamides sliding against rough steel show severe stick‐slip. The stick‐slip motion is eliminated in contact with smooth steel counterfaces. Magnesium catalysed polyamide has weaker mechanical properties and shows lower friction with better sliding stability compared to sodium catalysed polyamide. Internal oil lubricant is more efficient in reducing coefficients of friction than internal solid lubricants are. Surface energy measurements are related to coefficients of friction, showing the effect of internal lubrication on adhesion.Research limitations/implicationsPresent test results are very specific for the present tribotester configuration and should be further compared to macro‐scale testing. The choice of tribotest conditions strongly affects the sliding performance.Originality/valuePresent tests are done on the meso‐scale, being in between traditional macro‐scale testing and nano‐scale testing. It allows for low contact pressures avoiding the effects of frictional heating and relatively large surfaces areas including the effects of long‐range polymer structure such as internal lubrication.