Influence of alumina powder (Al2O3) on mechanical and tribological properties of injection molded polyoxymethylene composites

Abstract

Composite materials combine two or more materials with mechanical and chemical properties that differ from one another. The matrix is one element, while the reinforcement is another. In this study, alumina powder (Al2O3) is used as filler while polyoxymethylene (POM) is used as the matrix. The injection moulding method is used to produce the composite specimens in this investigation. Prior to injection moulding, composite pellets are made using a twin-screw extruder. Compounding is done to produce a homogeneous mixture. The injection moulding method is the most efficient solution for mass-producing material with the slightest faults in samples. The advantage of injection moulding is that it only takes a few minutes to complete a cycle.The composite was put through mechanical, tribological, and morphological testing as part of this investigation to determine its strength. Tensile, flexural, and compression tests are examples of mechanical tests. A wear test is conducted with the help of a pin-on-disc setup. The specific wear rate of all the samples is calculated. The SEM is done to study the surface of the sample after the tensile test. From the tensile test, it is found that with the increase in the amount of tensile strength of composite decreases. The maximum flexural strength (180.92 N/mm2) is obtained for a sample with 1% of alumina powder. The maximum compression strength (91.88 N/mm2) is achieved for a sample with 4% of alumina powder. The SEM image shows the brittle failure of a composite.