The effect of SiC content on the tribocorrosion performance of spark plasma sintered Al–SiC nanocomposites

Abstract

As a follow-up study, the present work evaluates the tribocorrosion behavior of Al–SiC nanocomposites produced using spark plasma sintering. The tribocorrosion tests were carried out using a ball-on-disk tribometer with the sliding contact fully immersed in 3.5 wt% NaCl solution. Post-mortem characterization studies of the worn surfaces included scanning electron microscopy (SEM) coupled with an energy dispersive spectroscopy. From the results, oscillations in chronopotentiometry values characterize the in situ tribocorrosion behaviors of the composites. Shifts to the cathodic region at the beginning of sliding and immediate shift to the anodic region of the curve as sliding continues accounts for the oscillations in chronopotentiometry values. The SEM analyses infer the formation of adherent and modified tribolayers in the worn surfaces of the composites during sliding. The inert character and increasing resistance of the tribolayers enhance the tribocorrosion performance of the composites compared to the unreinforced Al alloy.