Tribo-metallographic behavior of high carbon steels in dry sliding: I. Wear mechanisms and their transition

Abstract

The wear mechanisms and their transitions of 52100 and 1080 steels with various microstructures in dry sliding were systematically studied by wear testing and SEM observations of worn surfaces and wear particles. The results show that there are three dominant wear mechanisms, i.e., mild wear characterized by oxidation, severe wear characterized by adhesion and delamination, and melting wear, appeared in succession with increasing normal load and/or speed. The transition of wear mechanisms depends mainly upon the conditions of testing. The microstructure of steels have almost no remarkable effect on the general law of the transition of wear mechanisms. On the basis of calculating the wear rate and analyzing the morphology of worn surfaces and wear particles, a criterion was suggested, by which one can easily identify the transition from mild wear to severe wear.