Tribological Behavior and Wear Mechanism of Ni-Nano TiO2 Composite Sintered Material at Room Temperature and 600 °C

Abstract

In the present work, Ni-10 wt.%TiO2 self-lubricating composite sinters were prepared via a powder metallurgy. Commercially available powder of nickel and non-commercial nanometric titanium dioxide (approx. 30 nm size) produced by the microwave method was used. The produced sinters were characterized by evenly distributed TiO2 particles in a nickel matrix and a hardness of approx. 110 HV5. Pin-on-disc wear tests at room temperature and 600 °C were carried out. Light Microscopy (LM), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy (EDS), and X-Ray Diffraction (XRD) were used to characterize the wear mechanism of sintered materials. The coefficient of friction of the Ni-10 wt.% TiO2—Inconel®625 friction pair tested at room temperature was approx. 0.52. At the test temperature of 600 °C, the same friction pair had a friction coefficient of 0.35. The main wear mechanisms in dry friction conditions at 23 °C were cutting and ploughing. At the test temperature of 600 °C, formation of tribofilm on the surfaces of the friction pair was observed, which reduces the wear by friction.