Three-body Abrasive Wear Tests Research Articles

Abrasive wear behavior of monolithic alloy, homogeneous and functionally graded aluminum (LM25/AlN and LM25/SiO2) composites

ABSTRACTFunctionally graded metal matrix composites (MMCs) and homogenous composites (Al/AlN and Al/SiO2-10 wt%) have been fabricated through centrifugal casting and liquid metallurgy route, respectively. The properties of these composites were compared with aluminum alloy. Microstructural characteristics and hardness were studied on the surfaces of functionally graded materials (FGMs), homogenous composites, and unreinforced aluminum alloy using an optical microscope and a Vickers micro hardness tester, respectively. Tensile test was carried out on the outer and inner sections of FGMs and specimens from homogenous composites and alloy utilizing universal testing machines (UTMs). Three-body abrasive wear test was conducted for different loads and speeds to study their effect on the surfaces of composites and alloy using dry abrasion tester. Microstructural and hardness results reveal that the outer surface of aluminum nitride (AlN)-reinforced FGM has a particle-enriched region with the highest hardness. Tensile strength was found higher in both homogenous composites compared to zones of their FGMs. Abrasion wear rate was found increased with increase in load and decreased with increase in speed. The outer surface of AlN-reinforced FGM has higher wear resistance followed by the outer surface of SiO2-reinforced FGM. Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) analysis was performed on worn-out surfaces and observed particle-enriched outer surface of Al/AlN FGM with less abrasion.

Development of green thermoplastic composites from Centella spent and study of its physicomechanical, tribological, and morphological characteristics

To enhance biodegradability of plastics and to utilize Centella spent (CTS) gainfully, green composites were prepared using high-density polyethylene (HDPE) and CTS. The green composites were fabricated by extrusion, followed by injection molding. HDPE/CTS composites were fabricated with 10, 20, and 30 wt% of CTS using maleic anhydride-grafted-polyethylene (MA- g-PE) as compatibilizer. The fabricated composites were tested for physicomechanical and tribological properties, which included water absorption, density, tensile properties, and three-body abrasive wear test. Tensile modulus of composites increased from 579 MPa to 950 MPa (64% improvement) with increase in filler addition from 0% to 30%. The experimentally obtained tensile property values including tensile strength, tensile modulus, and tensile elongation at break were compared with theoretical model values. The effects of 150, 300, 450, and 600 m abrading distances and 23.5 and 33.5 N normal loads at 200 r/min on the abrasive wear characteristics were studied using dry sand/rubber wheel abrasive test rig. Incorporation of CTS filler lowered the abrasion resistance of HDPE/CTS composites. The surface morphology of tensile-fractured specimens and worn surface features of composite specimens were examined by scanning electron microscopy.

Three-Body Abrasive Behavior of Cementite–Iron Composite with Different Cementite Volume Fractions

Cementite–iron composites with 0, 7.83, 18.56, 49.21, 81.75 and 100 vol% cementite were prepared by melting and plasma spark sintering. The effect of cementite content on microstructure, mechanical properties and wear resistance of the cementite–iron composites was investigated. Scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffractometry results indicate that the cementite–iron composite microstructure consists of cementite (θ), pearlite and ferrite. Subsequently, the wear behavior of cementite–iron composites was studied using a three-body abrasive wear tester. An increase in volume fraction of cementite improved the wear resistance due to the increased material hardness under an applied pressure of 0.065 MPa. When the volume fraction of cementite is greater than 81.75 %, the wear resistance decreases at an applied pressure of 0.098 MPa because of the increased fracturing and peeling off of the cementite. The bulk wear-resistant hard phase (cementite) and toughness matrix (pearlite) composite structure has a better abrasive resistance in white cast iron with 18.56 and 49.21 % cementite volume fractions under a higher impact load, because of the combined protective and supporting effect. Work hardness changed the mechanical properties of composite. Meanwhile, the wear resistance is improved for pure iron and eutectoid steel. The subsurface depth as measured by nanoindentation and metallographic analysis of a vertical section was ~5 mm. The hardness and elastic modulus decreased significantly with increase in subsurface depth. The surface roughness of composites with different cementite contents has been described and analyzed using three-dimensional laser scanning microscopy.

Three-Body Abrasive Wear Behavior of Cementite with Different Chromium Concentrations

The abrasion-resistant properties of white cast iron, which is used as a wear-resistant material in many industrial applications, are affected by cementite properties. Hence, it is important to obtain an understanding of the mechanical properties and abrasive behavior of single-phase cementite. In this article, bulk cementite samples with 0, 3.01, 6.03, 8.22 and 9.76 wt% chromium were prepared using mechanical alloying and spark plasma sintering. Sample phase composition and mechanical properties were determined by X-ray diffractometry, microhardness testing and nano-indentation. When the chromium content was >6.03 wt%, bulk single-phase cementite was produced. The elastic modulus, elastic recovery and hardness increased with chromium content. When the chromium content was 9.76 wt%, the maximum microhardness was 1070.74 HV (Vickers hardness) and the maximum elastic modulus was 199.32 GPa. The cementite wear behavior was investigated using a three-body abrasive wear tester. Cementite with higher chromium content had a lower wear mass loss under a 3 kg load, which indicates that bulk cementite has an improved wear resistance. Short- and long-range plowing and chipping pits existed on the worn surface. Because a high-/low-chromium cementite composite structure was formed, this resulted in a significant decrease in worn surface roughness and chipping pit depth.

Some studies on three-body abrasive wear behaviour of hardfaced steel alloy for agricultural plough tool application

The influences of hardfacing deposit and deep cryogenic treatment on three-body abrasive wear behaviour of AISI 1013 steel were studied. The three-body abrasive wear tests were carried out using the dry sand/rubber wheel test rig as per ASTM G65 standard. Hardfacing was done by manual arc welding using ZEDALLOY VB hardfacing electrode. The deep cryogenic treatment was carried by using liquid nitrogen temperature at −196°C. The applied load, sliding velocity and sliding distance were considered as process parameters. Experimental results reveal that the hardfacing deposit showed the highest abrasive wear resistance as compared to deep cryotreated material. Worn-out surface observation by SEM witnessed same behaviour. The nature of material removal was microploughing or microcutting depending on the attack angle, due to cracks formed on the surface of material.

Effect of TiO<sub>2</sub> Filler Loading on Physico-Mechanical Properties and Abrasion of Jute Fabric Reinforced Epoxy Composites

Mechanical properties and abrasive wear behaviour of bi-directional jute fabric reinforced epoxy (J/Ep) with micron sized TiO2 particles at different wt% (2.5, 5, 7.5 and 10) were investigated. The tribo-potential of combined effect of TiO2 and jute fiber in epoxy (J/Ep) for enhancing the abrasion resistance has not been studied so far. Hence, the present work aims to explore the possibility of using TiO2 filler and jute fiber to reinforce the epoxy and thus open a new way to implement inexpensive reinforcements and produce new candidate tribo-material for industrial applications. Silane treated TiO2 filled J/Ep composites were prepared by hand lay-up method. Selected mechanical properties and three-body abrasive wear tests were evaluated as per ASTM standards. Results indicate an enhancement in the J/Ep composite mechanical properties due to addition of TiO2 particles up to 7.5 wt% of loading. Highest tensile and flexural properties were found at 7.5 wt% TiO2 loading. Results of abrasion tests show resistance to abrasion at 5 wt% TiO2 filled J/Ep composite. Scanning electron micrographs evidenced that the fiber and filler have fairly good bonding with matrix. Finally, this investigation confirms the applicability of TiO2 as secondary reinforcement in J/Ep composite.

Mitigation of the Wear Failure of Ti-6Al-4V Dental Biomedical Implant by Isothermal Treatment

Ti-6Al-4V alloy has been in use as dental implants till date because of its favorable mechanical properties. However, it wears off over a period of time in the oral cavity. Bearing this problem in mind, this research aims at mitigating the wear failure of Ti-6Al-4V dental implant via isothermal treatment. The as-received Ti-6Al-4V was cut and machined into 30 mm × 25 mm × 3 mm for abrasive wear samples. The samples were solution heat-treated at 960 °C accompanied by the aging process at 480 °C for varying soaking times of 2, 4, 6, and 8 h. The samples for wear analysis were subjected to abrasive wear using a three-body abrasive wear test machine with varying loads of 5 and 15 N, and silica sand was used as the abrasive medium. From the result, the wear rate of the heat-treated titanium alloy increased with the applied load, and the samples aged for 8 h showed 99 and 98% wear resistance at 5 and 15 N, respectively. In the present study, it was established that isothermal aging can be employed to enhance the wear resistance of Ti-6Al-4V alloy for use in biomedical applications.

Experimental Investigation on Abrasive Wear Behavior of Functionally Graded Aluminum Composite

Functionally graded Al–Si12Cu/10 wt.% B4Cp metal matrix composite (MMC) has been fabricated under stir casting process followed by horizontal centrifugal casting method. The casting of length 170 mm, outer diameter 160 mm, and thickness 16 mm was obtained under the centrifugal speed of 1000 rev min−1. The microstructural evaluation was carried out on the surfaces at distance of 3, 6, 9, and 11 mm from the outer periphery of the casting to ensure the distribution of reinforcement particles, and the surfaces at same distance were tested for its hardness using microhardness tester. The microstructural results revealed that surface at a distance of 3 mm from the outer periphery has reinforcement concentration of 32% and surface at a distance of 11 mm has reinforcement concentration of 3%. The hardness of the surface was improved considerably according to the reinforcement concentration. The three-body abrasive wear test was conducted on the composite specimens as per L16 orthogonal array for parameters such as the load, speed, time, and reinforcement concentration. Each parameter was varied for four levels and the optimum level of each parameter was found out through signal-to-noise ratio analysis using “smaller-the-better” characteristics. The signal-to-noise ratio analysis revealed that load was the dominant parameter on the abrasive wear behavior followed by reinforcement concentration, speed, and time. The analysis of variance (ANOVA) result indicates the parameter that affects the response significantly and results were agreed with signal-to-noise ratio analysis. The regression equation was developed and results were validated using confirmation experiments. The worn-out surfaces were examined using scanning electron microscope (SEM) for observing the wear mechanism.

Influence of Particle Size of Wheat Powder on Roller Wear Properties

Wheat milling process involves multiple grinding procedures, the wheat powder particles size in different grinding procedure are difference. In order to study the influence of particle size of wheat powder on roller wear performance in different grinding procedure, abrasion experiments were carried out by MLS-225 three-body abrasive wear tester, while different sizes were chosen as abrasive, alloy white iron which frequently used as roller metal materials was chosen as wear sample, wear weight loss and surface microstructure were chosen as the main evaluation indicators. The results showed that the weight loss of samples were showed a linear relationship with wheat the size of wheat powder. The main wear behavior was mainly mechanical polishing while particle sizes was smaller one. For the larger size, wear was made by multiple plastic deformation and low cycle fatigue wear mechanism.

Influence of Fiber Reinforcement and Abrasive Particle Size on Three-Body Abrasive Wear of Hybrid Friction Composites

In the present study, enhancement of abrasion resistance of phenol formaldehyde (PF) resin based hybrid friction composites with different ingredients viz. binder, micron sized fibers and fillers have been synergistically investigated. Hybrid friction composites based on basalt and recycled aramid fibers were prepared using compression moulding. Three-body abrasive wear tests were conducted according to ASTM G-65 standard by dry sand/rubber wheel abrasion tester using two different size of angular silica sand abrasives (212 and 425 μm) at a constant load of 40 N. The results indicated that the wear volume loss increases with increasing abrading distance and abrasive particle size. However, the specific wear rate decreased with increasing abrading distance and increases with increase in abrasive particle size. Addition of fiber content has a significant influence on the abrasive wear performance of these composites. Further, the worn surfaces were examined by scanning electron microscopy to identify the involved wear mechanisms.

Structure refinement effect on two and three-body abrasion resistance of high chromium cast irons

The effect of structure refinement on wear resistance of high chromium cast irons was investigated. The alloys were casted in molds containing a chill at the bottom in order to create a gradient of cooling rates, resulting in structures with carbide mean free paths ranging from 6.6±1 to 27.3±3μm. Two-body abrasive wear tests were carried out on a pin-on-garnet paper tester model PLINT TE79 as described in ASTM G132 standard, and three-body abrasive wear tests on the Dry Sand Rubber Wheel (DSRW) abrasion tester as described in ASTM G65 standard. Wear coefficient decreased sharply from 6.6 to 15μm of carbide mean free path and minor variations were obtained for coarser structures. All the samples showed cracking and fracture of M7C3 carbides. However, for the coarse structure it was verified that most of the larger M7C3 carbides showed only subcritical cracking and no fracture. The results suggest that the wear properties are not dependent on the bulk material hardness, but depend on structure refinement.

Mechanical and Three - Body Abrasive Wear Behaviour of Cenosphere Filled Epoxy Composites

Novel epoxy composites made from major industrial waste, fly ash cenosphere (FA-ceno) particles have been developed. The effect of FA-ceno loadings on mechanical and three-body abrasive wear behaviour has been investigated. The tribological behaviour of three-body abrasive wear tests with different loads/abrading distances were performed at room temperature by using a Rubber wheel abrasion apparatus. Experimental results showed that the tensile strength and Young’s modulus of FA-ceno filled epoxy are more than those of neat epoxy. The wear volume increased with increasing abrading distance and the specific wear rate decreased with increasing abrading distance/ load which depends on filler loading. Among the filled composites tested, 10 wt% silane treated with FA-ceno filled epoxy showed a promising trend. Finally, the scanning electron microscopic observation on the wear mechanisms of epoxy and their composites were discussed.

Effect of microstructure factors on abrasion resistance of high-strength steels

Current development of high strength abrasion resistant steels is mostly oriented on high hardness, martensitic concept following the hypothesis that the abrasion resistance holds a proportional tendency with hardness. The various experimental observations have suggested that the high hardness of martenzite does not guarantee a high abrasion resistance because the brittle nature of martensite can lead to decrease their abrasive wear. The aim of this work was to analyse the influence of microstructure on abrasion resistance of selected high-strength low-alloyed steels used in the industry. The abrasive wear resistance of selected steels was obtained using an ASTM-G65 three-body abrasive wear test, microstructure and wear resistance determination. It was observed that grain refinement is an effective way of enhancing the abrasion resistance. In this context, micro alloyed steels offer an attractive combination of price and performance.

Effect of W dissolution in NiCrBSi–WC and NiBSi–WC arc sprayed coatings on wear behaviors

This work concerns the arc-sprayed NiCrBSi–WC and NiBSi–WC coatings produced from cored-wires. Porosity and WC/W2C contents were determined from the as-sprayed coatings. It was suggested that the dissolution of W into the Ni-rich matrix, which was more pronounced in NiBSi–WC coating and resulting in the thermal expansion coefficient of the matrix to reduce, caused this coating to have lower thermal stress from fabrication. This resulted in a lower amount of WC/W2C detachment in NiBSi–WC coating. The dissolution of W however has an adverse effect of reducing the WC/W2C contents in the coating, which reduces its hardness. Wear testing revealed that, even though the NiCrBSi–WC coating contained higher WC/W2C content than the NiBSi–WC coating due to lower W dissolution, its performance was inferior to the latter. In the dry sliding wear test, the problem of WC/W2C detachment on the contacting surface became exacerbated in the NiCrBSi–WC coating, leaving craters on the wear surface. In the three-body abrasive wear test, there was much less WC/W2C detachment. However the NiBSi–WC coating continued to out-perform the NiCrBSi–WC coating, suggesting that the higher W dissolution into the Ni-rich matrix has a major role in increasing the abrasive resistance of the coating.

Effect of Titanium and Nitrogen Additions on the Microstructures and Three-Body Abrasive Wear Behaviors of Fe–B Cast Alloys

This study investigates the effect of titanium and nitrogen elements on the microstructures and wear behaviors of medium carbon Fe–B cast alloy. The as-cast microstructures of Fe–B cast alloy consist of the eutectic boride, pearlite, and ferrite. Moreover, the as-cast eutectic boride structures are greatly refined when titanium and nitrogen are added. The boride area fraction, average boride area, Rockwell hardness, etc., are also investigated systemically. The wear behaviors of medium carbon Fe–B cast alloy are studied by a three-body abrasive wear tester. The results show that the wear weight loss of Fe–B cast alloy with titanium and nitrogen elements is lower than that of the ordinary Fe–B cast alloy. Meanwhile, the wear mechanism of Fe–B cast alloy with different titanium and nitrogen concentrations is described and analyzed.

Three-body wear performance of co-electrodeposited cermet coatings

In this paper, the three-body abrasive wear performance of co-electrodeposited nanostructured cermet coatings composed of two types of dispersed nanosized ceramic particles (Al2O3 and TiO2) in nickel matrix is investigated using procedures and guidelines provided by ASTM G65-04 (Standard Test Method for Measuring Abrasion Using the Dry Sand/Rubber Wheel Apparatus). The main objective of this research was to evaluate three-body abrasive wear performance of co-electrodeposited cermet coatings that are designed to protect the surfaces of carbon steel pipes against moving sand grains in the transported bitumen production from some new unconventional oil production techniques such as steam assisted gravity drainage and also in-situ combustion. For this purpose, the effects of particle contents in the nickel matrix, applied current density and time of electrodeposition on the hardness and wear performance of coatings were studied. The microhardness values for coatings were measured using a microhardness Vickers tester equipped with a diamond pyramid indenter. For the three-body abrasive wear tests, the mass loss, surface roughness and depth profile of wear tracks were recorded and the surfaces of wear tracks were investigated using FE-SEM. The increase in microhardness of cermet coatings compared to the pure form of nickel was explained by the rule of mixture for composites and was correlated to grain refining and dispersion strengthening mechanisms which can take place during the co-electrodeposition of coatings. The results showed that the coatings with a greater quantity of Al2O3 in the nickel matrix provide greater microhardness and therefore, an improved wear performance can be expected. Additionally, the wear surface analysis showed that rougher surfaces can be expected for coatings with lower microhardness compared to coatings with greater microhardness and this effect was explained using Archard׳s equation.

Three-body abrasive wear resistance of iron matrix composites reinforced with ceramic particles

Pure aluminum oxide (Al2O3), ZrO2 toughened Al2O3 (ZTA; 25–30% ZrO2), and ZTA (55–60% ZrO2) ceramic particles reinforced Cr25 matrix composites are successfully fabricated by the infiltration casting process. The volume fraction of ceramic particles in the composites is 47–55%. The interface structure between ceramic particles and the matrix was analyzed by digital probing microscopy and was found to be continuous mechanical bonding. The wear behavior of the composites was studied by a three-body abrasive wear tester. ZTA (55–60% ZrO2) reinforced Cr25 composite has excellent wear resistance which is approximately six times higher than that of the high chromium cast iron matrix. It is discovered that the wear mechanism of composites is micro-cutting and fatigue stripping. A correlation exists between the wear resistance of composites and the strength of ceramic particles.

Microstructure and Wear Behavior of High-Cr WCI Matrix Surface Composite Reinforced with Cemented Carbide Rods

The present article reports a new superior wear resistance surface composite prepared by a vacuum evaporative pattern casting-in process. This surface composite was constructed with reinforcing cemented carbide rod (CCR) array within high-Cr white cast iron (WCI) matrix. Three reaction zones that formed around the CCRs were characterized and established the good metallurgical bonding between CCRs and matrix. In addition, some compound carbide containing Fe, Cr, W, and Co elements were formed in the reaction zones, owing to the partial dissolution of the CCRs and the resulting interdiffusion of elements such as W, Co, C, Fe, and Cr. The wear behavior of the composite was evaluated and compared with unreinforced high-Cr WCI by means of a three-body abrasive wear tester. The results showed that the wear resistance of the composite was significantly higher than that of the unreinforced high-Cr WCI. The exciting wear resistance can be ascribed to protective effect introduced by the CCRs during wear process and the good metallurgical bonding between CCRs and matrix.

Investigation of organo-modified montmorillonite loading effect on the abrasion resistance of hybrid composites

The carbon fabric reinforced epoxy (C–E) with different loading of organo-modified montmorillonite (oMMT) hybrid composites were prepared using hand lay-up technique followed by autoclave curing. The effects of oMMT loading on mechanical properties and three-body abrasive wear behaviour of hybrid composites have been investigated. The three-body abrasive wear tests with different loads/abrading distances were performed at room temperature using a Rubber wheel abrasion test apparatus. Experimental results obtained from tensile tests indicate that the tensile strength and modulus of hybrid composites increases with the increment of oMMT nanoparticles. Furthermore, the C–E specimens with 5wt% oMMT loading exhibit superior tensile strength than those that do not contain any oMMT nanoparticles. The abrasive wear test results showed that the wear volume increased with increasing abrading distance and the specific wear rate decreased with increasing abrading distance/load for all hybrid composites. Among the oMMT loaded hybrid composite samples tested, 5wt% oMMT loaded hybrid composite showed a promising trend. Free volume property of the hybrid composites measured from positron lifetime spectroscopy seems to correlate well with the mechanical and wear properties. Finally, the different wear mechanisms were observed on the worn surface of the hybrid composites including micro and macro cracks, pitting, as well as debonding and breakage of the fibers by scanning electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy coupled with vision measure scope.

Dynamic mechanical analysis and three-body wear of carbon–epoxy composite filled with SiC particles

The changes that can occur in particulate filled and carbon fabric reinforced epoxy polymer matrix (carbon–epoxy) composites with aging (temperature change) can affect its application, performance, and life time. Fiber and particulate-reinforced composites are known to posses the high strength and attractive wear resistance in dry siding conditions. Though reinforcement and/filler type are known to control the properties, less is known about their abrasive wear performance especially with SiC particulates. How these composites performed in abrasive wear situation needs a proper understanding. Hence in this investigation, reports on dynamic mechanical and three-body abrasive wear behavior of carbon–epoxy and silane-treated SiC particulates filled carbon-epoxy composites. The dynamic mechanical analysis test were conducted using DMA Q800 instrument and abrasive wear tests were conducted using the Rubber wheel abrasive wear tester. From the dynamic mechanical analysis result, it was found that the glass transition temperature ( Tg) of 10% SiC-filled carbon–epoxy composite was changed up to maximum 75°C, compared with that of unfilled carbon–epoxy composite. This change in Tg was believed to be due to the interface modification in SiC-filled carbon–epoxy composite. Three-body abrasive wear test results showed that the wear volume loss increased with increasing abrading distance and specific wear rate decreased with abrading distance/load and depends on SiC filler loading. However, the presence of silane-treated SiC in carbon–epoxy showed a promising trend. The worn surface features, when examined through scanning electron microscopy, showed differing trends for unfilled and SiC-filled carbon–epoxy composites.