Combined Effect of a Laser Cladded Coating and Surface Texture on Tribological Performance Under Dry Sliding and Starved Lubrication

Fe-based alloy coating was laser cladded on gray cast iron using Ni-Cu alloy as an intermediate layer. The cross section of the laser cladded coating was characterized by optical microscopy (OM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) equipped with energy dispersive spectrometry (EDS), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and a Vickers hardness tester. A microdimple texture was created by reciprocating an electrolyte jet with prefabricated mask (REJP) machining on an Fe-based alloy coating. The tribological performances of untextured and textured coatings were examined through interrupted wear tests using an in-house developed reciprocating ball-on-plate tribotester under dry sliding and starved lubricated conditions. The results show that the presence of microdimple edges in the nonconformal contact region has a detrimental effect on the friction performance under dry sliding. However, the microdimples can be beneficial for trapping debris to preserve a smoother contacting surface and thus a lower volume wear track compared to untextured coatings. Due to its role in oil reservoirs and debris entrapment, the microdimple textured coating can maintain a low friction coefficient for a long time period after lubricant oil cutoff and results in a lower volume wear track under starved lubrication. Graphical abstract

Ionic Liquid Additives in Water-Based Lubricants for Bearing Steel – Effect of Electrical Conductivity and pH on Surface Chemistry, Friction and Wear

Water-based lubricants have the potential to become the largest environmentally friendly lubricants in applications such as electric vehicles and the newly emerging green technologies of the future due to their inherent low viscosity and cooling properties. In order to be environmentally acceptable (EAL), both base lubricants and additives should comply with biodegradability, non-toxicity, and non-bioaccumulation requirements. Additives for water-based lubricants should ideally be polar and soluble in water and, at the same time, should not increase the electrical conductivity to critical levels for corrosion. However, most additives used in synthetic or mineral oils are non-polar. Ionic liquids have recently gained attention as lubricant additives due to their high polarity, making them highly surface-active (i.e. high tendency to adsorb on metal surfaces). However, they are seen as highly corrosive for many metal alloys. In this work, a water-glycol lubricant containing two different ionic liquids has been investigated as a potential green lubricant for a bearing steel AISI 52100 with accurate control on electrical conductivity and pH. The selected ionic liquids were tributylmethylphosphonium dimethylphosphate (PP) and 1-butyl-1-methylpyrrolidinium tris(pentafluoroethyl)trifluorophosphate (BMP). The tribological behaviour of the ionic liquids was compared with a well-known organic friction modifier, dodecanoic acid (C12). The ionic liquids showed lower friction and wear rate than the water-based lubricant alone. However, they showed higher friction than the lubricant formulated with C12, in which PP gave lower friction than BMP due to low pH. A detailed subsurface analysis of the wear track using scanning-transmission electron microscopy (STEM) showed that a thick oxide tribofilm was built on the wear track for both lubricants formulated with ionic liquids due to high electrical conductivity. This tribofilm gave beneficial effect on wear. Although PP and BMP gave thicker tribofilms than C12, it was not durable, resulting in cracking and detachment.

Development of a Protective Coating for Evaluating the Sub-surface Microstructure of a Worn Material

In the current study, electrolytic deposition using two different electrodes, copper (Cu) and nickel (Ni) was investigated with the aim of protecting the worn surface during mechanical sectioning and polishing, for a posterior examination of the sub-surface microstructure. The efficacies of the two coatings were visually assessed based on its adhesivity and the ability to protect the wear tracks of an as-cast 26% Cr high chromium cast iron (HCCI) alloy. It was observed that electrodeposition using Cu as the electrode was ineffective owing to a poor adhesivity of the coating on the HCCI surface. The coating had peeled off at several regions across the cross-section during the mechanical sectioning. On the other hand, Ni electroplating using Ni strike as the electrolyte was successfully able to protect the wear track, and the sub-surface characteristics of the wear track could be clearly visualized. A uniform coating thickness of about 8 µm was deposited after 30–40 min with the current density maintained between 1 and 5 A/dm2. The presence of the Ni coating also acted as a protective barrier preventing the ejection of the broken carbide fragments underneath the wear track.

Innovative approach to evaluate the wearing of nano TiO2 doped alumina ceramics in the light of image modelling

The present research is emphasized on the microscopic observation of post wear surface of nano TiO2 doped alumina ceramics to accesses wearing by promising image processing algorithms viz. entropy analysis, Sobel edge detection technique and entropy filtered image histogram analysis in relation to the extent of doping. The experimental results of specific wear rate showed an indicator with the extent of micro fracturing of grains, ploughing of materials and debris formation on the wear track after a long wear cycles in terms of entropy level, edge density index, entropy filtered image and the nature of histogram at different doping level. The lowest value of entropy level and edge density index is shown at the level of 1 wt.% TiO2 doped alumina ceramics due to the presence of low number of granularity and microfracture grains on the wear track causes the lowering of specific wear rate. The histogram of entropy filtered image for 1 wt.% doping is more uniformly distributed with the highest frequency and lowest skewness factor over a wide range of intensity values for 1 wt.% doping.

Wear Performance of Boronized Layer of Iron-based Powder Metallurgy Materials

Iron-based specimens with boronized layers were prepared by boriding at 800 ℃, 900 ℃ and 1000 ℃ for 3, 5, and 7 hours, respectively. The thickness, microstructure, surface roughness, friction, and wear performance were studied. Results showed that the process parameters such as temperature, the time of boriding have remarkable impact on the thickness of the boronized layer. Dual-phase was generated at 1000 ℃ which lead to increased brittleness, lower surface hardness, and decreased adhesion to the substrate. Compared with specimens boronized at 1000 ℃ and 800 ℃, the surface structure of the boronized layer of specimens boronized at 900 ℃ is denser and uniform, the wear track is not damaged. The average friction coefficient and mass loss by wear of specimens boronized at 900 °C are smaller than that of boronized at 1000 ℃ and 800 ℃, indicating that specimens borided at 900 ℃ behave excellent friction and wear performance.

Achieving Ultra-Low Friction with Diamond/Metal Systems in Extreme Environments

In the search for achieving ultra-low friction for applications in extreme environments, we evaluate the interfacial processes of diamond/tungsten sliding contacts using an on-line macro-tribometer and a micro-tribometer in an ultra-high vacuum. The coefficient of friction for the tests with the on-line tribometer remained considerably low for unlubricated sliding of tungsten, which correlated well with the relatively low wear rates and low roughness on the wear track throughout the sliding. Ex situ analysis was performed by means of XPS and SEM-FIB in order to better understand the underlying mechanisms of low friction and low-wear sliding. The analysis did not reveal any evidence of tribofilm or transferfilm formation on the counterface, indicating the absence of significant bonding between the diamond and tungsten surfaces, which correlated well with the low-friction values. The minimal adhesive interaction and material transfer can possibly be explained by the low initial roughness values as well as high cohesive bonding energies of the two materials. The appearance of the wear track as well as the relatively higher roughness perpendicular to the sliding indicated that abrasion was the main wear mechanism. In order to elucidate the low friction of this tribocouple, we performed micro-tribological experiments in ultra-high vacuum conditions. The results show that the friction coefficient was reduced significantly in UHV. In addition, subsequently to baking the chamber, the coefficient of friction approached ultra-low values. Based on the results obtained in this study, the diamond/tungsten tribocouple seems promising for tribological interfaces in spacecraft systems, which can improve the durability of the components.

Novel High-Entropy Aluminide-Silicide Alloy

Novel high-entropy (multi-principal elements) alloy based on Fe-Al-Si-Ni-Ti in equimolar proportions has been developed. The alloy powder obtained by mechanical alloying is composed of orthorhombic FeTiSi phase with the admixture of B2 FeAl. During spark plasma sintering of this powder, the FeSi phase is formed and the amount of FeAl phase increases at the expense of the FeTiSi phase. The material is characterized by a high compressive strength (approx. 1500 MPa) at room temperature, being brittle. At 800 °C, the alloy is plastically deformable, having a yield strength of 459 MPa. The wear resistance of the material is very good, comparable to the tool steel. During the wear test, the spallation of the FeSi particles from the wear track was observed locally.

Assessment of wear resistance of hardened additive products made of electroerosive cobalt-chromium powder

Experimental studies of the wear resistance of hardened additive products made of electroerosive cobaltchromium powder obtained in alcohol are carried out. With a friction path of 500 m, the following was established: partial wear of the counterbody and adhesion of wear products of the sample to the counterbody; the size of the wear track of the sample; the depth of the profile of the wear groove of the sample surface; friction coefficient; wear of a counterbody made of steel and a hardened sample made of a cobalt-chromium alloy. Keywords: electroerosive cobalt-chromium powder, additive product, hardening, wear resistance. [email protected]

Designing a Bioinspired Surface for Improved Wear Resistance and Friction Reduction

This study used 2-photon 3D lithographic printing and replica molding to fabricate a micro-texture based on the Ocellated Skink. The fabricated surface texture was studied for friction and wear behavior using linear reciprocating tribological tests with a chrome steel ball counterface under various loading conditions and compared to samples fabricated with the same methods without a surface texture. The texture was found to decrease friction at low loads and provide steady friction under all loading conditions. The textured samples also decreased the average wear track width up to 61%. Wear was reduced on surfaces by the texture through the controlled formation of microcracking, which both reduced the amount of debris built up on samples and effectively reduced the worn area.