INVESTIGATION OF THE EFFECT OF AREAL ROUGHNESS MEASUREMENT LENGTH ON FACE MILLED SURFACE TOPOGRAPHIES

Surface roughness is of great importance in the manufacturing industry, as it affects surfaces’ tribological properties (wear, friction, lubrication, etc.), corrosion resistance, fatigue strength and appearance. Areal roughness measurement, which provides a more comprehensive characterization of surfaces, is becoming increasingly popular, but systematic studies are still lacking, so measurements are often analyzed differently. In this paper, the effect of the measurement length is analyzed in the main measurement direction on areal roughness of face milled surface topographies, which were measured with a confocal chromatic sensor.

Tribological characterisation of magnesium matrix nanocomposites: A review

Magnesium matrix nanocomposites (Mg-MNCs) are high grade materials widely used in aerospace, electronics, biomedical and automotive sectors for high strength to weight ratio, excellent sustainability and superior mechanical and tribological characteristics. Basic properties of Mg-MNCs rely on type and amount of reinforcement and fabrication process. Current study reviews existing literatures to explore contribution of different parameters on tribological properties of Mg-MNCs. Effects of particle size and amount of different reinforcements like SiC, WC, Al2O3, TiB2, CNT, graphene nano platelets (GNP), graphite on tribological behaviour are discussed. Incorporation of nanoparticles generally enhances properties. Role of different fabrication processes like stir casting (SC), ultrasonic treatment casting (UST), disintegrated melt deposition (DMD), friction stir processing (FSP) on wear and friction behaviour of Mg-MNCs is also reviewed. Contributions of different tribological process parameters (sliding speed, load and sliding distance) on wear, friction and wear mechanism are also examined.

Effect of ambient temperature on the formation mechanism of PTFE liner transfer film of spherical plain bearings

The relationship between the formation of the transfer film and the tribological properties of the self-lubricating spherical plain bearing was studied at the ambient temperature of 25–145 °C. The results show that the wear, friction coefficient and friction temperature increase of the spherical plain bearings all decreased first and then increased with the increase of the ambient temperature. The general trend is that the bearing has the most excellent anti-friction and wear resistance at 55–85 °C. An increase in ambient temperature will accelerate the formation speed of PTFE transfer film and shorten the running-in period of the bearing, but the ambient temperature above 85 °C will shorten the duration of the PTFE transfer film, thus accelerating the bearing into the degradation period. The transfer film coverage of the liner after wear was characterized, and it was found that the transfer film coverage was the largest when the ambient temperature was 85 °C. The wear form of the bearing is mainly abrasive wear and adhesive wear, and the aramid fiber is more prone to adhesive wear. The anti-friction effect of the bearing is determined by the PTFE transfer film. Elevated ambient temperature can promote the formation of PTFE transfer film and enhance the antifriction effect, but if the ambient temperature is too high, the wear resistance of the PTFE transfer film will be reduced, thus reducing the friction reduction effect.

Towards developing robust solid lubricant operable in multifarious environments

Conventional solid lubricants such as MoS2, graphite, or diamond-like carbon films demonstrate excellent tribological performance but only in specific environments due to their inherent materials properties. This limitation prohibits using these solid lubricants in environments that change dynamically. This study presents the results of a novel solid lubricant that was developed using a combination of solution-processed 2D-molybdenum disulfide and graphene-oxide (GO) that can be deposited on to stainless steel substrates using a simple spray-coating technique and show exceptional performance in multifarious environments namely, ambient (humid) atmosphere, dry nitrogen, and vacuum. The tribological performance of the coatings was evaluated using a ball-on-disc sliding test and demonstrated an excellent wear/friction performance in all environments and coating survived even after 44 km of linear sliding. Transmission electron microscopy and Raman spectroscopy analysis of the tribolayers suggested in-operando friction-induced re-orientation of MoS2 layers that were protected by GO layers and, an absence of MoOx peaks indicate a strong resistance to intercalation with moisture and oxygen. The simplicity and robustness of the hybrid MoS2–GO solid lubricant in mitigating wear-friction behavior of steel-on-steel tribopair in a multifarious environment is a game-changing and is promising for various applications.

Modification of tribological tester t-01m allowing testing in conditions of lubrication

Researchers often want to develop their experiments in terms of wide range of testing conditions and results possible to acquire. One way to achieve this is to adapt existing testing equipment to new requirements. This paper proposes a method for extending the capabilities of the T-01M tester with a pressure lubrication system of a pin on disc contact, its construction and adjustments. Tribological tests carried out with the presence of a lubricant showed the correct functioning of the modified tester. We obtained several variables for the selected friction pair and friction parameters in the lubricated joint: friction force, friction coefficient, mass wear, friction work, wear intensity and specific wear. Verification tests confirmed suitability of the tester modification, adapting it to friction and wear tests in a lubricated contact. The expanded stand can be used (in the future) for tribological tests of lubricated frictional pairs to measure friction, wear, friction pairs temperature and to compare used lubricants.

Lubrication Performance of α-Zirconium Phosphates as an Anti-Wear Additive in Vegetable Oil-Based Anhydrous Calcium Grease

Vegetable oil has significant potential as a base oil, and substitute for mineral oil in grease formulation due to its biodegradability, low toxicity and excellent lubrication. This paper studied the development of vegetable oil-based greases with α-Zr(HPO4)2·H2O (α-ZrP) as an additive, exploring base oil influence in tribological behavior. The results demonstrated that the addition of α-ZrP in vegetable-based greases is beneficial to anti-wear property. α-ZrP particles exhibit good performance in anti-wear, friction-reduction and load-carrying capacity, and its tribological performances are better than the normally used molybdenum disulfide and graphite additives. Owing to its superior tribological properties as a vegetable oil-based grease additive, α-ZrP holds great potential for use in environmentally friendly applications in the future.