Effective solution for the tribological problems of Ti-6Al-4V: Combination of laser surface texturing and solid lubricant film

Titanium alloys are characterized by poor tribological properties, and the traditional use of titanium alloys has been restricted to nontribological applications. Surface texturing has been recognized as an effective means of surface engineering to improve tribological properties of sliding surfaces. In this study, the patterns of micro-dimple with different dimples density were fabricated on the surface of Ti-6Al-4V by using laser. The effect of dimples density on the friction behavior of the titanium alloy was investigated under dry friction and coated MoS2. The results showed that the textured surface with higher dimples density had lower friction coefficients only at low load and speed under dry friction. When combining the solid lubricant with dimples, some textured samples showed excellent tribological performance for all applied loads. The optimum surface pattern was found, and the mechanisms for friction reduction and anti-wear were discussed. (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.