Selection of natural fibers based brake friction composites using hybrid ELECTRE-entropy optimization technique

Selecting the best brake friction composite composition amongst a set of natural fibres reinforced composites using hybrid optimization method - ELECTRE (elimination and choice translating priority) II - entropy is discussed in this article. Three sets of natural fibres containing different amounts of banana, hemp, and pineapple reinforced brake friction composites were tested according to IS 2742 (part-4) regulations on a chase friction testing machine. The experimental results have been discussed in terms of seven performance defining attributes such as coefficient of friction, fade, wear, friction stability coefficient, friction recovery, friction fluctuations, and friction variability coefficient. The composite containing 5 wt% pineapple fiber exhibit the highest coefficient of friction, whereas wear performance and friction stability remain highest for 5 wt% hemp fiber based composites. The recovery performance remains highest for the composite containing 15 wt% banana fiber, while fade, friction variability, and fluctuations remain lowest for 10 wt% banana fiber reinforced composites. The tribological results indicate that the inclusion of disparate natural fibers in varying amounts may differently affect the tribological performances and therefore to choose the best brake friction composite satisfying the maximum beneficial criteria hybrid ELECTRE II- entropy optimization technique is used. Brake friction composite containing similar to 10 wt% banana fibers was ranked first, in meeting the desired performance tribological properties. A comparison of this optimization approach with other multi-criteria decision-making techniques is also made for validating the performance ranking of these composites.