Enhancing tribological performance by anodizing micro-textured surfaces with nano-MoS2 coatings prepared on aluminum-silicon alloys

Aluminum-silicon alloys exhibit poor tribological performance and suffer from severe adhesive wear. The single surface treatment has demonstrated unsatisfactory anti-friction performances. In this paper, the synergistic effect of the surface micro-texturing and nano-solid lubricant improved the tribological performance of aluminum silicon alloys effectively. The anodizing micro-textured surface with nano-MoS2 coatings was fabricated by micro-milling, anodizing and ultrasonic impregnation. Pin-on-disc tribological tests revealed that the friction coefficient of the anodizing micro-textured surface with nano-MoS2 coatings decreased by 22.6% compared with that of the untextured specimen. The anti-friction characteristic was attributed to the synergistic effect of the entrapping wear debris of dimple structure, the high hardness of porous anodic aluminum oxide films and the selflubricating property of nano-MoS2 coatings.