Comparison of friction and wear for an epoxy resin reinforced by a glass or a carbon/aramid hybrid weave

Friction and wear properties of an epoxy resin (EP) reinforced by either a glass fiber weave (G/EP) or a carbon/aramid hybrid weave (CA/EP) are reported. The tribological data is collected using a custom-made Pin-On-Disk apparatus which measures wear rates (w), coefficients of friction (mu) and disk temperatures. The composites are worn by dry-sliding against smooth steel counterfaces under ambient conditions. Tests are performed at nine different combinations of contact pressure (p) and sliding velocity (v) also referred to as pv conditions. The purpose is to systematically compare the performance of the differently reinforced materials while going from mild to rougher sliding conditions. It is found that p on average is reduced by 35% by substituting the glass fiber weave with the carbon/aramid weave. The coefficient of friction furthermore seems to be roughly independent of p and v. CA/EP shows superior wear behavior at the six mildest pv conditions with the wear rate an average factor of 22 lower than the G/EP rates. At the three roughest pv conditions CA/EP shows complete failure, while G/EP shows a relatively steady tribological behavior despite decomposition and development of larger-scale cracks. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.