The effect of electromagnetic stirring and cerium addition on dry sliding reciprocating wear of hypereutectic aluminium-silicon alloy

Influences of electromagnetic stirring (EMS) and rare earth (RE) CeO2 addition on reciprocating wear behaviour of hypereutectic Al-Si alloys have been presented in this article. Reciprocating wear tests were carried out at different contact loads (from 15 to 90 N) and speeds (from 0.2 to 1.0 m/s) using pin-on-plate configuration for a constant sliding distance of 500 m. It was observed that EMS and RE (CeO2) addition refined the microstructure and improved the hardness. EMS reduced the wear rates of hypereutectic Al-Si alloy irrespective of applied load and sliding velocity. Transition from mild to severe wear was observed in as-cast alloy at 90 N normal load (constant sliding velocity = 0.4 m/s). Scanning electron microscopy of worn surfaces and wear debris was carried out to study the wear mechanism of material removal under different sliding conditions.