Aluminum Composite Materials Providing Extended Service Life

Abstract

Hardness and tribotechnical characteristics were investigated under conditions of dry sliding friction on steel obtained by liquid-phase mixing of Aluminum-Matrix Composite (AMC) materials based on aluminum alloys AK12, D16, V124, AL9, and AL25, reinforced with silicon carbide SiC particles with a size of 28 μm with a content of 5, 10, or 15% by volume. AMC performed better than matrix alloys and the commonly used anti-friction aluminum alloy AOM 2-1. The dry friction coefficient was 1.5-3 times lower on average, and the volumetric wear rate was 5-9 times lower. An increase in the content of SiC particles in the composite from 5 to 20 vol.%, as a rule, leads to an improvement in the tribotechnical characteristics. The composites obtained have shown sufficiently high operational suitability for use in friction units with steels, both under dry friction and friction with lubrication.