1,721,029 research outputs found
Power struggle: tribology's role in energy saving
No full textDr John Walker from the national Centre for Advanced Tribology at Southampton, UK, describes how knowledge of tribology can save energy and help the environment
TEM characterisation of near surface deformation resulting from lubricated sliding wear of aluminium alloy and composites
Full text linkAluminium alloy composites have been extensively investigated for use in tribo-contact applications, however little detailed literature exists on the sub-surface microstructural evolution as a result of lubricated sliding wear. In this study two un-reinforced alloys (2124 and 5056) and identical alloy composites, reinforced with 15 vol.% MoSi2 intermetallic particles were produced by a powder metallurgy route and subject to lubricated sliding at initial Hertzian contact pressures of 0.9–1.2 GPa. Focused ion beam (FIB) techniques were used to produce thin sections parallel to the worn surface. Sub-surfaces layers were then examined in detail by transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Results indicated that the depth of deformation was minimal in the alloys, with the most highly deformed polycrystalline layer confined to approximately 1 ?m below the worn surface. Equiaxed sub-grain sizes of around 0.1 ?m were comparable to that observed for dry sliding of similar alloys and composites [1]. Evidence of surface erosion by solid particle impact was also observed, with wear debris generated as a result of material exceeding the ductility limit. For the composites, the MoSi2 provided a suitable means of transferring the normal contact load from asperity contacts to areas in the bulk of the sample. Reinforcement fracture was observed both at the worn surface and in areas further away in the bulk, for particles which were in direct contact with each other. Evidence of the deformation of the aluminium matrix below reinforcements was also present, with average sub-grain sizes of around 330 nm. Thus, such intermetallic reinforcements may have potential to replace reinforcements that are more abrasive to counterfaces, such as SiC or Al2O3, whilst still providing adequate wear resistance for the aluminium alloy.<br/
Lubricated sliding wear behaviour of aluminium alloy composites
No full textInterest in aluminium alloy (Al-alloy) composites as wear resistant materials continues to grow. However, the use of the popular Al-alloy-SiC composite can be limited by the abrasive nature of the SiC, leading to increased counterface wear rates. This study reports new Al-alloy composites that offer high wear resistance, to a level similar to Al-alloy-SiC. Aluminium alloy (2124, 5056) matrix composites reinforced by nominally 15 vol.% of Cr3Si, MoSi2, Ni3Al and SiC particles were prepared by a powder metallurgy route. The aluminium alloy matrix was produced by gas atomisation, and the Cr3Si, MoSi2 and Ni3Al were prepared by self-propagating high temperature synthesis (SHS), while the SiC was from a standard commercial supply. Following blending, the particulates were consolidated by extrusion, producing a homogenous distribution of the reinforcement in the matrix. Wear testing was undertaken using a pin-on-ring configuration against an M2 steel counterface, with a commercial synthetic oil lubricant, at 0.94 m/s and a normal load of 630 N, corresponding to initial Hertzian contact pressures of 750–890 MPa (the exact value depending on the material properties). Specific wear rates at sliding distances exceeding 400 km were in the range 4.5–12.7 × 10?10 mm3/Nm. The monolithic alloys gave the highest specific wear rates, while the MoSi2 and Cr3Si reinforced alloys exhibited the lowest. The worn surface has been analysed in detail using focused ion beam (FIB) microscopy to determine the sub-surface structural evolution and by tomographic reconstruction of tilted scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images, to determine the local worn surface topography. Consequently, the wear mechanisms as a function of alloy composition and reinforcement type are discussed.<br/
Site specific SEM/FIB/TEM for analysis of lubricated sliding wear of aluminium alloy composites
No full textAlthough extensive research has been undertaken into the dry sliding wear of aluminium alloys, only limited work has been reported on lubricated wear. In this paper, the lubricated sliding wear of some powder derived aluminium alloy composites is reported. Stereo pairs of the worn surface were obtained in the SEM and digitally reconstructed to give an accurate projection of the surface topography. Analysis of the average surface roughness (Ra) along chosen sections provided quantitative information about the wear mechanism. Following this, dual beam focused ion beam (FIB) was undertaken to further explore the features revealed by the SEM surface reconstructions, with TEM sections removed from selected regions. Surface deformation was confined to a narrow layer, typically 1µm thick. Subgrain size within the subsurface layer was comparable to that found in dry sliding wear tests. Reinforcement fracture occurred in the surface particles only. The resultant fragments were often incorporated back into the surface following detachment, such that the total volume fraction reinforcement at the surface was greater than in the bulk. Thus, the dynamic surface topography was a result of three factors: surface deformation, local detachment of reinforcement and re-incorporation of the fragments back into the surface.<br/
Nanostructures in austenitic steel after EDM and pulsed electron beam irradiation
No full textThe resulting recast layer from EDM often exhibits high levels of residual stress, unacceptable crack density and high surface roughness; all of which will contribute to diminished surface integrity and reduced fatigue life. Previous studies have shown that the surface of EDM'd components can be successfully enhanced through the use of large-area pulsed electron beam surface modification, which, through a rapid remelting process, results in a net smoothing of the workpiece surface. It has also been shown that cracks created by EDM are repaired within the region molten by EB irradiation, and therefore the process is proposed to reduce the impact of EDM on fatigue life and deleterious surface properties. In this work the complex multilayers of the near surface are interrogated by TEM and XRD. A FIB-TEM study of the entire remelted layer produced by the irradiation process has been performed for the first time. The characterisation of these layers is necessary for predicting the performance of the material in application. Pulsed EB irradiation was shown to be capable of creating several distinct surface layers of nanostructures which consist of varying grain sizes and grain orientations. Austenite was revealed as the dominant phase in the remelted layer, with a grain size as small as 5 nm produced at the very top surface. A needle-like phase also present in the layer is thought to be cementite
The influence of start-stop velocity cycling on the friction and wear behaviour of a hyper-eutectic Al-Si automotive alloy
No full textThis paper is the first international publication on the effect of start-stop transient sliding velocities on the friction and wear behaviour of a light-weight aluminium - silicon hyper-eutectic alloy used as an automotive cylinder liner material. The work has used focused ion beam - secondary ion mass spectrometry to shown how green start-stop technology can reduce the thickness of lubricating surface tribo-layers formed on the surface of aluminium cylinder liner materials due to repeated velocity interruption. This could have implications for the use of these light-weight materials in start-stop engines and is the beginning of a much broader research effor
Results of a UK industrial tribological survey
No full textDuring the summer of 2012, the National Centre for Advanced Tribology at Southampton (nCATS) undertook a UK-wide industrial tribological survey in order to assess the explicit need for tribological testing within the UK. The survey was designed and implemented by a summer intern student, Mr Simon King, under the supervision of Drs John Walker and Terry Harvey and supported by the director of nCATS, Professor Robert Wood. The survey built upon on two previous tribological surveys conducted through the National Physical Laboratory (NPL) during the 1990’s. The aim was to capture a snapshot of the current use of tribological testing within UK industry and its perceived reliability in terms of the test data generated. The survey also invited participants to speculate about how UK tribology could improve its approach to testing. The survey was distributed through the nCATS industrial contact list, which comprises of over 400 contacts from a broad spectrum of commercial industries. The Institute of Physics (IOP) tribology group also assisted by distributing the survey to its membership list. A total of 60 responses were received for the survey, out of which 39 had fully completed the questionnaire. Participants came from a broad spread of industrial backgrounds, with the energy sector having the highest representation. Only 40% of respondents were dedicated tribologists/surface engineers, again reflecting the multi-disciplinary nature of the field. It was found that the companies that had the highest annual turnover also appeared to expend the most on tribology. The majority of respondents indicated that as a percentage of turnover tribology accounted for less than 1%, however the lack of hard figures only for tribology make this a conservative estimate. The greatest concern in relation to tribology of those who responded was the cost; however the influence of legislation and product reliability were also driving factors. Abrasive wear was still considered the number one tribological wear mechanism, with sliding contacts ranking as the most common type of wear interface. Metallic and hard coated surfaces were the most commonly encountered type of material suffering from tribological wear phenomena. Laboratory scale testing was a significant part of introducing a new tribological component, however component specific testing was considered the most reliable form of testing a new component over standardised test geometries. Overall there appeared to be much potential for improving the reliability of tribological test data, with most respondents indicating that simply more testing was not the best perceived approach to improving tribological data but rather more reliable, representative tests with improved knowledge capture. Most companies possessed an internal database to assist them with tribological information; however, many also expressed a strong desire for the use of a commercial or national database, although the format this might take was less clear. Opinions appeared split as to whether there would be a collective willingness to contribute to a centralised database, presumably on the grounds on the sensitivity of data
Corrosion resistance enhancement of Ti-6Al-4V Alloy by pulsed electron irradiation for biomedical applications
No full textMetallic materials are commonly used in biomedical applications, especially with the increased use of artificial hip and knee joints in recent years. Ti-6Al-4V alloy is a widely used biomaterial for orthopaedic and dentistry applications, due to its excellent mechanical properties and corrosion resistance. However, the in-vivo environment in which it operates is aggressive in terms of mechanical loading cycles and corrosive activity of bodily fluids. Therefore, metal ions may be released from these alloys due to corrosion and wear, which may cause adverse long-term health effects. Preserving the integrity of component surfaces made from these alloys is critical to ensuring they perform correctly over the required life-cycle and do not generate excessive levels of ion release or wear particles. In this work a large-area pulsed electron beam irradiation technique was investigated to improve corrosion performance of an orthopaedic Ti-6Al-4V alloy. The alloy samples had a lapped surface finish prior to electron beam irradiation using a Sodick PF-32A EBM machine. The process uses an argon plasma as a source of electrons which are accelerated towards and bombard the sample surface, causing surface melting and extremely rapid solidification rates of up to 109 K s-1. For this study, samples were irradiated using a range of acceleration voltages (15-35kV) and numbers of pulses (1-25). The corrosion behaviour of the alloy treated with different acceleration voltages and pulses was investigated by electrochemical techniques including open-circuit potential measurements, polarization tests and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy in a 3.5 wt.% NaCl solution. The corrosion resistance of the titanium alloy treated by e-beam surface melting was enhanced by two orders of magnitude compared to the untreated sample. The enhancement was evaluated by assessing surface topography and microstructure from the treatment as observed by XRD, SEM and TEM characterization
The effect of large-area pulsed electron beam melting on the corrosion and microstructure of a Ti6Al4V alloy
No full textThe use of titanium alloys in biomedical applications continues to increase due to the excellent stiffness to weight ratio and high corrosion resistance. In order to improve the surface wettability and corrosion properties of a Ti-6Al-4V alloy, the surface treatment method, large area electron beam melting technique was investigated. Polished samples were subject to pulsed treatments of 1, 15 and 25 at 1.38 J/cm2 beam energy. Surface roughness and contact wetting angles were reduced as a result of the treatment. Microstructural analysis of the surface by XRD and FIB-TEM revealed a martensitic alpha prime phase formed as a result of the high cooling rates induced by the treatment. The presence of this homogenous martensite layer was shown to facilitate a compact passive oxide layer formation during corrosion, thus improving corrosion rates by several orders of magnitude compared to an untreated sample. Large area electron beam melting of Ti-6Al-4V induced a number of changes to the near surface microstructure of the samples, all of which could be used to tailor mechanical and corrosion properties to that of a desired application, without compromising the bulk material properties. These are explored in detail in this work
Influence of microstructure on the erosion and erosion–corrosion characteristics of 316 stainless steel
No full textThe economic impact of surface damage and component failure arising from solid particle impact in the UK has been estimated in 1997 at around d20 million [1]. The additional complexity associated with erosion in a corrosive environment such as that encountered in the chemical and hydro-carbon extraction industries can significantly accelerate surface wear and material loss. In this study, surface material response of a stainless 316 alloy subject to erosion and erosion–corrosion was investigated by focused ion beam (FIB) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) techniques. Samples tested in a slurry pot apparatus using 1% uncrushed silica at 7 m/s for 60 min, both in water and 3.5% NaCl solution. Site specific FIB–TEM lamellas showed that solid particle impact resulted in extensive crater and lip formations and a martensitic phase transformation at the surface. The presence of a corrosive fluid resulted in preferential dissolution of the martensitic phase, reducing the work hardening behaviour and promoting greater elongation to failure and thus higher erosion–corrosion rates. These results are discussed in light of the extensive literature on solid particle impact and corrosion by considering the influence of nano-scale phase changes which can often only be observed using transmission electron microscopy
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