High sliding wear resistance is generally attributed to high hardness and high mechanical strength. Novel near net shape process technologies such as metal injection moulding (MIM) or lost foam casting (LF) lack forming processes that typically increase strength. Consequently, the materials exhibit large-grained microstructures with low defect densities. Commercial copper alloys (CuSn8, CuNi9Sn6, CuSn12Ni2) well known for good sliding properties were produced using MIM and LF and characterised in the current study. Their wear and friction behaviour was compared to conventionally produced variants in a lubricated, reciprocating sliding test against steel. The results showed an equal or superior wear resistance and lower friction levels for large-grained microstructures evolving in MIM and LF. SEM, FIB and EBSD studies revealed a tribolayer on the surface and a tribologically transformed layer (TTL), composed of a nano-crystalline zone or partially rotated grains, and selective hardening of grains. The extent of the TTL was different for alloys that were chemically identical but exhibited different initial microstructures. Innovative production routes investigated here showed no tribological drawbacks, but present the potential to increase lifetime, as nano-crystalline zones may render the sample more prone to wear. We present a hypothesis on the cause for these behaviours.

Economic and societal changes and technological development guide the focus of tribology research. “Classical” tasks, such as the improvement of materials or the tuning of a lubricant, have long been replaced by a function-oriented aggregate design, including specifications defined by needs arising from production and the environment. Tribology faces, among other remarkable changes, a paradigm shift according to the tendency to replace classic internal combustion engine (ICE) drivetrains with electric drives. How tribology will develop, and which research topics will prevail in the future, are being explored by several studies based on the experience of experts. The variety of contributions to journals and conferences provide an indicator of the importance of such tasks or topics. Here, a report on the ECOTRIB 2019—7th European Conference on Tribology held in Vienna, Austria, is presented. From the available information, an even stronger integration of other disciplines into tribology is noticeable, with certain hype in the fields of advanced material technology, sensor integration and the implementation of data science. Measures to rethink tribology from both an organizational and scientific point of view to cope with future tasks are being targeted and comprehensively implemented in the current research program “InTribology”, operated by the Austrian Center of Competence for Tribology (AC²T) in Wiener Neustadt, Austria.