The correlation between the mechanical properties of Fillers/Epoxy composites and their tribological behavior was investigated. Tensile, hardness, wear, and friction tests were conducted for Neat Epoxy (NE), Graphite/Epoxy composites (GE), and Data Palm Fiber/Epoxy with or without Graphite composites (GFE and FE). The correlation was made between the tensile strength, the modulus of elasticity, elongation at the break, and the hardness, as an individual or a combined factor, with the specific wear rate (SWR) and coefficient of friction (COF) of composites. In general, graphite as an additive to polymeric composite has had an eclectic effect on mechanical properties, whereas it has led to a positive effect on tribological properties, whilst date palm fibers (DPFs), as reinforcement for polymeric composite, promoted a mechanical performance with a slight improvement to the tribological performance. Statistically, this study reveals that there is no strong confirmation of any marked correlation between the mechanical and the specific wear rate of filler/Epoxy composites. There is, however, a remarkable correlation between the mechanical properties and the friction coefficient of filler/Epoxy composites.
1 July 2013 in Advances in Materials Science and Engineering
Many different families of polymers are used in industries and engineering applications. The demands for studying the tribological behaviour of polymers and their composites are recently increased. This article briefs the most recent studies on the tribological behaviour of polymeric materials based on synthetic fibres. It reviews several factors which control the wear and frictional characteristics of such materials, that is, additives, fibres, interfacial adhesion, tribology environment, operating parameters, and composite geometry. In addition to that, new bioreinforcement (fibre) is introduced associated with preliminary results. The results showed that there is high potential of replacing the conventional reinforcement with the bioones.