Due to the low density and high temperature resistance, the SiCp/A356 composites have great potential for weight reduction and braking performance using the brake disc used in trains and automobiles. But the friction coefficient and braking performance are not stable in the braking process because of temperature rising. In this paper, friction and wear behaviors of SiCp/A356 composite against semimetallic materials were investigated in a ring-on-disc configuration in the temperature range of 30°C to 300°C. Experiments were conducted at a constant sliding speed of 1.4 m/s and an applied load of 200 N. Worn surface, subsurface, and wear debris were also examined by using SEM and EDS techniques. The third body films (TBFs) lubricated wear transferred to the third body abrasive wear above 200°C, which was a transition temperature. The friction coefficient decreased and weight of semimetallic materials increased with the increase of temperature and the temperature had almost no effect on the weight loss of composites. The dominant wear mechanism of the composites was microploughing and slight adhesion below 200°C, while being controlled by cutting grooves, severe adhesion, and delamination above the 200°C.

Scanning microarc oxidation (SMAO) is a coating process which is based on conventional microarc oxidation (MAO). The key difference is that deposition in SMAO is achieved by using a stainless steel nozzle to spray an electrolyte stream on the substrate surface as opposed to immersing the workpiece in an electrolyzer. In the present study, SMAO discharge characteristics, coating morphology, and properties are analyzed and compared to results obtained from MAO under similar conditions. Results show that MAO and SMAO have comparable spark and microarc lifetimes and sizes, though significant differences in incubation time and discharge distribution were evident. Results also showed that the voltage and current density for MAO and SMAO demonstrate similar behavior but have markedly different transient and steady-state values. Results obtained from coating A356 aluminum sheet show that oxide thickness and growth rate in SMAO are strongly dependent on interelectrode spacing and travel speed. Analysis of the SMAO coating morphology and structure showed that a denser and slightly harder layer was deposited in comparison to MAO and is attributed to reduced porosity and increased formation of α-Al₂O₃. Preliminary results indicate that SMAO represents a viable process for coating of aluminum surfaces.