"Tribological properties of short carbon fibers reinforced epoxy compos" by Nay Win KHUN, He ZHANG et al.

Article Title

Tribological properties of short carbon fibers reinforced epoxy composites

Authors

Nay Win KHUN, School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, 50 Nanyang Avenue, Singapore 639798, Singapore
He ZHANG, School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, 50 Nanyang Avenue, Singapore 639798, Singapore
Lee Hoon LIM, School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, 50 Nanyang Avenue, Singapore 639798, Singapore
Chee Yoon YUE, School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, 50 Nanyang Avenue, Singapore 639798, Singapore
Xiao HU, School of Materials Science and Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, 50 Nanyang Avenue, Singapore 639798, Singapore
Jinglei YANG, School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, 50 Nanyang Avenue, Singapore 639798, Singapore

Keywords

epoxy composite, short carbon fiber, friction, wear

Abstract

Short carbon fiber (SCF) reinforced epoxy composites with different SCF contents were developed to investigate their tribological properties. The friction coefficient and wear of the epoxy composites slid in a circular path against a steel pin inclined at 45° to a vertical axis and a steel ball significantly decreased with increased SCF content due to the solid lubricating effect of SCFs along with the improved mechanical strength of the composites. The scanning electron microscope (SEM) observation showed that the epoxy composites had less sensitive to surface fatigue caused by the repeated sliding of the counterparts than the epoxy. The tribological results clearly showed that the incorporation of SCFs was an effective way to improve the tribological properties of the epoxy composites.