Investigation Into Tribological Behaviour of AL7075 and AL7075 Hybrid Composites
Ashok Raj Rajendran, R. Pavendhan, B. Kumaragurubaran
Abstract
The aluminium metal matrix composite (AMMC) is widely used in aerospace and automotive applications. The AMMC reinforced with titanium diboride (TiB 2 ), exhibits excellent tribological properties. In this study, molybdenum disulfide (MoS 2 ) was used as a reinforcement to improve the tribological properties of the Al7075-TiB 2 composite. The Al7075 hybrid composites were produced with 12 wt% of TiB 2 with varied mass loading of MoS 2 (x = 0, 1.5, 3, 4.5) by using the powder metallurgy method. The energy dispersive Xray spectroscopy (EDX) test confirmed the presence of reinforcements. The Al7075 composites were examined for the study of microstructure, microhardness and tribological behaviour by using a scanning electron microscope (SEM), Vickers microhardness tester and pin-on-disc equipment, respectively. The tribological properties of Al7075 hybrid composites are superior to those of aluminium alloy Al7075. The low wear loss (10 mg) and coefficient of friction (0.109) were produced at the sliding velocity of 2 m/s, the sliding distance of 1000 m and the applied load of 5 N in the Al7075-12%TiB 2 -4.5%MoS 2 composite.