Study of Abrasive Wear Behavior of Epoxy-Carbon Fiber Composites with Nano Al2O3 Filler: An Algorithmic Approach

In the present research, epoxy composites were made by hand layup with reinforcement of carbon fabric and Al2O3 nanoparticles in weight percentages of 0.5, 1.0, and 2.0. The L-16 orthogonal array was used in the experiment design, with the load, sliding distance, and amount of filler reinforcement as controlling parameters. The study of three-body abrasive wear was carried out with a load of 10 and 20 N for a sliding distance of 250–1000 m in an increment of 250 m at a speed of 2.5 m/s. The experimental study confirms the increased wear loss with increased sliding distance and load. The wear loss was decreased with an increased percentage of fillers from 0.5 to 2.0 wt.%. The SEM analysis of the worn surfaces has revealed micro-plowing, initiation of micro-cracks, removal of epoxy by silica sand particles, and rapture of carbon fibers. The combination of optimal parameters for minimizing wear loss has also been studied through the Taguchi and algorithmic approaches. The SSO algorithm has outperformed the other algorithms and the Taguchi method.