Friction and wear of fiber reinforced polyimide composites

In the present work friction and wear of polyimides reinforced by carbon, glass and aramid fibers were studied and comparatively evaluated under dry sliding against sandpaper and steel rig as well as under three-body abrasive conditions. The worn surfaces of the composites were examined by scanning electron microscopy to reveal mechanisms of materials damage. Wear mechanisms are found to be dependent on test conditions. It was proven that reinforcements affect tribological properties of the polyimide composites to a great extent. The best performance under tests conditions was shown by inorganic fibers reinforced composites due to the effective sharing of the load between surfaces in contact. Brittle glass fibers have not contributed into improvement in wear resistance under three-body abrasive conditions due to insufficient support from polyimide matrix. (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.