Enhanced Tribological Properties of an Advanced Al-Al2O3 Composite Infiltrated With a Tin-Based Alloy

In this article, a new hybrid material is elaborated, which combines the advantages of the mechanically more resistive alloy-based composites and the effective lubricating properties of tin-based alloys with the purpose of enhancing the tribological properties and especially to enhance resistance under extreme and transient operating conditions for the application of sliding bearings. The hybrid material consists of an aluminum composite skeleton obtained via a replication method with NaCl particles as spacers and a tin-based alloy that is infiltrated into the composite skeleton. The hybrid material is characterized in respect to its microstructure and tribological parameters, such as the wear-rate and coefficient of friction. Data from the conducted tribological tests using the pin-on-disk method under dry friction conditions are obtained and compared with the results of the same tribological tests for the Al alloy, Al alloy-based porous skeleton, Al alloy-based porous composite skeleton, and tin-based alloy. It is concluded that the new hybrid material possesses superior tribological properties in comparison with the tin-based alloy, Al alloy, Al alloy-based porous skeleton, and Al alloy-based porous composite skeleton.