Fabrication and study on tribological characteristics of cast copper–TiO2–boric acid hybrid composites

Copper based composites having hard reinforcements such as silicon carbide, alumina and cerium oxide do possess higher strength, better wear resistance and higher coefficient of friction when compared to copper. However, they pose several challenges in machining such as higher tool wear and inferior surface finish. On the other hand, copper based composites having soft reinforcements such as graphite, molybdenum disulphide and calcium fluoride do possess lower coefficient of friction and better machinability characteristics. Against this background, an attempt is made to develop a new class of copper composite materials by dispersing both the hard and soft reinforcements in appropriate proportions to ensure optimization of mechanical properties and machinability characteristics. In this paper the development and testing of copper–TiO2–boric acid composites by liquid metallurgy method is presented. Metallographic study, micro hardness, tensile strength, friction and wear tests on these hybrid composites have been carried out. The results show that copper–TiO2–boric acid composites possess higher hardness, higher tensile strength, higher coefficient of friction and better wear resistance when compared with pure copper.