New understanding of the initiation of material transfer and transfer layer build-up in metal forming—In situ studies in the SEM

The tribological mechanisms behind the initiation of material transfer and build-up of transfer layers in aluminium forming have been studied in situ in the SEM where a tip of aluminium is put into contact with a tool steel surface under controlled sliding contact conditions. By combining in situ observations with post-test high resolution FEG-SEM studies of the contacting surfaces we have shown that aluminium is immediately transferred onto the fine polished tool steel. It was also confirmed that the initial transfer occurs on a very fine scale and is localised to the surface irregularities presented by the slightly protruding carbonitrides. In contrast, the less protruding M6C carbides, as well as the martensitic steel matrix exhibit very little initial transfer. Intentionally made scratches (roughly 5 μm wide and 2 μm deep) across the tool surface immediately result in larger scale transfer, which grows upon further passages of work material causing a high coefficient of friction. The study illuminates the extreme value of combining the in situ technique with high-resolution scanning electron microscopy using low acceleration voltage as a mean to detect the very thin initial transfer layers. With the higher acceleration voltages normally used, the transferred aluminium becomes transparent and can hardly be detected.