Effect of zinc concentration and experimental parameters on high stress abrasive wear behaviour of Al–Zn alloys: A factorial design approach

High stress abrasive wear behaviour of Al–Zn alloys containing high zinc concentration at varying applied load and abrasive size has been studied through two-level full factorial design approach. The upper level of zinc concentration, applied load and abrasive size is selected as 70 wt%, 7 N and 180 μm, respectively. The lower level of zinc concentration, applied load and abrasive size is taken as 30 wt%, 1 N and 60 μm, respectively. The linear regression equation, for the wear rate (Wr) as a function of these parameters (applied load, abrasive size and Zn-concentration) and their interaction, has been developed as: W r = 17.34 + 1.81 C + 12.23 L + 3.27 A + 1.27 C L + 3.36 L A + 1.68 C A + 1.14 C L A C, L and A are coded values of Zn-concentration, applied load and abrasive size, respectively, and the multiplication factor for the wear rate and the coefficients is 10−11 m3/m. The positive value of the coefficients associated with coded values of various parameters and their interactions in the above equation suggests that abrasive wear rate increases with zinc concentration, abrasive size and applied load. The validity of the developed equation has been checked with experimental values at randomly selected experimental parameters within the selected experimental domain. The results have been explained with selected worn surfaces and debris analysis.