Cold rolling and lubricated wear of 5083 aluminium alloy

The effect of cold deformation on the lubricated wear of 5083 aluminium alloy was investigated. SAE 10W was selected as liquid lubricant. The aluminium alloy was submitted to a cold rolling process, until the average thickness of the specimens was reduced by 7% and 15% respectively. From the experimental results obtained, the Stribeck curves for the as received and cold rolled aluminium alloy specimens were exacted. In all cases the three lubrication regimes were identified. In addition, the cold deformation process has led to a decrease of the friction coefficient of the tribosystem: 5083 aluminium alloy–410 stainless steel, for the same wear conditions (applied load, sliding speed and lubricant). The dominant wear mechanisms in each lubrication regime were studied via Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM).