Equivalent hardness concept and two-body abrasion of iron-base alloys

During wear processes, significant changes can be observed in the microstructure of the contact zone and the near surface region below it due to a high intensity of plastic deformation. For this reason, it is difficult to use the typical parameters of the initial microstructure to describe the wear behaviour. In this study, based on the simple rule of mixtures, a new model ‘Equivalent Hardness’ has been developed to describe the two-body abrasion behaviour of iron-base alloys. The equivalent hardness is equal to the sum of the products of the volume fraction of each phase (matrix and carbide) and its hardness. The hardness of the work-hardened matrix, measured after the wear test, was considered. Using this model, the abrasion behaviour can be analysed, whereas the typical initial parameters such as bulk hardness, microhardness, retained austenite, and carbide volume fraction were not enough to analyse it.