Wear reducing effects and temperature dependence of tribolayer formation in harsh environment

Certain materials show a tribolayer formation especially at enhanced temperatures in abrasive environment, building a wear protection layer with the abrasive on the surface. Three materials with different microstructures were tested in three-body abrasive and impact/abrasive environments at temperatures up to 700 °C to investigate tribolayer formation. Optical and electron microscopical methods were used for wear qualification. Furthermore, hot hardness tests were performed up to 700 °C to investigate the influence of hardness drop on tribolayer formation. shown that no significant tribolayer formation occurs on grey cast iron, whereas other materials form tribolayers. Generally, tribolayer formation increases with increasing testing temperature, especially for austenitic and ferritic materials. This entails a self-protecting effect and thus superior wear resistance in abrasive environment.