Development and analysis of friction material for eco- friendly brake pad using seashell composite

Asbestos has been banned in many countries as a result of its negative effects on the environment and human health. As a result, a human-friendly friction material is required to replace asbestos in brake pads. Hence, the powder metallurgy technique was undertaken to develop friction material from locally sourced asbestos-free materials. Seashell was used as base elements with other additives. The filler material considered had a particulate size of 300 µm, and epoxy resin was used as a binder. The produced brake pads were evaluated and compared to commercial brake pads in terms of their physical, mechanical, and tribological properties. According to the investigated properties of the developed brake pads, increasing the seashell content in the formulated brake pads resulted in a decrease in wear rate, and compressive strength. Water absorption, hardness, oil absorption, density, and thermal conductivity all varied differently at the same time. The coefficient of friction of the produced friction material ranges between 0.311-0.353. The results showed that seashell particles could effectively replace asbestos in producing friction material for brake pads in an automobile.