This paper presents the mechanical and tribological characteristics of potassium titanate whisker (PTW) reinforced epoxy composites. The effect of various test variables and material parameters on the friction and wear behavior of epoxy/PTW composites has been studied systematically. Tribological tests were conducted on a pin-on-disc apparatus under dry sliding conditions. Addition of PTW was found to improve the wear resistance of the composites and 15 wt% PTW filled epoxy exhibited lowest specific wear rate and highest friction coefficient compared to other test samples. PTW additions showed beneficiary effect on density, hardness, and stiffness properties of composites; however, strength properties and ductility were found to decrease with the increasing content of PTW. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) images of tensile fractured surfaces and worn-out surfaces of selected samples revealed different fracture mechanisms.

This study evaluates the influence of independent parameters such as sliding velocity (A), normal load (B), filler content (C), and sliding distance (D) on wear performance of potassium-titanate-whiskers (PTW) reinforced epoxy composites using a statistical approach. The PTW were reinforced in epoxy resin to prepare whisker reinforced composites of different compositions using vacuum-assisted casting technique. Dry sliding wear tests were conducted using a standard pin on disc test setup following a well planned experimental schedule based on Taguchi’s orthogonal arrays. With the signal-to-noise (S/N) ratio and analysis of variance (ANOVA) optimal combination of parameters to minimize the wear rate was determined. It was found that inclusion of PTW has greatly improved the wear resistance property of the composites. Normal load was found to be the most significant factor affecting the wear rate followed by (C), (D), and (A). Interaction effects of various control parameters were less significant on wear rate of composites.

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The dry sliding friction and wear behavior of epoxy hybrid composites reinforced with glass fibers and a varying amount of potassium titanate whiskers (PTWs) fabricated by vacuum hand layup method were studied. The influence of normal load, sliding velocity, and whisker content on both friction coefficient and specific wear rate was investigated on a pin-on-disc machine. The tests were conducted at ambient conditions based on the 3 × 3 (3 factors at 3 levels) full factorial design. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) was performed to obtain the contribution of control parameters on friction coefficient and wear rate. The density and hardness of the composites were found to be enhanced with the PTW loading. The friction coefficient and wear resistance of the hybrid composites were found to be improved with the whisker content and were also greatly influenced by normal load and sliding velocity. A correlation between dry sliding wear behaviors of composites with wear parameters was obtained by multiple regressions. The worn out surface of selected samples was observed under scanning electron microscope (SEM) to identify wear mechanisms. This study revealed that the addition of the ceramic microfillers such as PTW improves the wear performance of the epoxy/glass polymer composites significantly.

The present work reveals the effect of the addition of commercial MoS 2 (10 wt%) particles on mechanical and two-body abrasive wear behavior of epoxy with/without glass fiber mat reinforcement. The composites were fabricated using casting and simple hand lay-up techniques followed by compression molding. The mechanical properties such as density, hardness, tensile, and flexural properties were determined as per ASTM standards. The abrasive wear testing was carried out using pin-on-disc wear tester for different loads and abrading distances at constant speed of 1 m/s. A significant reduction in wear loss and specific wear rate was noticed after the incorporation of MoS 2 filler allowing less wear of matrix during abrasion which in turn facilitated lower fiber damage. However the incorporation of MoS 2 particles had a detrimental effect on most of the mechanical properties of the composites. The worn surface features were investigated through scanning electron microscopy (SEM) in order to investigate the wear mechanisms.