Friction behavior of Al-Cu-Fe-B polycrystalline quasicrystals

Dry sliding friction between the polycrystalline Al59Cu25.5Fe12.5B3 quasicrystals（QCs） and coating of the diamond-like carbon（DLC） was carried out by self-made tribometer under different conditions. The influences of four parameters（temperature, sliding velocity, applied load, atmosphere） on friction of quasicrystal surface were studied. Microstructure of quasicrystal, morphology of worn surface, and wear debris were observed by scanning electron microscope（SEM）. The results show that for QCs, the friction coefficient and the roughness of worn surface is influenced by the parameters, especially greatly by the temperature. With increasing the applied load and sliding velocity, the friction coefficient decreases. The dominant wear mechanism at 350 ℃ is delamination for QCs. The cracks forms on the worn surface during friction. Moreover, phase transformation is not observed on worn surface of QCs at 350 ℃.