Tribological behaviour of fused deposition modelling printed short carbon fibre reinforced nylon composites with surface textures under dry and water lubricated conditions

Fused deposition modelling(FDM)printed short carbon fibre reinforced nylon(SCFRN)composites were fabricated.The friction and wear behaviour of printed materials were systematically investigated under both dry sliding and water lubricated conditions.The results showed that with short fibre enhancements,the printed SCFRN achieved a lower friction coefficient and higher wear resistance than nylon under all tested conditions.Further,under water lubricated conditions,the printed SCFRN exhibited a low,stable friction coefficient due to the cooling and lubricating effects of water.However,the specific wear rate of the printed specimens could be higher than that obtained under dry sliding conditions,especially when the load was relatively low.The square textured surface was designed and created in the printing process to improve materials’tribological performance.It was found that with the textured surface,the wear resistance of the printed SCFRN was improved under dry sliding conditions,which could be explained by the debris collection or cleaning effect of surface texture.However,such a cleaning effect was less noticeable under lubricated conditions,as the liquid could clean the surface effectively.On the other hand,surface textures could increase the surface area exposed to water,causing surface softening due to the higher water absorption rate.As a result,the samples having surface textures showed higher wear rates under lubricated conditions.The work has provided new insights into designing wear resistant polymer materials using three-dimensional(3D)printing technologies,subjected to different sliding conditions.

A novel approach for manufacturing of layered,ultra-refractory composites using pliable,short fibre-reinforced ceramic sheets

A new additive technique for manufacturing of short fibre-reinforced ultra-refractory ceramics is presented.This technique allows the fabrication of solvent-free,thin(~100µm),flexible,and easy-to-handle sheets suitable for fabricating homogeneous or layered structures.A large range of compositions,in terms of matrix and fibre volumetric contents,from 0%to 100%is possible.The amount of short carbon fibres incorporated in the sheets ranged from 20 to 50 vol%,whereas the fibre length ranged from 3 to 5 mm.The matrix composition investigated with this technique consisted of ZrB_(2)/SiC/Y_(2)O_(3).By increasing the fibre amount from 35 to 50 vol%,an improvement of mechanical properties was observed.Four-point flexural strength(σ)ranged from 107 to 140 MPa,depending on the amount of carbon fibres(Cf).The same holds true for the work of fracture,ranging from 108 to 253 J/m^(2).Functionally graded composites were fabricated by overlapping sheets with a fibre gradient(0%-50%).