High-temperature Thermal Properties and Wear Behavior of Basalt as Heat Storage Material for Concentrated Solar Power Plants

The microstructures,components,thermal stability,specific heat capacity and thermal conductivity of basalt sample were studied.Besides,as a comprehensive result of thermal expansion and contraction process,both the friction coefficient and wear rate of the basalt sample were also characterized.Our results indicate that basalt is an excellent candidate to be used as thermal energy storage material for concentrated solar power plants,and also provide a strategy for solar energy utilization in volcanic area with excellent geographical environment.

Influence of B4C and ZrB2 reinforcements on microstructural,mechanical and wear behaviour of AA 2014 aluminium matrix hybrid composites

Considering their affordability and high strength-to-weight ratio,lightweight aluminium alloys are the subject of intensive research aimed at improving their properties for use in the aerospace industry.This research effort aims to develop novel hybrid composites based on AA 2014 alloy through the use of liquid metallurgy stir casting to reinforce dual ceramic particles of Zirconium Diboride(ZrB_(2))and Boron Carbide(B4C).The weight percentage(wt%)of ZrB_(2) was varied(0,5,10,and 15),while a constant 5 wt%of B4C was maintained during this fabrication.The as-cast samples have been assessed using an Optical Microscope(OM)and a Scanning Electron Microscope(SEM)with Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy(EDS).The properties such as hardness,tensile strength,and wear characteristics of stir cast specimens were assessed to examine the impact of varying weight percentages of reinforcements in AA 2014 alloy.In particular,dry sliding wear behaviour was evaluated considering varied loads using a pin-on-disc tribotester.As the weight%of ZrB_(2) grew and B4C was incorporated,hybrid composites showed higher hardness,tensile strength,and wear resistance.Notably,the incorporation of a cumulative reinforcement consisting of 15 wt%ZrB_(2) and 5 wt%B4C resulted in a significant 31.86%increase in hardness and a 44.1%increase in tensile strength compared to AA 2014 alloy.In addition,it has been detected that wear resistance of hybrid composite pin(containing 20 wt%cumulative reinforcement)is higher than that of other stir cast wear test pins during the whole range of applied loads.Fractured surfaces of tensile specimens showed ductile fracture in the AA 2014 matrix and mixed mode for hybrid composites.Worn surfaces obtained employing higher applied load indicated abrasive wear with little plastic deformation for hybrid composites and dominant adhesive wear for matrix alloy.Hence,the superior mechanical and tribological performance of hybrid composites can be attributed to dual reinforcement particles being dispersed well and the effective transmission of load at this specific composition.

Effect of WS_2 addition on electrical sliding wear behaviors of Cu-graphite-WS_2 composites

Four kinds of Cu-based composites with different mass ratios of graphite and WS2 as lubricants were fabricated by hot-pressing method. Electrical sliding wear behaviors of the composites were investigated using a block-on-ring tribometer rubbing against Cu-5%Ag alloy ring. The results demonstrated that 800 ~C was the optimum sintering temperature for Cu-graphite-WS2 dual-lubricant composites to obtain the best comprehensive properties of mechanical strength and lubrication performance. Contact voltage drops of the Cu-based composites increased with increasing the mass ratio of WS2 to graphite. The Cu-based composite with 20% graphite and 10% WS2 showed the best wear resistance due to the excellent synergetic lubricating effect of graphite and WS2. The reasonable addition of WS2 into the Cu-graphite composite can remarkably improve the wear resistance without much rise of electrical energy loss which provides a novel principle of designing suitable sliding electrical contact materials for industrial applications.

Microstructure, mechanical properties and wear behaviour of Zn-Al-Cu-TiB_2 in situ composites

Zn-Al-Cu-TiB2（ZA27-TiB2） in situ composites were fabricated via reactions between molten aluminum and mixed halide salts（K2TiF6 and KBF4） at temperature of 875 °C. The microstructure, mechanical properties and wear behavior of the composites were investigated. Microstructure analysis shows that fine and clean TiB2 particles distribute uniformly through the matrix. The mechanical properties of the composites increase with the increase in TiB2 content. As TiB2 content increases to 5%（mass fraction）, an improvement of HB 18 in hardness and 49 MPa in ultimate tensile strength（UTS） is achieved. The overall results reveal that the composites possess low friction coefficients and the wear rate is reduced from 5.9×10-3 to 1.3×10-3 mm3/m after incorporating 5% TiB2. Friction coefficient and worn surface analysis indicate that there is a change in the wear mechanism in the initial stage of wear test after introducing in situ TiB2 particles into the matrix.

Preparation and tribological performances of Ni-P-multi-walled carbon nanotubes composite coatings

Multi-walled carbon nanotubes （MWNTs） were wet-milled in the presence of ammonia and cationic surfactant and then used as reinforcements to prepare Ni-P-MWNTs composite coatings by electroless plating. The tribological performances of the composite coatings under dry condition were investigated in comparison with 45 steel and conventional Ni-P coating, Micrographs show that short MWNTs with uniform length and open tips were obtained through the wet-milling process. The results of wear test reveal that the Ni-P-MWNTs composite coatings posses much better friction reduction and anti-wear performances when compared with 45 steel and Ni-P coating. Within the MWNTs content range of 0.74%-1.97%, the friction coefficient and the volume wear rate of the composite coatings decrease gradually and reach the minimum values of 0.08 and 6.22x10-15 m3/（N.m）, respectively. The excellent tribological performances of the composite coatings can be attributed to the introduction of MWNTs, which play both roles of reinforcements and solid lubricant during the wear process.

Effect of additive BaO on corrosion resistance of xCu/(10NiO-NiFe_2O_4) cermet inert anodes for aluminum electrolysis

xCu/（10NiO-NiFe2O4） cermet and 1BaO-xCu/（10NiO-NiFe2O4） cermet（x=5,10,17） inert anodes were prepared as potential inert anodes for aluminum electrolysis and their corrosion resistance to traditional electrolyte was studied with anodic current density of 1.0 A/cm2 in laboratory electrolysis.The substantial corrosion of metal Cu was observed,many pores appeared on the surface of anode and electrolytes infiltrated inside anodes during the electrolysis.The wear rates of 5Cu/（10NiO-NiFe2O4）,10Cu/（10NiO-NiFe2O4）,17Cu/（10NiO-NiFe2O4）,1BaO-5Cu/（10NiO-NiFe2O4）,1BaO-10Cu/（10NiO-NiFe2O4） and 1BaO-17Cu/（10NiO-NiFe2O4） are 2.15,6.50,8.30,4.88,4.70 and 4.48 cm/a,respectively.The addition of BaO to 10Cu/（10NiO-NiFe2O4） cermet and 17Cu/（10NiO-NiFe2O4） cermet is advantageous because BaO can effectively promote densification and thus improve corrosion resistance.But the addition of BaO to 5Cu/（10NiO-NiFe2O4） cermet is unfavorable to corrosion resistance because additive BaO at the grain boundary of anode accelerates possibly the corrosion of cermet.

Dry sliding wear behavior of cast Mg-11Y-5Gd-2Zn magnesium alloy

Dry sliding wear tests on as-cast and cast＋T6 Mg-11Y-5Gd-2Zn magnesium alloys were performed using a ball-on-plate configuration. The wear rates were measured within a load range of 3-15 N, sliding speed range of 0.03-0.24 m/s, test temperature range of 25-200 °C and at a constant sliding distance of 400 m. The wear tracks, worn surfaces and wear debris of the alloys were analyzed using scanning electron microscope （SEM）. The results show that the wear rate of the alloys increases almost linearly with increasing applied load and decreases with increasing sliding speed. The wear rate of the as-cast alloy is higher than that of the cast＋T6 alloy. The amount of Mg12Y1Zn1 phase, surface oxidation and retained wear debris affect the wear rate. The dominant wear mechanisms under the test condition are abrasion and plastic deformation.

Wear behavior of Mg-10Y-4Gd-1.5Zn-0.4Zr alloy

Dry sliding wear tests were performed on a Mg-10Y-4Gd-1.5Zn-0.4Zr alloy using a Ball-on-Flat type wear apparatus against an AISI 52100 type bearing steel ball counterface. The wear rates were measured within a load range of 3-25 N, a sliding speed range of 0.03-0.3 m/s and a sliding temperature range of 25-200 ℃ at a constant sliding distance of 400 m. The morphologies of the worn surfaces and wear debris were studied by scanning electron microscopy （SEM） and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy （EDS）. Comparatively, the wear properties of a hypereutectic Al-Si aluminium alloy under the same condition were measured. The results indicate that the wear rates of Mg-10Y-4Gd-1.5Zn-0.4Zr alloy are lower than that of cast＋T6 AC9B aluminium alloy. The dominant mechanism of cast＋T6 Mg-10Y-4Gd-1.5Zn-0.4Zr alloy is abrasion wear mixed with other wear mechanisms, which tends to be an abrasion and plastic deformation wear at high normal load such as 10-25 N, abrasion and plastic deformation wears with small participation of delamination and oxidative wears at high sliding speed such as 0.12-0.3 m/s, and an oxidative and abrasion wear at high test temperature such as 100-200 ℃. The Mg12Y1Zn1 phase in Mg-10Y-4Gd-1.5Zn-0.4Zr alloy plays an important role in the wear rate.

STUDY OF THE PERFORMANCE ON THE WEAR AND FRICTION OF THE C/Cu COMPOSITE MATERIAL

The friction and wear properties of the C/Cu composite material were investigated. The experiments were conducted on a block on ring type friction machine. It has been found that the friction coefficient and the wear rate of the composite material increase slowly as the pressure is increased in a mild wear state. Scanning electron microscopy and electron probe X ray micro analyzer observations indicate that the low values of μ and W L are due to the formation of a film that impedes adhesion and confers some degree of self lubrication.

Improving energy utilization efficiency of electrical discharge milling in titanium alloys machining

Electrical discharge milling(ED-milling) can be a good choice for titanium alloys machining and it was proven that its machining efficiency can be improved to compete with mechanical cutting. In order to improve energy utilization efficiency of ED-milling process, unstable arc discharge and stable arc discharge combined with normal discharge were implemented for material removal by adjusting servo control strategy. The influence of electrode rotating speed and dielectric flushing pressure on machining performance was investigated by experiments. It was found that the rotating of electrode could move the position of discharge plasma channel, and high pressure flushing could wash melted debris out the discharge gap effectively. Both electrode rotating motion and high pressure flushing are contributed to the improvement of machining efficiency.

Wear behavior and dry sliding tribological properties of ultra-fine grained Al5083 alloy and boron carbide-reinforced Al5083-based composite at room and elevated temperatures

Tribological behavior and wear mechanisms of mechanically milled Al5083 alloy and Al5083−5wt.%B4C composite at room temperature and 200°C were discussed.Results revealed that due to the oxidative wear at room temperature,a mechanically mixed layer(MML)was formed to protect the surface of the samples.Under 80 N of load at room temperature,the milled Al5083 and the Al5083−5wt.%B4C samples showed evidence of abrasion with limited volume loss.In this case,the wear rates were 5.8×10−7 and 4.4×10−7 mm3/(m·N),respectively.At 200°C and under 80 N of applied load,severe wear occurred in the milled Al5083 sample,and wear rate reached 10.8×10−7 mm3/(m·N)while the Al5083−5wt.%B4C sample showed mild wear with local 3-body abrasion and the wear rate reached 5.3×10−7 mm3/(m·N).Strengthening mechanisms such as dislocation pinning and the Hall−Petch theory,high hardness and the load transfer effect were crucial in determining the wear behavior of the Al5083−5wt.%B4C composite.On the other hand,the milled Al5083 sample represented a relatively high wear rate at 200°C,which seemed to be related to the local grain growth and a drop in its hardness.

Optimal rotor wear design in hypotrochoidal gear pump using genetic algorithm

The wear rate between the rotors of a hypotrochoidal gear pump is characterized.Using the knowledge of shape design on the rotors,the contact stresses without hydrodynamic effect between the rotor teeth were evaluated through the calculation of the Hertzian contact stress.Based on the above results and the sliding velocity between the rotors,a genetic algorithm (GA) was used as an optimization technique forminimizing the wear rate proportional factor (WRPF).The result shows that the wear rate or the WRPF can be reduced considerably,e.g.approximately 12.8%,throughout the optimization using GA.

Influence of tool rotational speed on microstructure and sliding wear behavior of Cu/B_4C surface composite synthesized by friction stir processing

An attempt was made to synthesize Cu/B4C surface composite using friction stir processing（FSP） and to analyze the influence of tool rotational speed on microstructure and sliding wear behavior of the composite. The tool rotational speed was varied from 800 to 1200 r/min in step of 200 r/min. The traverse speed, axial force, groove width and tool pin profile were kept constant. Optical microscopy and scanning electron microscopy were used to study the microstructure of the fabricated surface composites. The sliding wear behavior was evaluated using a pin-on-disc apparatus. The results indicate that the tool rotational speed significantly influences the area of the surface composite and the distribution of B4C particles. Higher rotational speed exhibits homogenous distribution of B4C particles, while lower rotational speed causes poor distribution of B4C particles in the surface composite. The effects of tool rotational speed on the grain size, microhardness, wear rate, worn surface and wear debris were reported.

Dry sliding wear behavior of an extruded Mg-Dy-Zn alloy with long period stacking ordered phase

The dry sliding wear behavior of extruded Mg-2Dy-0.5Zn alloy(at.%)was investigated using a pin-on-disk configuration.The friction coefficient and wear rate were measured within a load range 20-760 N at a sliding velocity of 0.785 m/s.Microstructure and wear surface of alloy were examined using scanning electron microscopy.The mechanical properties of alloy were tested at room and elevated temperatures.Five wear mechanisms,namely abrasion,oxidation,delamination,thermal softening and melting dominated the whole wear behavior with increasing applied load.The extruded Mg-2Dy-0.5Zn alloy exhibited the better wear resistance as compared with as-cast Mg_(97)Zn_(1)Y_(2) alloy under the given conditions through contact surface temperature analysis.The improved wear resistance was mainly related to fine grain size,good thermal stability of long period stacking order(LPSO)phase and excellent higher-temperature mechanical properties.

Effect of TiO_2 and ZrO_2 reinforcements on properties of Al_2O_3 coatings fabricated by thermal flame spraying

The alumina composite coatings reinforced with 25% ZrO2 （denoted as AZ-25） and 3% TiO2 （denoted as AT-3） were deposited on low carbon steel using a thermal flame spraying. The microstructure, phase composition, microhardness and tribological properties of the coatings were investigated. The XRD results of the coatings reinforced by TiO2 （AT-3） revealed the presence of α-Al2O3 phase as matrix and new metastable phases of α-Al2O3 and α-Al2O3. However, the coatings reinforced by ZrO2 （AZ-25） consist of α-Al2O3 as matrix, q-ZrO2 and m-ZrO2. In most studied conditions, the AT-3 coating displays a better tribological performance, i.e., lower coefficient of frictions and wear rates, than the AZ-25 coating. It was also found that the microhardness of the coatings was decreased with the reinforcement of ZrO2 and increased with TiO2.

Effect of WS_2 particle size on mechanical properties and tribological behaviors of Cu-WS_2 composites sintered by SPS

The mechanical properties and tribological behaviors of Cu-WS2 composites fabricated by spark plasma sintering（SPS） using two different WS2 particle sizes of 0.6 and 5.0 μm and Cu powders as raw materials were investigated. The results indicate that the bending strength and tribological behavior of Cu-WS2 composites are greatly affected by the size of WS2 particles. The bending strength of Cu-WS2 composites with the WS2 particle size of 5.0 μm is 292.2 MPa. As the size of WS2 particle decreases to 0.6 μm, the bending strength also decreases to 181.5 MPa. Moreover, as the WS2 particle size decreases from 5.0 to 0.6 μm, the wear rate of Cu-WS2 composite sharply increases from 2.99×10^-14 to 6.13×10^-14 m^3/（N·m） and its friction coefficient increases from 0.158 to 0.172. The size of WS2 particle（5.0 μm） plays an important role in forming transfer film formed on the counter-face. The sample with 5.0 μm WS2 particle forms smoother and more continuous transfer film, which results in a low wear rate and friction coefficient of the Cu-WS2 composites.

Microstructural evolution of die-cast and homogenized AZ91 Mg-alloys during dry sliding condition

Received 16 July 2016;revised 24 January 2017;accepted 7 February 2017 Available online 22 February 2017 Abstract Microstructural evolution of die-cast and homogenized AZ91 Mg-alloys was investigated during dry sliding wear condition.Tribological tests were performed using a pin-on-disc(EN8 steel)configuration with a normal load of 50 N at a constant sliding speed of 2.5 ms^(−1) under ambient environment.Delamination was recognized as a predominant wear mechanism in both of these materials.The die-cast AZ91 Mg-alloy exhibits lower coefficient of friction and higher wear rate.This can be ascribed to increase in the intensity of load bearing capacity of hardβ-Mg_(17)Al_(12) phase,and crack formation/de-cohesion at the interface between primaryα-Mg and discontinuousβ-Mg_(17)Al_(12) phases.On the contrary,the homogenized AZ91 Mg-alloy experiences higher coefficient of friction and lower wear rate.The friction-induced microstructural evolution(supersaturatedα-Mg to eutectic(α+β-Mg_(17)Al_(12)))tending to minimize the wear rate by providing barrier to material removal in the near surface region of homogenized AZ91 Mg-alloy.Therefore,experimental observation revealed that an inverse relationship exists between wear rate and coefficient of friction for the investigated materials.The analysis of worn surfaces and subsurfaces by electron microscopy provided evidence to delamination wear and microstructural evolution.

Optimization analysis of track comprehensive quality in micro-plasma cladding process

The purpose was to clarify the relationship between the main process parameters of micro-plasma cladding and the comprehensive quality(geometry,microstructure and wear rate of cladding track).Self-fluxing ferrous alloy powders were fabricated on Q235 substrate.Based on the uniform design,the distribution of the experimental samples was designed reasonably in the sample space,which greatly improved efficiency and reduced costs.After a series of microstructural characterization,there was no difference in the phase composition of all samples,but the average grain size had a significant difference,which resulted in the change of wear rate.And the relationship among micro-hardness,average grain size and wear rate of the track had also been investigated.Subsequently,an optimization model was established and the optimal process parameters were obtained with excellent wear rate under the geometric constraints.The correctness of optimization model was verified by experiments.

Correlation between test temperature, applied load and wear transition of Mg97Zn1Y2 alloy

Dry sliding wear tests were performed on Mg97 Zn1 Y2 alloy at various temperatures of 20,50,100,150 and 200°C using a pin-on-disc wear testing machine in order to reveal mild-severe(M-S)wear transition mechanism during elevated-temperature wear testing.It was shown that at each test temperature,the wear rate increased with increasing load,and all wear rate-load curves demonstrated two distinct stages i.e.mild and severe wear stages.The predominant wear mechanisms operating in mild and severe wear stages were analyzed,and they were indicated in the mild and severe wear regimes of a wear mechanism transition map,respectively.M-S wear transition mechanism was analyzed by comparison of microstructure transformation and hardness change in subsurfaces of samples tested in mild and severe wear stages,from which M-S wear transition mechanism was confirmed as softening of surface material arising from dynamic recrystallization(DRX)microstructure transformation.The M-S wear transition load was found to have a linear relationship with test temperature,and decreased with rising test temperature.M-S wear transition obeyed a critical surface DRX temperature(SDT)criterion under given conditions,and the transition loads were estimated at various test temperatures by using the criterion.

Influence of quenching medium on the dendrite morphology,hardness,and tribological behaviour of cast Cu-Ni-Sn spinodal alloy for defence application

Cu-Ni-Sn spinodal alloys(Spinodal bronze)are potential materials with robust applications in components associated with defence applications like bearings,propellers,bushes,and shafts of heavily loaded aircraft,off-road vehicles,and warships.This paper presents a comparative study using water,Brine solution,and SAE 40 oil as the quenching media in regular bronze(Cu-6Sn)and spinodal bronze(Cu-9Ni-6Sn)alloys.Morphological analysis was conducted by optical microscopy,transmission electron microscopy(TEM),and X-ray diffraction technique(XRD)on bronze and spinodal bronze samples immersed in the three different quenching media to understand the grain size and hardness values better.Tribological analysis was performed to analyze the effect of quenching media on the wear aspects of bronze and spinodal bronze samples.The hardness value of the brine-aged spinodal bronze samples was as high as 320 Hv,and the grain size was very low in the range of 60μm.A quantitative comparison between brine-aged regular bronze and brine-aged spinodal bronze showed that the hardness(Hv)was almost 80%higher for brine-aged spinodal bronze.Further,the grain size was approximately 30%finer for spinodal bronze when compared with regular bronze.When the load was increased in spinodal bronze samples,there was an initial dip in wear rate followed by a marginal increase.There was a steady increase in friction coefficient with a rise in load for brine-aged regular bronze and spinodal bronze samples.These results indicate that brine solution is the most effective quenching medium for cast Cu-Ni-Sn spinodal alloys.