Tribological and mechanical behaviours of rattan-fibre-reinforced friction materials under dry sliding conditions

Abstract

This work was mainly aimed to study the physical, mechanical and tribological behaviours of the friction materials reinforced by different contents of rattan fibre. These friction materials were fabricated by a compression moulder and tested using a constant speed tester at different friction temperatures. It was found that the friction coefficients of the friction materials added with rattan fibre were relatively stable and no obvious fade was observed in comparison with specimen F-0 (containing 0 wt.% rattan fibres). The fade ratio of specimen F-5 (containing 5 wt.% rattan fibres) was 10.3% and its recovery ratio was 92.4%, indicating the excellent performances of fade resistance and recovery. And the specimen F-5 exhibited the lowest wear rate (0.541 × 10−7 cm3(N · m)−1 at 350 °C) among all tested specimens. The worn surface morphologies of the friction materials showed that the appropriate addition of rattan fibres effectively reduced abrasive wear and adhesion wear. The specimen F-5 had a smooth worn surface (Sa = 1.885 μm) with the superior fibre-matrix interfacial adhesion and a lot of secondary contact plateaus, which indicated the highest wear resistance property. The rattan-fibre-reinforced friction materials could be widely applied to automotive friction brake field according to their economic, environmental and social benefits.