Friction and wear behavior of annealed Ti-20Zr-6.5Al-4V alloy sliding against 440C steel in vacuum

Tribological behavior of a recently-developed Ti-20Zr-6.5Al-4V alloy was tested in vacuum at different annealing temperatures (800 °C, 900 °C and 1000 °C). Coefficient of friction and wear volume of the Ti-20Zr-6.5Al-4V alloy in vacuum were obtained. Scanning electron microscopy analysis was employed to determine the wear mechanism. Results show that the main wear mechanism changes from mild adhesive and severe abrasive wear at 10 N loading to severe plastic deformation and delamination wear at 30 N loading. A transfer layer was found on the stainless steel ball surface and the EDS results reveal that the layer originates from the Ti-20Zr-6.5Al-4V alloy. The three dimensional topography of the Ti-20Zr-6.5Al-4V worn surface was also explored.