Influence of counter surface topography on the tribological behavior of carbon-filled PPS composites in water

This study is aimed at investigating the influence of counter surfaces׳ topography on tribological behavior of several carbon-filled polyphenylene sulfide (PPS) composites in water lubricated contacts. The results of this study showed significant increase in wear rate of pure, graphite and/or multi-walled carbon nanotubes filled PPS composites with increase in mean slope of profile along the sliding direction (Δαy). This is while SCF filled PPS composites exhibited 1-3 orders of magnitude lower wear rate with little dependence on counter surface roughness characteristics. Among the roughness parameters studied, Rpk and lay orientation played a more significant role in friction, and Rpk and Δαy were found to correlate best with the wear rate of the composites not containing SCF in their matrices.