Wear characteristics of second-phase-reinforced sol–gel corundum abrasives

The use of sol–gel technologies makes it possible to manufacture new corundum-based abrasives with superior performance in terms of grinding processes. The aim of the present work is to reveal the detailed wear mechanisms on a nanometre scale and relate them to the particular microstructure of these new materials. A commercial sol–gel corundum (Cubitron 321™) was used. In the grinding experiments, wheels consisting of four different mixtures with 0%, 30%, 50% and 100% of sol–gel corundum were used to machine a tool steel (100Cr6V) by plane grinding. Changes to the contact zone were studied after controlled abrasion experiments on hard steel substrates using a pin-on-wheel tribometer, in single grit scratch tests and after tests of resistance to heat shock. Cross-sections through contact areas of a sol–gel grain were prepared using a focused ion beam workstation and investigated using conventional and analytical transmission electron microscopy. The results indicate that the combined effect of controlled propagation of subsurface shear cracks and plastic deformation leads to the formation of flat contact zones. On these contact zones, a nanocrystalline FeO debris layer adheres to the alumina. The results of our investigations were verified in grinding experiments and give insight into the physical reasons of the superior tribological properties of the sol–gel corundum abrasives.