Evaluation of sliding wear behavior of graphite particle-containing magnesium alloy composites

The influence of graphite particle content on the friction and wear characteristics of AZ91 magnesium alloy matrix composite was studied. The results show that the wear resistances of graphite-containing composite are much better than those of the matrix under the test conditions. The anti-wear ability of magnesium alloy composite is improved substantially with the increase of the graphite content from 5% to 20%, and both wear mass loss and coefficient of friction are decreased to low level. Different wear mechanisms operate at different sliding stages. A continuous black lubricating film forms progressively on the worn surface along sliding, which effectively limits the direct interaction between the composite tribosurface and the counterpart, and also remarkably delays the transition from mild wear to severe wear for magnesium alloy composite.