Sliding velocity dependency of the friction coefficient of Si-containing diamond-like carbon film under oil lubricated condition

In this study we investigated the sliding velocity dependency of the coefficient of friction for a Si-containing diamond-like carbon (DLC-Si) film in an automatic transmission fluid (ATF) under a wide range of contact pressures. The DLC-Si film and a nitrided steel with a surface roughness, RzJIS, of around 3.0 μm were used as disk specimens. A high-carbon chromium steel (JIS-SUJ2) bearing ball was used as a ball specimen. Friction tests were conducted using a ball-on-disk friction apparatus under a wide range of sliding velocites (0.1-2.0 m/s) and contact pressures (Pmax: 0.42-3.61 GPa) in ATF. The friction coefficients for the nitrided steel had a tendency to decrease with an increase in sliding veloicity under all the contact pressure conditions; however, the friction coefficients for the DLC-Si film were stable with respect to sliding velocities under all the contatct pressures. These results indicate that the DLC-Si film suppresses the stick-slip motion during sliding againt steel in ATF, which is a desired frictional characteristic for the electromagnetic clutch disks used under lubrication. Furthermore, the DLC-Si film showed a higher wear resistance and lower aggression on the steel ball specimen than the nitrided steel. There were less hydrodynamic effects on the friction coefficient for the DLC-Si film possibly due to maintenance of the initial surface roughness and its poorer wettability with the fluid. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) analysis of the sliding surfaces revealed that the adsorption film derived from the succinimide on the sliding surfaces of the DLC-Si film and the mating steel ball also contributed to the sufficient and less sliding-velocity-dependant friction coefficients.