Comparative study of wear performance of particulate and fiber-reinforced nano-ZnO/ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene hybrid composites using response surface methodology

• Particulate and fiber reinforcement on the wear properties of UHMWPE were reported.
• Full quadratic model of wear behavior of UHMWPE composites were derived.
• Optimization of the sliding condition on the wear of UHMWPE was reported.
• Glass fiber is more effective than talc particles in improving the wear of UHMWPE.

The effects of two types of filler reinforcements i.e. particulate (talc particles) and fiber (Glass Fiber (GF)) as secondary reinforcements in ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE)-based composites on the wear and friction properties were discussed in this paper. These UHMWPE hybrid composites were fabricated by the addition of 10 wt% of talc and glass fiber at a fixed nano-ZnO loading of 10 wt% using a hot compression moulding technique. The wear and friction properties of these hybrid composites were investigated using a pin-on-disc tester with different operating conditions of applied loads, sliding speeds and sliding distances based on response surface Box–Behnken design. Response Surface Methodology (RSM) was applied to model the effects of various variables of applied load, sliding speed and distance on the wear volume loss and average coefficient of friction (COF) of UHMWPE hybrid composites. The mathematical regression models of the wear volume and average COF were derived from the analysis of variance (ANOVA). Optimization of the independent variables to minimize the wear and friction responses of both UHMWPE composites was estimated using RSM. The mathematical models showed that applied load, sliding speed and distance have significant effects on the wear and friction properties of both UHMWPE composites in the tested range of variables. The most significant, in order of the variables that affect the volume loss and friction of UHMWPE composites is load, followed by sliding distance and speed. In addition, the combined effects of load and distance indicate the highest significance on volume loss and average COF for both UHMWPE hybrid composites as compared to other variable interactions. GF/ZnO/UHMWPE exhibited better wear performance compared to talc/ZnO/UHMWPE hybrid composites. The severity of worn surfaces of the GF/ZnO/UHMWPE was less than that of talc/ZnO/UHMWPE. The GF/ZnO/UHMWPE produced transfer films that were more uniform and had better coverage compared to talc/ZnO/UHMWPE.