Sliding wear of superelastic TiNi alloy

TiNi intermetallic has attracted great attention in recent years due to its superelastic and shape memory effects. The superelastic or “pseudo-elastic” effect of TiNi alloy is related to a reversible martensitic transformation, i.e., stress induced transformation. The high elastic recovery of this intermetallic has made it a potential candidate for high wear resistance applications. Unfortunately, wear behaviour of superelastic TiNi is not well understood and more work is needed to be able to fully exploit its friction and wear properties for tribological applications. In the present study dry sliding wear and friction tests, at selected ranges of normal loads and sliding speeds were conducted using a ball-on-disc type configuration. Friction and wear mechanisms responsible for the unique properties of TiNi are thoroughly investigated. Micromechanical properties and the extent of elastic recovery of TiNi were measured using a nanoindentation system and were related to wear properties.