Dry Friction and Wear Behavior of Laser-Sintered Graphite/Carbon Fiber/Polyamide 12 Composite.

Carbon fiber-reinforced polymers (CFRPs) are being used extensively in modern industries that require a high strength-to-weight ratio, such as aerospace, automotive, motorsport, and sports equipment. However, although reinforcement with carbon fibers improves the mechanical properties of polymers, this comes at the expense of abrasive wear resistance. Therefore, to efficiently utilize CFRPs in dry sliding contacts, solid lubricant is used as a filler.

Effect of Reinforcement with Short Carbon Fibers on the Friction and Wear Resistance of Additively Manufactured PA12.

Reinforcing thermoplastic materials for additive manufacturing with either short, long, and continuous fibers or micro/nanoparticles is a sound means to enhance the mechanical/tribological properties of functional 3D printed objects. However, despite the fact that reinforced thermoplastics are being used extensively in modern applications, little data are found in open literature regarding the effect of such reinforcements on the friction and wear characteristics of additively manufactured objects. Therefore, this article presents a comparative study that aims to investigate the friction and wear behavior of carbon fiber-reinforced polyamide 12 (CF-PA12) as compared to pure polyamide 12 (PA12).

Tribological Properties of Glass Bead-Filled Polyamide 12 Composite Manufactured by Selective Laser Sintering.

To enhance the properties of polyamide 12 (PA12/Nylon 12) manufactured by the selective laser sintering (SLS) process, micron-sized glass beads are used as a filler, and the resulting composite is known as glass bead-filled PA12 (PA 3200 GF). Despite PA 3200 GF basically being a tribological-grade powder, very little has been reported on the tribological properties of laser-sintered objects based on this powder. As the properties of SLS objects are orientation-dependent, this study is devoted to investigating the friction and wear characteristics of the PA 3200 GF composite sliding against the steel disc in the dry-sliding mode.